| Csángó Ceangăi |
|---|
| Total population |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Romania (Moldavia), Hungary (Tolna) |
| Languages |
| Romanian, Hungarian (dialect) |
| Religions |
| Roman Catholics (almost exclusively) |
| Related ethnic groups |
| Hungarians, Székely |
The Csángó (Romanian: Ceangău, plural Ceangăi) are an ethnic group of Roman Catholic faith, some speaking a Romanian and some Hungarian dialect. Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania Moldavia (Moldova is a geographic and historical region and former Principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between Eastern Carpathians Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Tolna is the name of an administrative county ( comitatus or megye in present Hungary and in the former Kingdom of Hungary. Romanian or Daco-Romanian ( dated: Rumanian or Roumanian; self designation limba română, ˈlimba roˈmɨnə is a Romance Hungarian ( magyar nyelv) is a Uralic language (more specifically a Ugric language) unrelated to most other languages in Europe. Hungarians (or Magyars, magyarok are an Ethnic group primarily associated with Hungary. For the village in northeastern Hungary see Székely (village The Székely ( pronounced) or Szekler people (Székely Romanian or Daco-Romanian ( dated: Rumanian or Roumanian; self designation limba română, ˈlimba roˈmɨnə is a Romance Romanian or Daco-Romanian ( dated: Rumanian or Roumanian; self designation limba română, ˈlimba roˈmɨnə is a Romance Hungarian ( magyar nyelv) is a Uralic language (more specifically a Ugric language) unrelated to most other languages in Europe. They live mostly in Bacău County in Romania, with many across the national frontier in the Republic of Moldova. Bacău (ba'kəu is a county ( Judeţ) of Romania, in Moldavia, with its capital city at Bacău. Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova ( Republica Moldova) is a Landlocked country in Eastern Europe, located between Romania
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The ethnic background of Csángó/Ceangăi is nevertheless disputed, since, due to its active connections to the neighboring Polish kingdom and to the Papal States, Roman Catholic faith persisted in Moldavia throughout medieval times. The Papal States, State(s of the Church or Pontifical States (in Italian Stato Ecclesiastico, Stato della Chiesa, Stati della Chiesa Moldavia (Moldova is a geographic and historical region and former Principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between Eastern Carpathians Along with marked cultural and ethno-linguistic differences between Hungarian-speaking and Romanian-speaking Csángó/Ceangăi, this historical background explains why some Csángó/Ceangăi claim having Hungarian while others Romanian ancestry.
The Csángó can be distinguished from other Hungarian ethnic groups by their linguistic peculiarities, traditions and folklore. Their identity as a people was based on their linguistic and religious differences from the Moldavian-Romanians nearby. Since the Middle Ages, Hungarian-speaking Csángó have lived isolated from the larger body of Hungarian speakers, which also meant that they were largely untouched by the nationalist movements that swept 19th century Europe and led to the formation of modern nations. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar As a consequence, the primary identity of the Csángó was not national (Hungarian as opposed to Romanian) but rather confessional (Roman Catholic as opposed to Eastern Orthodox). The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian Communion in the world
In 2001 the Council of Europe has expressed its concerns about the situation of the Csángó minority culture[1], and discussed that the Csángós speak an early form of Hungarian and are associated with ancient traditions, and a great diversity of folk art and culture, which is of exceptional value for Europe. It was also mentioned that although not everybody agrees on this number it is thought that between 60 000 and 70 000 people speak the Csángó language. The Council of Europe has also expressed concerns that despite the provisions of the Romanian law on education and the repeated requests from parents there is no teaching of Csángó language in the Csángó villages, as a consequence, very few Csángós are able to write in their mother tongue. The document also discussed that the Csángós make no political demands, but merely want to be recognised as a distinct culture and demand education and church services in the Csángó language.
It is difficult to estimate the exact number of the Csángó because of the elusive nature and multiple factors (ethnicity, religion and language) of Csángó identity.
As far as ethnic identification is concerned, in the census of 2002, 4,317 declared themselves Hungarians and 796 declared themselves Csángó in Bacău County, reaching a total of 5,794 out of the county's total population of 706,623. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Hungarians (or Magyars, magyarok are an Ethnic group primarily associated with Hungary.
In terms of religious affiliation, the total number of Roman Catholics in Moldavia is 239,938 (2002 census), but only 43% of these live in settlements where Hungarian is spoken. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. As far as language use is concerned, the Council of Europe gives estimates that put the total number of Hungarian-speaking Csángó people between 60,000 and 70,000, "Although not everybody agrees on this number" (it may be higher or lower). [3]