Identity and Multiculturalism in the Romanian Banat
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Méditerranée 110 (2008) Bulgarie-Roumanie ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Remus Creţan, David Turnock et Jaco Woudstra Identity and multiculturalism in the Romanian Banat ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Avertissement Le contenu de ce site relève de la législation française sur la propriété intellectuelle et est la propriété exclusive de l'éditeur. Les œuvres figurant sur ce site peuvent être consultées et reproduites sur un support papier ou numérique sous réserve qu'elles soient strictement réservées à un usage soit personnel, soit scientifique ou pédagogique excluant toute exploitation commerciale. La reproduction devra obligatoirement mentionner l'éditeur, le nom de la revue, l'auteur et la référence du document. Toute autre reproduction est interdite sauf accord préalable de l'éditeur, en dehors des cas prévus par la législation en vigueur en France. Revues.org est un portail de revues en sciences humaines et sociales développé par le Cléo, Centre pour l'édition électronique ouverte (CNRS, EHESS, UP, UAPV). ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Référence électronique Remus Creţan, David Turnock et Jaco Woudstra, « Identity and multiculturalism in the Romanian Banat », Méditerranée [En ligne], 110 | 2008, mis en ligne le 01 janvier 2010. URL : http://mediterranee.revues.org/523 DOI : en cours d'attribution Éditeur : Publications de l'université de Provence http://mediterranee.revues.org http://www.revues.org Document accessible en ligne sur : http://mediterranee.revues.org/523 Ce document est le fac-similé de l'édition papier. Tous droits réservés N° 110 - 2008 1 Identity and multiculturalism in the Romanian Banat Identité et multi-culturalisme dans le Banat roumain Remus CREŢAN David TURNOCK Jaco WOUDSTRA Professor Emeritus Professor Faculty of Geographical Sciences Department of Geography, Department of Geography Utrecht University West University of Timişoara University of Leicester. The Netherlands Pârvan 4 Timişoara, România Leicester LE1 7RH, U.K [email protected] cretan_remus@ yahoo.com [email protected] It is common for people to maintain an attachment to their native settlement La plupart des gens ont un sentiment d’attache vis-à-vis de leur village or county but there are also wider regional identities which may not be fully de naissance, mais certaines identités régionales plus larges peuvent ne pas reflected in official administrative hierarchies. The province of Banat was être reflétées par les hiérarchies administratives officielles. La province du established by the Habsburg authorities on the southeastern edge of the Banat a été créée par l’autorité habsbourgeoise sur le flanc sud-est de la plaine Pannonian Plain as an experiment in mercantilist colonisation following pannonienne sous la forme d’une expérience de colonisation mercantile suite the Turkish withdrawal. Although it was incorporated into the Hungarian au retrait des Turcs. Bien qu’incorporé dans l’État hongrois sous le système dual state under the dualist system negotiated in 1867 it retained its multicultural négocié en 1867, son caractère multi-culturel s’est maintenu, tout comme cela character ; as it was the case after the partition which followed the First a été le cas après la partition qui a suivi la Seconde Guerre mondiale. À travers World War. Through its main urban centre – Timişoara – the Romanian son centre urbain principal – Timişoara –, la partie roumaine du Banat a joué section of Banat played a leading role in the anti-communist revolution of un rôle déterminant dans la révolution anti-communiste de 1989 et a attiré 1989 and attracted a high level of foreign investment during the subsequent de nombreux investissements étrangers au cours de la période de transition qui transition period. The paper outlines the conceptual basis of regional identity, s’est ensuivie. Cet article interroge le concept d’identité régionale, s’intéresse documents the multicultural heritage of the Romanian component of the Banat à l’héritage multi-culturel de la composante roumaine du Banat et exploite les region and examines the results of a questionnaire survey –involving all résultats d’un questionnaire par sondage auprès de tous les groupes ethniques ethnic groups- enquiring into identity preferences. A strong multiculturalism portant sur les préférences identitaires. Un multi-culturalisme vigoureux emerged (in the context of both internal and external contributions) and seems émerge (issu d’apports internes et externes) et semble s’établir comme une set to remain a powerful force in the future of regionalism in Romania. force d’orientation puissante dans le devenir du régionalisme roumain. Key-words: regional identity, multiculturalism, Romanian Banat region Mots-clés : identité régionale, multi-culturalisme, Banat roumain Emerging out of its origin as the Habsburg frontier at the 1 - Introduction: conceptual basis edge of the Pannonian Plain, the Banat region1 in today’s and research programme western Romania, northern Serbia and southeastern Hungary is noted for its genuine multiculturalism which has emerged While Banat historically extends into Serbian territory from its diverse ethnic structure and turbulent history linked (east of the Tisa) and a very small part of Hungary between with imperialism during an age of enlightenment (CARTER & the Tisa and Mureş, our study of regional multiculturalism is TURNOCK 2000 ; BENNEtt 1998). Since historical experience limited to the Romanian component. We concentrate on the plays a fundamental role in the identity of the region today counties of Caraş-Severin and Timiş although many authors and, specifically for Romanian Banat (the largest part of a also consider small adjacent areas of Arad county (south of region divided by the post-1918 ethos of self-determination), the Mureş) and Mehedinţi county (along the Danube upstream this paper seeks to unravel the feelings that a particular of Orşova) as historically part of Banat, while the existence territory and history can evoke as well as the effects that of a West region (as one of eight large regions created as part these feelings have on society and its constituent groups : of the EU project) will inevitably require some consideration especially the Romanians along with the Serbs, Hungarians of Arad and Hunedoara counties. and Germans who constituted the major ethnicities with their As Berdoulay argues (quoted by PAASI 1996: 11-12) a place own villages and urban quarters. We then review the history is a mere network of social relations and a community is not of Banat with a focus on the theme of different identities necessarily bounded by a specific territory : only by discourse coexisting within this specific marginal region (inside the are the boundaries established, as is the community itself - ottoman, Hapsburg Empires as well as inside Romania) ; showing to the world as the “we” is distinct from the “other”. leading to the research outcomes and the profiling of the In other words, “when a group occupies a territory the group identities discernible today as the key to the region’s ongoing no longer defines the territory but the territory defines the multiculturalism (notwithstanding a Romanian majority that group” (HERB 1999: 17). Of course, stories and narratives now exceeds 80%) ; and its reproduction, especially through contributed by territorial elites will help to decide who joins the work of local government and the education service. and who does not : in this way the “we” will be separated See pl. 1, fig. 1, p. 52. 110DerQuadri.indd 17 06/11/2008 16:53:45 18 from the “other” by use of boundaries. But there may be rival Timişoara where the fortress built by Bela II assumed narratives such as the Hungarian and Romanian versions considerable economic and military importance. Indeed of Transylvanian history (PAASI 1996: 8-10) ; boundaries Timişoara became the residence of Carol-Robert of Anjou, being not only lines between states but invisible zones which made Timişoara a royal capital : the palace became within which groups with the same iconography distinguish the nucleus of the town and the site is currently occupied themselves from outsiders and mediate their contacts with by the Banat museum. However the Hungarian presence in them. Moreover “territories are not eternal units, but exist the mountains and hills was not maintained and, despite the for some time and disappear in the transformation of the nominal jurisdiction of Hungarian kings, several distinct world state system” (Ibid: 3). Romanian tribal districts can be identified under the rule Banat formation takes place at different scales. National of cnezii and juzii : Almăj, Bârzava, Caraş, Comeat, Fârdea, identity is one of the most privileged forms that tends to Ilidia, Mehadia and Sebeş (Caransebeş) in the present dominate others