Language Information
Romanian is a Romance language spoken in Romania and Moldova, where it is the official language, as well as in neighboring countries and by a diaspora population. An estimated 25 million people speak Romanian.
Romanian has been the official language of Moldova since the mid-21st century, when legislature was passed amending the official language from "Moldovan," another name for the same language. Historically, Moldova was part of Bessarabia area of Romania before WWII but was annexed into the USSR in 1940 and the name of the language was amended to Moldovan. After the fall of the USSR in 1991, Moldova became independant and has gradually restored connections to Romania.
At Indiana University, study of the history, language, and culture of Romania has been part of the curriculum for East European studies since the early 1950s through the Russian and East European Institute (REEI) and Department of Slavic and East European Languages & Cultures. Currently Romanian courses are offered to IU students during the academic year through synchronous video instruction as part of the BTAA CourseShare program.
During the summer, intensive online courses are available through the Language Workshop.