Kahl, Thede (2002): The Ethnicity of Aromanians after 1990: the Identity of a Minority that Behaves like a Majority. In: Ethnologica Balkanica 6: 145-169

ETHNOLOGIA BALKANICA, VOL. 6 (2002) The Ethnicity of Aromanians after 1990: the Identity of a Minority that Behaves like a Majority1 ThedeKahl,Münster Aromaniansdefinethemselves–dependingonwhichdialectgrouptheybelong to–asArmâńiorRrămăńi.Untiltodaythegroupof‘Rrămăńi’(Rum.:‘Aromâni Fărșeroţi’,Greek:‘Arvanitóvlachi’)haspartlypreserveditssemi-nomadiclifestyle,livinginprovisionaltemporarysettlements,whilelargegroupsof‘Armâńi’ (Rum.:‘Aromâni’,Greek:‘Kutsóvlachi’)sincethe14thcenturybegantosetup summervillagesandinpartturnedawayfromcattle-breeding. Speakers of Aromanian define themselves as belonging to the “fara armāneascā”(Aromaniantribe),orwithararerwordtothe“populuarmānescu” (Aromanianpeople).InAromanianthereisnomodernwordfornationorethnos, but when trying to describe this term in their own language, they have many possibilities for adopting similar words from other languages like ‘miletea armāneascā’ (from Turkish millet), ‘laou armānescu’ (from Greek laós), ‘ginsā armāneascā’(fromTurkishcins,cf.Albanianxhins)or‘ghimtāarmāneascā’(from Albanian gjnt; all examples see Papahagi 1974). Only few Aromanian use the neologism“natsie”(nation).TheawarenessofbelongingtotheArmâńiorRrămăńi isbasedonideasofethnicorculturalcohesiononcriteriaoflanguage,religion, ancestry,commonhistoryandprofessionalspecialisation.TheMegleniteVlachsor MeglenoromaniansandtheIstro-Romaniansarenotincludedinthisinterpretation ofAromanian;firstofalltheydonotevencallthemselvesarmâńiorrrămăńi,but vlaș. Beside this they cannot be considered as Aromanians with regard to their ethnogenesis(seeSchramm1997:300–306;Vékony1996),dialect(seeAtanasov 1990,Dahmen1989,Kramer1989),andidentity(seeKahl1999:62). The range of different forms of identity and the resulting dilemma of the divisionofthefundamentalalignmentswithintheAromaniansocietieswasconditionedontheonehandbytheirculturalandmentalclosenesstotheGreeksandon theotherhandbytheclosenessoftheirlanguagetotheRomanian.Theinfluence ofpoliticalmovements,especiallythoseofGreeceandRomania,butalsoofother 1 Formydoctoralthesis“EthnicityanddistributionoftheAromaniansinSoutheastEurope”I studiedthequestioniftheAromanians(alsoAroumanians,Aromunians,Cincars,Kutsovlachs, Macedoromanians)canbedefinedtodayasauniformgroup,iftheyformsubgroupsandin whataspectstheydiffer.ForthispurposeImadeadetailedlistofAromaniansettlementsand asurveyofthereasonsfortheirpresentdistribution.Further,narrativeinterviewswithsociogeographicalandethnologicalmethodsweremade(onmethodologyseeKahl1999:7–13). Thispaper,writtenthreeyearsaftertheempiricalstudy,summarizessomeoftheresultsand addsrecentdevelopments. 146 Balkanstates,ledtofurtherdivisions.Alsothedivisionsbetweenruralandurban groups, with the traditionalism and backwardness of the former, the greater progressivenessofthelatter,andthecompletelydifferentformoftheirsettlements andwaysoflife,functionedasdividingelements.Becauseofthewidelydispersed settlements as a result of their historical and socio-economic way of life, the Aromaniansliveontheperimeterofpeopleofotherethnicoriginsandthusmerge withthese,whichleadstoeitheraformofdualidentityorcompleteassimilation. FromtherootsofAromanianidentitytothe“AromanianQuestion” Theemergenceofaconsciousnessthatcanbecallednational–whetherGreek, Romanian or specifically Aromanian – probably did not exist among the AromaniansbeforethebeginningofthenationalmovementsofsoutheastEuropean peoplesintheearly19thcentury.IntheByzantineandOttomanperiods,orthodox Christiansdefinedthemselves,regardlessoflanguageandculture,asRomans(in GreekRoméi,laterRomií;inLatinRomani,laterRomâniandArmâńi).Before Aromanians began to develop their own ethnic consciousness or to orientate themselves to other peoples and their national movements, the most important aspectsofidentificationweretheirbelongingtoa“millet”(orthodoxChristians) and,second,toaprofessionalgroup(shepherds,craftsman,dealersetc.);belongingtoRoméi,RomâniorArmâńiwassecondary,andtermslike“nation”werenot knownatall. Becauseoftheirtraditionalcattle-breedingandbecauseofpersecutionsintheir urbanizedsettlements,thedistributionofAromaniansisveryscattered.Neither spatiallynorintheirself-understandingcouldtheyeverformacoherentgroup. When at the beginning of the 19th century an Aromanian movement emerged, largenumbersofAromanianswerealreadyassimilatedinvariousregionsorwere in a state of assimilation. Thus we have to distinguish between a “national Aromanian movement” on the one hand and their participation in the national movementsoftheirneighbourpeoplesontheotherhand. Themostcommonorientationswereandstillarepro-Greekandpro-Romanian. The words “graecoman” and “romanizing” used in southeast European languagescarrypejorativemeanings(andshouldbeavoided).TheGreek-Romanian conflict on the “Aromanian question” split the Aromanians into different factions,intothosebelongingtotheRomanian,thosebelongingtotheGreekand thosebelongingpurelytotheAromanian.Eventodaythisconflictisingrainedin thequestionoftheiridentity,theirpositionasaminorityandtheirpoliticaland culturalorientation. SincetheAromaniansbelongedtotheGreekpatriarchateofConstantinopleand theirculturalandeconomicactivitieswereboundtotheGreekchurch(Peyfuss 1970: 338), the wealthy urbanized Aromanians have been especially active as representativesoftheGreeklanguageanddistributorsofGreekcultureforalong 147 time.Alreadyinthe17thand18thcenturiesGreekwasthemostimportantlanguageofcommunicationinmostofsoutheastEurope.Amongmanynon-Greekspeakingethnicgroups(Bulgarians,Albanians,Vlachs,Jews)Greekfunctionedas alinguafranca(cf.Konstantakopúlu1988:11).ThefirstdocumentsinAromanian werewrittenintheGreekalphabetandwerenotintendedtoteachAromanian,but tospreadtheGreeklanguage(Konstantakopúlu1988:13),e. g.thedictionariesof TheódorosKavalliótis(1770)andDaniílMoschopolítis(1802).Itwascharacteristic that in Voskopoja (Moschópolis) neither Vlach schools nor an Aromanian printingshopwereestablished,buttheGreekNéaAkademía(14thcentury)anda Greek language typography (Hetzer 1982). Persons like Kosmás the Aetolian (1714–1779),NeófytosDúkas(1762–1845),KonstantínosKúmas(1777–1836), MetropolitIoanníkios(1815–1854),andDárvaris(1798)struggledforthediffusionoftheGreeklanguageamongtheAromanians(Peyfuss1970:340). ThesefirstactivistsinfluencedthedevelopmentofAromanianself-awareness. AtthesametimemanyotherpeoplesintheBalkanswerealsointheinitialphase of their national awakening. The success of the Greek language with the AromanianswasnotonlycausedbyafewpersonsstrugglingforGreekculture, but mostly by increasing contacts with Greek neighbours and by the fact that Greekwasthemostimportantcommerciallanguage.Alotofcompactsettlements in Central Greece, e. g. near Agrínio and Lamía, were Hellenized without the influenceofpoliticalorchurchactivists.ThedevelopmentofaspecificAromanian identitycanbeobservedparticularlyintheearlyAromaniandiaspora.Especially someAromaniangrammarsandlanguagebookletsdocumentaclearawarenessof the Latin base of Aromanian and were intended for other purposes than books publishedinMoschópolis,e. g.theworksofKonstantínosUkútas(1797),George C.Rosa(1808)orMihailBojadschiorBoiagi(1813).Atthesametime(1815), theAromaniansofBudaandPestaskedpermissiontousetheirlanguageinorthodox liturgy. In fear of reactions from the patriarchate of Constantinople, the metropolitneglectedthisrequest.Peyfuss(1974:21)characterizestheAromanian movementasa“nationalmovementtypicalforthe19thcentury”.Inthe1860s, soonaftertheestablishmentoftheRomanianstate,theRomaniannationalmovement and its extensive educational policy in Macedonia, Thessaly and Epirus began to influence Aromanian activities. Since then Aromanian activities were automaticallyboundtoRomania.TheawarenessofLatinbase,whichspreadin the (Daco)romanian population, had an influence on the Aromanian world, althoughwithsomedelayandfewerconsequences. Any attempt to establish independent Aromanian churches or schools was handled like a scandal by the Greek patriarchate (Miron 1978: 136; Konstantakopúlu 1988: 45). Although the patriarchate in 1879 permitted the use of Romanian church books by Aromanians, most of the clergy did not accept Aromanianasachurchlanguage(Miron1978:136f.,Demirtaș-Coșkun2001:58). 148 AftertheestablishmentofaMacedo-romaniancommitteein1860inBucharest, RomanianscoutssuchasBolintineanutravelledthroughEpirusandMacedonia (s.Bolintineanu1863;Chatzópulos1982).Romaniabegantotrainteachersfor MacedoniaandappointedApostolMărgărit(inGreekApóstolosMargarítis,born 1832inAvdélla)assupervisoroftheRomanianschools.1864thefirstRomanian (“Aromanian”) school was established in Macedonia in the village of Trnovo. OtherRomanianschoolsfollowedsuit,andatthebeginningofthe20thcentury therealreadyexisted100Romanianchurches,106Romanianschoolswithmore than4,000pupilsand300teachersinMacedoniaandEpirus2.Butthenumberof pupils at Romanian schools was moderate, because only basic instruction was given in Aromanian, while most lessons were in Romanian. Since 1865 there existedaMacedo-romanianschoolinBucharest,andin1887firstschoolbooksin Aromanianwereused(Bratter1907:59).SomewhatlaterthefirstAromaniantext books with patriotic Aromanian poems came out. “Dimândare pârintească” (“parentaladmonition”)byBelemace(alsoBelimace)of1888becamethebestknownpoem.Itdevelopedintosomethingliketheanthemofthenationallyoriented Aromanians. In the poem, parents who do not teach their children the Aromanianlanguagearecursedforever(textseeKahl1999:155). AromanianpatriotssuchasApostolMărgărit,originallyaGreekteacher,and Constantin Belemace from Malovište show that most active participants of the RomanianmovementwerenotRomanians,butAromanians3.Isuggestthatthe describedmovementsbecharacterizedasAromanian-Romanian(orVlach-Romanian,asdoesAdanır1979:220). The Aromanian-Romanian movement culminated in the recognition of the Aromaniansbyadecree(“irade”)as“Ullahmillet”(“Vlachmillet”,ofteninterpreted as “Aromanian nation”). With the support of the Great Powers, prominentlybyAustria-Hungary,onMay22,1905,theyweregrantedbySultanAbdul HamidoftheOttomanEmpiretherighttoestablishtheirownchurchesaswellas educatethemselves(seeBossy1959).TheGreek-Romanianconflictreachedits climax in the last and most violent phase of the Macedonian Struggles (1910–1913)whenmostAromaniangroupsfoughtonpro-patriarchateside,while otherstooksideswiththepro-Bulgarianexarchists.Theconfrontation between differentlyorientedAromaniansledtobloodshed4.Thegrowingtensionbetween thedifferentgroupsin1906ledtothebreaking-offofdiplomaticrelationsbetween RomaniaandGreece(Bratter1907:101).Sincethenthe“Ullahmillet”iscalled 2 3 4 Peyfuss1974:106;seealsoBurada1890,Dona1928,Goschin1931,Ordeanu1928,Ţigoiu 1938;onthedatacf.alsoWeigand1895:306–308;Diváni1996:24. OnMărgăritseeCapidan1942:232ff.;concerninghisintentionsseeAvérof1992andPeyfuss 1974;ofBelemacethereisanautobiography:Belemace1990. On discriminations, persecutions and other conflicts between pro-Greek and pro-Romanian AromaniansseeAdanır1979:217–222,Bratter1907:61,65–76,111–120,Demirtaș-Coșkun 2001:17–22,Diváni1996:200,Papanace1951,Peyfuss1974:90. 149 “Romanianminority”,andtheAromanianswerenolongerdividedintopro-Greek andpro-Romanian,butintoGreek(Neo-Hellenes)andRomanian. WiththepeaceofBucharestin1913Romaniadidnotseemtobeinterested anymoreintheAromanians.Romania’sreasonsforarenewedintensiveschool policyinthe1920saretobefoundparticularlyinRomania’sproblemswithits non-Romanian population. Romanians paid special attention to helping the Aromanians to feel like “Macedonian brothers” of the Romanians – with the purposeofusingthemforthestabilizationoftheRomanianelementinthesouthernDobrudja.ThisdevelopmentcausedastrongemigrationtoRomaniain1925 fromallcountrieswithanAromanianpopulation. Anewformoforientationbeganin1917,whenItaliantroopsmovedthrough AlbaniaintoEpirus(Zdrulla1929:162ff.).Italymadeattemptstoconvertthe pro-Romanianintopro-ItalianAromanians,apolicythatsucceededonlymarginally(seeDiváni1996:196,205,Papagiánnis1998:21–32).Pro-Greekorientationswerethestrongest;alreadyWeigandreportedthatmostAromanianswerenot only “indifferent” but even showed hostility to their own national movement (Weigand1897:54). ThecontributionofAromanianstothenationalhistoryoftheBalkan peoples AskingforthereasonsthatpreventedtheformationofAromaniannationhoodwe havetofirststresstheirparticipationinthenationbuildingoftheirneighbours. Theymayhavebeenlesssuccessfulinachievingnationhoodforthemselves,but theywerequitesuccessfulinfurtheringthatofotherBalkanpeoples.EconomicallyandpoliticallyAromanianshadthepossibilitytodeveloptheirownnationhood,butthehighlevelofspatialdispersionandethnicintermixingwereobstacles totheirownnationalaspirations. WithinAromaniansocietytherewereverylargediscrepancieswithregardto education and wealth. Aromanians who had economic success as tradesmen or caravanpeopleusuallyassimilatedveryfastintoothernations,whilethemany semi-nomadicAromanianshepherdsandpeasantsasalowerclassoftheirethnic society were slow in developing a national elite. Thus the most powerful Aromanianeliteswhohadthepossibilitytobeacrucialelementinthepromotion anddisseminationofanationalconsciousnesspreferredtoengageinvariousother nationalmovements,andtendedtoplaykeyrolesinthenation-buildingofother ethnicgroupsthantheirown.The“irade”whichfoundedacoherentadministrative“Ullahmillet”encouragedVlachidentityintheOttomanEmpireoftheearly 20th century, but it did not result in the creation of a widespread Aromanian nationalconsciousness.Inotherwords,the“irade”cametoolatetohelpbuildan Aromaniannation.Theassimilationoftheupperclassandtheirinvolvementin 150 other national movements were already too advanced. Not even the support of their“relatives”inRomaniafurtheredtheirunification,becausemostAromanians didnotconsiderRomaniaasapatron.EventheirattitudestowardstheOttomans variedalot.VlachsoftenactedasguidesforOttomanforces(Werner1966:476, Poulton1995:61),butontheotherhandmanyAromanianwerefightersagainst theOttomans.AtypicalexampleofdifferentorientationswithinthesamepopulationaretheAromaniansofThessalyaftertheGreco-Turkishwarin1881.Onthe onehandtheypetitionedthepowerstoplacethemunderOttomanandnotGreek rule (see Eliot 1965 = Odysseus 1900: 370–379) and to make their district a Turkishprovince(p.310),ontheotherhandgroupsfoughtforabetterlifeon Greek territory like the inhabitants of the Aromanian village Kutsúfliani who movedovertotheGreekpartwithalltheirbelongings(seeDietrichetal.2001). NationalhistoriansoftheBalkanstatesliketopointtotheAromaniansas“the bestGreeks”,“thebestMacedonians”,“thebestAlbanians”etc.Theiridentity, cultureandwayoflifehasneverbeeninconflictwiththecultureofthemajority. ThustheybecamepartoftheBalkanbourgeoisiewhileparticipatinginnational movements and promoting their respective host states. By integrating into, or identifyingwith,thehostnationandtakingpartinitsdevelopmenttheychosenot onlyawayofassimilation,butalsoanearlywayofmodernization. Many national heroes referred to in national historiography are known as havingbeenAromanians.ExamplesinGreekhistoryaresuchfightersforindependenceasGeorgákisOlýmpios,thewell-knownmaecenasBaronGeorgiosSinas andSimonSinas,thepoliticiansIoannisKolettis(ministerandprimeminister), SpyridonLambros(historianandpolitician),patriarchAthenagorasorEvangelos Averof Tositsas (minister of foreign affairs). In Albania, the famous Frasheri BrothersareconsideredasimportantfiguresoftheAlbaniannationalmovement. InwhatisnowtheRepublicofMacedonia,PituGuli(1865–1903)foughttogether withtheMacedonianBulgarsinthebattleofIlindenin1903.Eventhebrothers Miladinovi were of partly Aromanian origin, their maternal grandfather had migratedfromVoskopoja/MoschópolisandwasapriestnearBitola(Društvoza nauka2002).Examplesofwell-knownAromaniansinRomaniaareMoga,Șaguna andotherorthodoxmetropoliteswhoparticipatedinthestruggleforRomanian cultureandorthodoxyinTransylvania.AlargenumberofAromanianscanalsobe foundamongwell-knownpersonalitiesofpresentsoutheastEuropeancountries. These features of Aromanian identity have probably been the reason for Nicolau(1993)tocalltheAromanians“lescaméleonsdesBalkans”,whichcaused Balamaci (1995) say that the Aromanians were “born to assimilate”, and Gavrilović (1998: 2) that their identity is “able to melt with Greek, Serbian, Bulgarian,Christian-AlbanianorRomanianidentity”.Exactlythis“chameleon” flexibilityofidentitiesmadetheAromaniansnotonlyoneofthemostpolyglot groupsinsoutheastEuropebutalsoaneconomicallyandpoliticallyverystrong one.Theirdiffusionandtheirdifferentstatesofassimilationarethemostimpor- 151 tantcausesforthegreatvarietyoftheirtypesofidentificationwhichmakethema veryheterogeneousgroupinregardtotheirethnicity. PresenttendenciesinAromanianidentity While the Aromanian tradesmen and craftsmen were incorporated into Greek culture, due to their urban way of life and their continuing contact with the Greeks,thoseAromanianswhoseforefatherswereengagedinagriculturehavea tendencytowardsassimilation,aboveallbySlavs.Aromanianswhoengagedina pastoralliferepresentthemostclosedsocietiesandhaveretainedtheirspecific Aromanianidentityandthebestknowledgeoftheirlanguageandculture. Today,theAromanianshavemanagedtoreconcilethepeculiaritiesoftheir ethnicitywiththenationalidentitiesintheirhoststates,buthaveneverforgotten their separate Aromanian phyletic, co-national consciousness. Today most AromaniansintheRepublicofMacedonia,inAlbania,Bulgaria,andAustralia, butnotinGreeceorGreekdiasporaplaces,haveadoptedMay22astheNational DayoftheAromanians. Thefollowingtypesofidentificationcanbedetermined: 1.PurelyAromanian PurelyAromaniantypesofidentitysurvivedpredominantlyinsouthSlavicsettings,e. g.intheRepublicofMacedoniaandBulgaria.InAlbaniaalargenumber of them consider themselves to be a coherent people. In Romania the groups whichimmigratedin1940havepreservedtheirAromanianidentitywhileearlier immigrated Aromanians were mostly assimilated. Aromanians who stress their separateAromanianidentityusuallydissociatethemselvesfromanyaffiliationwith anothernation.InGreece,mostoftheirgroupsliveinVéria,intheGrevenáarea, andinAthens,inAlbaniainthesouthwestofthecountry,andintheRepublicof MacedoniamostlyeastoftheVardarRiver.InsomecasesanAromanianidentity survivesevenifnoAromanianisspoken,e. g.amongtheCincarsofSerbia. 2.Greek,Hellenic(called“grecoman”inmostBalkanlanguages) TodaylargeAromaniangroupsidentifywiththeGreekcultureandnation.Outside GreecemanyAromaniansinsouthernAlbaniahaveaGreekidentitywhichwas enforcedinthelastyearsinhopeofeconomicadvantagesfromcloserrelations with Greece. Beyond this, pro-Greek oriented families and individuals can be foundinmanytownsandcitiesalloversoutheastEurope.MostGreekoriented personsemphasizetheirdistancefromRomanianculture. 152 3.Romanian,Romanophile(calledalso“rumanizon”,especiallyinGreece) ThestrongestorientationtowardstheRomaniancultureandnationcanbefound amongtheAromaniansinRomania.Butapro-Romanianorientationcanalsobe foundoutsideofRomania,predominantlyinplaceswheretherewereRomanian schools.MostRomanianorientedpersonsdissociatethemselvesfarfromGreek cultureandconsiderthemselvestobeapartoftheRomanianpeoplespeakinga Romaniandialect. 4.IdentificationwithotherBalkannations While the identification with the Greek and Romanian nation and culture is not limited to the states of Greece and Romania, the identification with Albanians, Slavo-macedonians,SerbsorBulgarianscanonlybefoundinthepertinentcountries. 5.Local Alagenumberoftheinformantsstressedlocalidentities.TheAromaniandescent seemedtobelessimportanttothemandwasevendeniedbysome. 6.Indifference Onlyaverysmallpartoftheinterviewedpersonsdisplayedindifferencetowards theirAromanianorigin. 7.Doubleidentities A large number of my informants had double identities or transitional forms betweenthosedescribedabove. ThesituationintheBalkancountriesconcerningAromanianidentity andactivities InAromaniangroupsalloversoutheastEurope,Aromanianeducationhadcome to a halt for decades, but since the 1980s a wave of activities (organisations, magazines,education,languagecourses,liturgiesetc.)canbeobserved. On June 15, 1999, the Council of Europe adopted recommendation 1333 (1997)onAromaniancultureandlanguage,accordingtowhichtheBalkancountrieswithAromanianpopulationswereencouragedtoratifytheEuropeanCharter ofRegionalorMinorityLanguagesandtosupporttheAromaniansintermsof educationintheirmothertongue,religiousservices,newspapers,magazines,radio andtelevisionprogrammesinAromanian,andsupportfortheirculturalassociations.InthefollowingIwillpresentsomeobservationsonhowAromaniangroups haveworkedtowardsthesesgoals. 153 1.Greece5 The Lausanne convention of 1923 mentioned between 150,000 and 200,000 Vlachs in Greece. The last national census which differentiated between the orthodox ethnic groups showed 26,750 Vlachs living in Greece in 1940 and 22,736in1951.EstimatesbyAromaniannationalistslivinginGreeceofpresent numbersareashighas600,000.Ifonetakesintoaccountallthosewhoconsider themselvestobeArmâńi,RrămăńiorVlași(Aromanian)andwhoatleastunderstand the language, we should perhaps speak of max. 300,000 Aromanians in Greece,withanumberoffluentspeakersnotabove100,000.ThespatialconcentrationofAromaniansinGreeceisinthePindosmountains,itsridgesandthe surroundingplainsinEpirus,Thessaly,andMacedonia,theVermionmountains andMountOlympus.TheMegleniteVlachslivingincentral(Greek)Macedonia numbernomorethan4,000people. Throughtheirnumerouspatrons,nationalheroes,politicians,intellectuals,and clergy,theAromanianshavegreatlycontributedtothehistoryandculturaldevelopmentofGreece(seePapathanasíu1994).ThisroleinthehistoryofGreeceisof great importance for their identity as a part of the modern Greek nation. The imageofAromaniansasawildandpastoralfolk,whichstillprevailsinGreece and in the neighbouring countries, is nourished by the media (see Kostópulos 1989:205).TheiridentificationwithHellenismasanancientculturemakesiteasy fortheAromanianstochangethisimage. Astheterm“minority”isusedinGreeceonlyforreligiousgroups,thereis onlyoneofficialminoritygroup,theMuslims.Becauseofitsconnectiontothe Muslims,thetermbearsanegativeundertone.ThereforemostAromaniansrefuse tobecalledaminority. AromaniannationalidentityistiedtomodernHellenism.ThetwowordsGreek andHellenicalreadycauseproblems.WhilealmosteveryAromanianconsiders himselftobeHellene(Éllinas,fem.Ellinída,pl.Éllines)whenspeakingGreek,he wouldneverconsiderhimselfGreek(Grecu,fem.Greacā,pl.Grets)whenspeakingAromanian.FromtheperspectiveoftheGreekAromaniansallmonolingual populations which only speak Greek belong to the Greeks (Grets), while the Vlach-,Slav-andAlbanianspeakingpeoplecanalsobelongtotheHellenes(Elini, inGreekÉllines).BecauseoftheirNeo-HellenicconsciousnesstheAromaniansof GreecearenothreattoGreece,andthisiswhytheyareusedbyGreecetodemonstrateitsliberalattitudetowardslinguisticminorities(Divani1996:198). 5 IwillgiveestimatesofthepresentnumbersofAromaniansintherelevantcountries.Because ofmissingorolddataanddifferentcensusmethodsestimatingminoritypopulationsisalmost impossible.Differentestimatesconcerningtheirnumbermustbecompared,seeWinnifrith 1987; Papahagi 1932: 79 ff.; Weigand 1895: 281 ff.; Braga 1965: 43–51; Banu 2001; Demirtaș-Coșkun2001. 154 Thingsarequitedifferentinthecaseofpro-RomanianAromaniansandthose whoconsiderthemselvestobeatotallyseparatepeople.Theydonotonlyidentify themselvesbytheircultureandlanguage,butalsohaveacertainnationalawareness.Therearestillpro-RomanianAromaniansinGreece,especiallyinvillagesin whichstrongRomaniancommunitieswereonceacceptedbytheGreekauthorities, above all in Avdélla, Perivóli, Samarína, Vovúsa, Kraniá, Édessa, Véria and surrounding areas, as well as in a few villages in the districts of Kastoriá and Ioánnina.Onthewhole,theyareaminuteanddwindlingnumberofAromanians. Intimidationandrepressionbylocalpoliticians,teachers,priestsandbythe nationalistspressintheperiodbetweentheCivilWarandthemilitarydictatorshiphasledtoatabooingofminorityinterests.Todaytheremovalofthetaboo in Greece allows a more open and friendly discussion of the question of Aromanianidentity. The majority of the Aromanians living in Greece is not interested in any initiativetowardsthepreservationoftheAromanianlanguageapartfromitsuse in the family (or in optional language education in schools). Initiatives from outsideofGreeceaimedatprotectingAromanianculturearelookeduponwith mistrust.ThissuspicionalsoconcernssimilarattemptsinGreece,e. g.theMinorityGroupsResearchCentre“KEMO”inThessalonika(seePanellíniaÉnosi 1998).ThediscussionsintheCouncilofEurope(1997)torecogniseAromanian as a minority language in Greece which must be protected met with extreme criticismfromthelargestAromanianorganisationinGreece(s.PanellíniaÉnosi 1998a),whereforetheCouncilofEuroperepeateditsdecisionin1998.Nofewer than31Vlach-speakingmayorsandvillagealdermensignedaprotestresolution againsttheUSStateDepartment’sannualreportonthehumanrightssituationin Greece.Theycomplained“againstthedirectorindirectcharacterizationofthe Vlach-speakingGreeksasanethnic,linguisticorotherminority,statingthatthe Vlach-speakingGreeksneverrequestedtoberecognizedbytheGreekstateasa minority, stressing that historically and culturally they were and still are an integralpartofHellenism,thattheywerebilingualandAromanianwassecondary”(Psífismadiamartyrías2001).Itistheirchoiceandrighttotrytoexempt themselves from the status of minority, but as a result some individuals who definethemselvesasminoritymembersfinditdifficulttoexpresstheiridentity freelyandtomaintaintheirculture. IntherecentpastthecourtproceedingsagainsttheAromanianactivistSotiris BletsasinAthens(onFebr.2,2001)revivedonceagainthediscussionaboutthe Aromanians’ rights in Greece. Bletsas was accused of having distributed at a Vlachfestivalin1995mapsofthe“EuropeanBureauforLesserUsedLanguages” 155 which mention the minority languages in Greece6. The witnesses against him includedanAromanianmayor.OnDec.18,2001,hewasfinallyacquitted7. Acloserlookrevealsthatnoneofthemorethan200Aromanianorganisations8 inGreecehasanAromaniannameandthatthemajorityofthelocalorganisations doesnotevenhavetheword“Vlach”intheirnames.Noneofthemhasdeclared thepreservationoftheAromanianlanguagetobeanimportantgoal.Theiractivities are restricted to cultural events. Local associations have recently founded Aromanian Cultural Museums in Sérres and Náusa9. The largest Aromanian organisationinGreece–andthusworld-wide–isthe“Pan-Hellenic Unionof CulturalAssociationsofVlachs”(PanellíniaÉnosiPolitistikónSyllógonVláchon Elládos)whichapartfromThessalonikahasalsobranchesinDráma,Grevená, Métsovo,Athens,andAgrínio.In2001ithadmorethan60memberassociations. Apartfromtheseassociationsthereisanorganisationforthe“Aromanian/Vlach Culture”(+teríaAromanikú/VláchikuPolitismú)inAthens,whichisquiteactive in its struggle for the Aromanian cause and distributes books with Aromanian songsaswellassmallinformationpamphletsinGreek.Inthelastyears,Vlach Students in Thessaloníka started activities and events on Aromanian topics and founded the “League of Vlach Students”. In Thessalonika there also exists an association of Helleno-Vlach Albanians (Sýllogos Ellinovláchon Alvanías stin Elláda),whosemembersareAlbanianAromaniansrecentlyimmigratedintothe country.Since1994,beginners’andadvancedcoursesin“Kutsovlach”havebeen offeredattheAristotelesUniversityofThessalonika.Documentaryfilmsabout AromaniansareveryrareonGreekTV,andtheirlanguagecanneverbeheard.In Métsovo and other Aromanian villages festivals have taken place over the last 18yearsandare,withover40,000participants,thelargestAromanianeventsof theirkindintheworld.Inrecentyears,peoplefromneighbouringcountriesand oftheAromaniandiasporahaveattendedthiseventingrowingnumbers. InGreece,thereisnonewspaperintheAromanianlanguage.Thenewspapers canbedividedintothosedealingwithAromaniantopicsandwithoccasionaltexts in Aromanian10, and local newspapers in Aromanian areas that rarely touch AromaniantopicsandarepublishedinGreekonly11.WhileMegleniteVlachshave 6 7 8 9 10 11 Seeathttps://www.eblul.org/gp/resolution-en.zip. FordetailsseeUSDepartmentofState2001,GreekHelsinkiMonitor2001andPogrom2001: 2,20–21. WithregardtoAromanian“organizations”onehastokeepinmindthatmanyofthemarenot officiallyregisteredandthatnoneofthementionedAromanian“newspapers”hasanofficial ISSNstatus. Seeat:https://www.hri.org/Macedonian-Heritage/Museums/Folklore.html. ArmanikáChroniká,PigíKefalovrýsu,Mnímes,Améru–MiliótikaNéa,Niágusti. IAvdélla,IoréaSamarína,INýmfi,Gardíki,ToGreveníti,Kallarýtes,Klisúra,Métsovo, FlamburiótikaNéa,LaistináNéa,LivadiótikaNéa,Píndos,PalmítisKraniás, I@Syrráko, Pisoderítika,Vovusiótika,Zagoriaká,Kutsúfliani,IfoníNymféu. 156 notdevelopedanyspecificMegleniteVlachactivities,theyhave,however,organisedinAromanianculturalorganisationsandthusleftthestatusofasmallethnic group of only some 15,000 persons. The awareness of difference between MegleniteVlachsandAromaniansisdisappearingintheyoungergenerations. 2.Albania InAlbania,thereisnocensusinwhichtheAromaniansareidentifiedasaseparate group. While Aromanian associations estimate the number of Aromanians in Albania to be as high as 250,000, estimates of Greek newspapers in southern Albania hardly reach 50,000. Official Albanian sources mention about 60,000 Aromanians(Demirtaș-Coșkun2001:40).Theestimatesdependonthediscussions about the number of Greeks in Albania, which is at present considered to be 220,000(Verémis1995:66).Ifthisnumberforthewholeorthodoxminorityis assumedtobecorrect,wecanassumethatatleast100,000peopleofAromanian originarepresentlylivinginAlbania.MostofthemliveinthedistrictsKolonja, Korça,Pogradec,VloraandFier. Vlachs in Albania are not considered as a national, but as a linguistic and culturalminority.ContrarytoGreece,theterm“minority”hasnonegativeundertones,buttheimageofAromaniansinAlbaniaisalsonegativeasthatofabackwardpastoralpeople,inspiteofthefact,thatparticularlyinAlbaniaAromanians havelivedinurbansettlementsalreadyatatimewhenAlbaniansocietywasstill exclusivelyagrarian. InAlbania,theAromaniangroupsetsitshopeslargelyontheeconomicadvantagesofbeingabletogoabroad.RomaniansandGreeksusetheopportunityto wintheAromaniansinthepoorestcountryofEuropefortheirowncause.AlbaniannationalsentimentsareapparentinmanyAromanians,aboveallinthoseof thepro-Romaniangroups.ManyofthemarefollowersoftheDemocraticParty, as the latter helped the Aromanians to get more minority rights (SchwandnerSievers 1998: 169). Most Aromanian followers of the pro-Greek movement, however,areactivemembersinhumanrightsorganisationssuchas“Omónia” which has strong ties to Greek fundamentalists (see Verémis 1995: 61). Many AromaniansinAlbaniaseeGreeceasapowerfulprotectoragainsttheMoslem majorityofAlbania. ThefoundingofAromanianorganisations,eitherbyindividualsorbysmall Aromanian groups, began in the towns of Selenica and Korça. In both towns Aromanian cultural organisations were founded independently of each other in 1991,andwithinashortperiodbothcontactedtheRomanianConsulate.Thefirst congressorganisedbyAlbanianAromanianstookplacein1992inTirana,and numerousAromaniansfromCentralandWesternEuropeaswellasfromAmerica participated.Beforetheseeventsitwasnotpossibletospeakofanewawakening orawarenessofAromaniannationalidentityinAlbania. 157 In1992theAromanianchurchinKorçawasre-openedafteritslongclosure since1936.AtthetimeofunrestinAlbaniatheliturgytookplaceoccasionallyin theoldRomanianSchool.Theplansforanewchurcharesupportedmostlybythe Aromaniandiaspora.Liturgies,baptisms,andweddingstakeplaceinAlbanian, AromanianandRomanian.TherearenoservicesinGreekbecausethepro-RomanianandtheAromaniannationalistsfearthatthismightleadtoGreekecclesiasticaldominationandthustothedestructionoftheAromanianchurch.Thefactual existenceofanoriginalAromanianliturgy(Liturghierarmînesc)sincethebeginningofthe18thcentury,discoveredbyIloMitkë-QafëzeziinKorçaandpublished byCaragiuMarioţeanu(1962),isstilllittleknownamongAromanians.Inrecent years, this text has been reprinted and circulated among Albanian Aromanians withthesupportoftheAromaniandiaspora.InVoskopojafatherThomaisingsthe Aromanian-language orthodox liturgy in the Church Shen Nikol (Ayiu Nicola) beforeofferingtosingthesameinAlbanian. Today there is a “Sutsata Armâńilor” or “Rrămăńilor” (Association of Aromanians) in almost every town of southern and central Albania. In many places,duetodifferentviews,twoorganisationshaveemerged(notalwaysofficially registered) side by side. Notable is that the ethnic term Armâńi is often used, although almost all speakers of Aromanian in Albania use the word Rrămăńi.Thepreferenceofthisterm,whichhadbeenoutofuseinAlbania(apart fromBerat),createsafeelingofsolidaritywiththeArmâńioutsideAlbania.It mayalsohavebeencreatedtodifferentiatebetweentheAromaniansandtheDacoRomanians(Români).Since1995thereisalsoacooperativeofAromanianwomen inTiranaandanannualfestivalofAromanianfolkloreinKorça. The association “Aromunet e Shqipërisë” (Aromanian of Albania, Tirana), which unites eight south Albanian organisations, is the largest association of AlbanianAromanian.TheAssociationofHelleno-VlachsofAlbaniainKorçaalso has many members. Both Aromanian newspapers (Fraţia Vëllazëria, Fratsilia), foundedin1992andprintedinTirana,appearonlyirregularly.Theactivitiesof thepro-GreekAromaniansinthenewspaperoftheGreekminority(Popullorë,Ta NéatisOmónias)arequiteextensive.In2001,the“Uniatinireascāanvitsatslor armānj dit Arbinishii” (Union for young Aromanian scholars in Albania) was founded.ThereisnoAromanianradioortelevisionprogrammeandnoofficial educationinAromanian,whiletherewere73state-fundedGreeklanguageschools insouthernAlbaniain1993(Demirtaș-Coșkun2001:40f.). 3.TheRepublicofMacedonia(FYROM) ThepresentRepublicofMacedoniaistheonlycountryinwhichAromaniansare constitutionally recognised as a minority. According to the national census of 1994,8,462peopleconsiderthemselvestobeVlachs,atermsynonymouswith Aromanianinthecountry.The“LeagueofVlachs”estimatesthattherearesome 158 80,000AromaniansinMacedonia,butitseemsmorerealistictoputthefigureat 25,000,includingthosewhoonlyunderstandthelanguagebutdonotspeakit. Their geographical concentration is in the area of Prespa-Ohrid, Pelagonija (Pelistervillages,Kruševo,Struga,Belica)andintheplainseastoftheVardar river(Štip,SvetiNikole,Vinica);MegleniteVlachsliveinandaroundGevgelija. Problemsarisewiththeuseoftheterm“Macedonian”forself-identification, asAromaniansconsideredthe(Slav)MacedoniansstillasBulgarians(Vārghāri), atleasttheoldergeneration.ThereforemanyAromaniansfeelthattheyareMacedonians only geographically. When an Aromanian speaks of himself as being Macedonian,thiscanmeanthatheconsidershimselfasbelongingtothisnation, butitcanalsomeanthatheconsidershimselfasMacedonianbecauseheisan AromanianwholivesinMacedonia. TherecognitionoftheAromaniansasaseparate“millet”in1905iscelebrated by many Aromanians in Macedonia as a national day. The song “Dimândare pârintească”hasbeendeclaredanationalhymnbythe“LeagueofVlachs”and canbeheardatmanyAromanianevents.AsaconsequenceoftheAromanians’ recognitionasanationalminority,anAromaniancanbecomeamemberofthe Macedonian parliament. In 2001, an Aromanian party was founded (Partia Armānjilor ditu Machidunie PAM), with its president Mite Kostov-Papuli in Skopje;in2002,asecondAromanianpartywasfounded. InthetimeoftheAromanian-Romanianmovementsomeofthemostimportant AromanianmagazineslikeLuminawerepublishedinMacedonia.Afterapauseof over80years,Aromanianschoolbooks,poetrybooks,songbooksandnewspaperscomeoutinlargernumbersthaninanyothercountryinsoutheastEurope.In 1997, a series of books called “Biblioteca natsionalâ armâneascâ Constantin Belemace”(NationalAromanianLibraryConstantineBelemace)wasfoundedin Skopje which publishes books in Aromanian only12. The same is true for the magazine“Fenix”(1993)andforothermagazinessuchas“GrailuArmânescu”, “Lânduricâ”, “Armânj Machidunits”, and “Armâna Makedona”. Compared to their small number, the Aromanians in Macedonia develop the most vigorous culturalandpoliticalactivitiesworld-wide. There is a state TV station with an Aromanian language program called Scanteauā(“Spark”)whichbroadcaststwiceaweekhalfanhourAromaniannews fromaroundtheworld,andthereisanAromanianradiostationwhichbroadcasts 30minutesdailyinAromanian.TheybroadcastinterviewswitholderAromanians aboutthepast,dealwiththecontributionsofAromanianpoetsorartists,offer information about initiatives by Aromanians, always closing with a musical or danceperformance.ThedialectusedinTVandradioisthatoftheeasternVardar region and not the more “literary” dialect of Bitola and Kruševo. The use of Aromanianinthemassmediaraisestheprestigeofthelanguage.Since1995itis 12 ForacompleteandannotatedbibliographyonAromaniansafter1990seeKahl2002. 159 possibletolearnAromanianinsomeelementaryschoolsinBitola,Kruševo,Štip andSkopje.12localVlachorganisationsbelongtothe“LeagueofVlachs”.The leagueorganisesAromanianactivitiesandsometimesalsoworkswiththeRomanian government and embassy, which helps by arranging educational stays of VlachschoolchildreninRomania.Thosereceivingthesebenefitsmustbefrom AromanianparentsandmusthaveagoodknowledgeoftheAromanianlanguage. Importantorganisationsapartfromtheleaguearethe“OrganisationofAromanian Women” (Sutsata a muljerlor Arāmāni, Skopje), the “Aromanian Organisation Mbeala”(SutsataArmāneascāMbeala,Struga),andthe“AromanianOrganisation of Crushuva” (Sutsata Armāneascā Crushuva, Kruševo). In Bitola, Aromanian groups founded the “World Association of Aromanians” (Liga mundealā Armānjilor)in1996whichisfocusesonculturaleventsandtheeditionofbooks in Aromanian. There are also folklore activities, like publishing of Aromanian tapesandorganizingfestivalslikethe“Fāntānādimalamā”since2001. Aromanians with a Greek identity can be found in Kruševo and Bitola. A (small)partoftheAromaniansareenthusiasticspeakersoftheGreeklanguageand stillgivetheirchildrenGreeknames.Theorganisation“Moschópolis”inSkopje whosemembersconsistalmostexclusivelyofAromaniansfromKruševoshowed pro-Greekfeelings.Itsplitofffromtheorganisationcalled“PituGuli”(Skopje) in1999.Thepresenceofsomepro-GreekAromaniansinKruševoandBitolaon theonehandandthevehementrejectionofGreeceandGreekculturebytheother Aromanian communities can be explained by their migration history. The Aromanians of settlements in south-western Macedonia had migrated from the urbanMoschópolisandhadbeenexposedtoGreekcultureforalongtime,while allotherAromaniansinMacedoniahavesettleddownonlyafewdecadesagoand haveretainedtheirAromaniancultureandastrongAromanianidentity. ItappearsthattheorganizedAromaniangroupsinMacedoniahaveadopteda moderate,pro-governmentposition.Evenapresidentialcandidateoftheopposition party VMRO-DPNME, looking for votes in the 1994 elections, described Vlachsas“100%loyal”tothenation(MILSNews10/5/94).Inanearliermeeting withtheCouncilofEuropeinMay1994,arepresentativeoftheLeagueofVlachs issaidtohave“expressedsatisfactionwiththerightsandstatusoftheVlachsin Macedonia”(MILSnews05/25/94).TheforeignministerofRomania“expressed hispositiveopinionabouttheConstitutionofMacedoniawhichrespectstherights oftheminorities”(MILSnews03/11/96). It is notable that the Aromanian newspapers and books circulate widely in informalwaysandseemtobeabsentfromthepublicspace,sothatthemajorityof Macedoniansarenotawareoftheirexistence. 160 4.Bulgaria DuetothemassexodusofBulgarianAromanianstoRomaniain1923–1940,only some 3,000 Aromanians live in Bulgaria today (Rakšieva 1994), mostly in the western Rhodope, the Rila Mountains, and in Sofia. The Aromanians have no officialstatusasaminoritygroupandthushavenoschoolsoftheirown.Those AromanianswhomIinterviewed,admittedthatmostofthemhadregisteredas Bulgariansinthelastcensus,fewofthemas“Vlach”andevenfeweras“other”. The data from Bulgarian censuses do not differentiate between Aromanian and Romanian,bothgroupsarecalled‘Vlachs’. ItisnecessarytodistinguishbetweenthoseAromaniancraftsmenandtradesmenwhomigratedtoBulgariainthe17thcentury,andtheherdsmenwhomigratedfromtheGrámosinthe18thcentury.Today,descendantsoftheAromanian tradersandcraftsmenhavelargelybeenassimilated,butculturalcharacteristics andaspecificAromanianidentitycanstillbefoundamongthedescendantsofthe Aromanianherdsmen.Noneofthefirstgroupwillprobablyconsiderhimselftobe Aromanian,ifso,onlyintheformofadoubleidentityinwhichtheBulgarian rangesbeforetheAromanian.Amongthedescendantsoftheherdsmenonecan oftenmeetpeoplewhoconsiderthemselvesprimarilyasAromanian;intheyoungergeneration,however,onlyexceptionally. InaccordancewiththelownumberofAromaniansinBulgaria,thenumberof ethnicorganisationsislow.TheRomanianChurchinSofia(HolyTrinity)playsan importantroleintheorganisingofAromaniansinBulgariaandisusedbyboth Aromanian and Romanian Timok-Vlachs. The initiative for the founding of AromanianorganisationsbeganinSofia.Aromanianswhowenttoschoolwith RomaniansattheRomanianschoolinSofiaconstitutethestrongestsupportersof theAromanianAssociationinSofia(SuţataArmâńilorSofia)sincethepolitical changes of 1989; they are the ones who work hardest for the conservation of Aromaniancultureandlanguage.Thepublicationofthenewspaper“Armânlu” (the Aromanian) in 1998 was meant to achieve this goal. There are also AromanianorganisationsinPeštera,VelingradandDupnica.Thelownumberof AromaniansinBulgaria,ratherthanthelownumberofAromaniansintheorganisations,makesculturalactivitiesalmostimpossible.TheexistenceoftheseorganisationscanbeseenasalastattempttorescuetheAromanianidentity,andnotas pro-Greekorpro-Romanianmovementsinsearchofbenefits. InmostofthesettlementswithAromanianinhabitantsanAromanianfolklore group was founded. The state’s attitude to the Aromanian minority is liberal (Demirtaș-Coșkun2001:42–43);inthesocialistperiodtherehadbeenadegreeof repression. 161 AsinthecaseofotherBalkancountries,theparticipationofAromanianinthe Bulgaria liberation movement plays an important role in the identity of the Aromanians(seePopescuetal.1995)13. 5.Yugoslavia(Serbia) TheAromanianslivinginYugoslavcitieshadmigratedthereasanalreadyurbanisedpopulation.Itisestimatedthatalmost3,000AromanianssettledinBelgrade afterthedestructionofMoschópolis(Plasković1996:38). AsaresultoftheirassimilationfirstintotheGreekandlaterintotheSerbian cultureitisnowonderthatinmodernSerbiatheterm“Cincar”(astheusualterm forAromanian)canalsomeanprosperousGreektradesman.InSerbiatheterm “Vlach” is used for Romanian people of eastern Serbia who are of Romanian descent.Eventoday,tobeaCincarmeanstobeadescendantofanaristocratic elite.ManycallthemselvesCincarswithoutknowingwhotheAromaniansareor whatlanguagetheyspeakorspoke.TheAromaniansofYugoslavcitiesarewidely assimilatedtotheSerbianlanguageandculture;thosewhohavemigratedfrom other Serbian cities (e. g. Niš, Prizren) no longer have any knowledge of the Aromanianlanguage.OnlyasmallgroupofmigrantsfromwhatisnowMacedoniadeclaresanAromanianidentityandspeaksAromanian. TheCincarsofYugoslaviastresstheirimportantpositionassuccessfulbusinessmen,patrons,intellectuals,politicians,andfightersinthefirstSerbianrevolutionof1804.BecauseoftheirSerbianidentitythereisnoidentityconflictbetween pro-Romaniansandpro-Greeks. InBelgradethereisonlyoneAromanianorganisationwithabout450members (Plasković 1996: 56) by the name “Serbian-Cincarian Association” (SrpskoCincarski Društvo), which publishes the “Lunjina. Bilten srpsko-cincarskog društva”(Light.BulletinoftheSerbian-CincarianAssociation,Belgrade1994ff.). ItsmembersaremostlyAromanianwhohaverecentlymigratedfromthesouthof formerYugoslavia.Onlyafewbelongtothedescendantsoftheurbanpopulation withitshistoryinBelgradeof300years(seeGavrilović1998). 6.Romania Inthecensusof2002theAromanianscouldidentifythemselvesaseitherRomanian (Români), Aromanian (Aromâni) or Macedonians (Macedoneni) (Peyfuss 1984:313–319).25,053consideredthemselvesAromanians,and1,334Macedonians. Many registered as Romanians; Aromanians who had immigrated from 1923to1940numberedaround30,000(Saramandu1976:185). 13 ForfurtherinformationonBulgaria’sAromaniansseeKahl2000. 162 The early Aromanian groups and individuals in the trading centres of Moldavia, Wallachia, Transylvania and Banat have largely been assimilated, whereasthenewergroupsretaintheirAromaniancharacter.ThefirstAromanian familieswhomigratedtoRomaniafromthesouthernBalkansin1923settledinthe southern Dobrudja, but in 1940, when the southern Dobrudja became part of Bulgaria,wereforcedtomovetothenorthernDobrudja(districtsConstanţaand Tulcea)wheremostofthemliveuntiltoday.Theyweretotallyunfamiliarwiththe natural environment (steppe, plains) and were forced to work in agriculture, havingtogiveuptheirtraditionalsemi-nomadicpastoraleconomy.Althougha largeportionofthemconsideredRomaniatobetheircountryandmanyhadhoped toimprovetheireconomicsituation,buttheverydifferentnaturalandenvironmental conditions in Dobrudja fostered a mental divide between them and the “Mucańi”,astheycallthe(Daco-)Romanianswithanegativeundertone. The history of Aromanian-Romanian organisations in Romania is relatively long.ManyoftheearlyorganisationswerefoundedtorepresenttheRomanian positionintheAromanianquestion.TheBucharest“Macedo-RomanianCultural organisation”(SocietateadeculturaMacedo-Română)holdsaspecialposition,as it initiated most of the newsletters and newspapers, as well as the Meglenite Vlach’sCulturalOrganisation“Meglenia”(SocietateadeculturaMeglenia),whose aimisalsothepromotionoftheRomanianmovement(Peyfuss1974:54–56).At thetimeoftheAromanian-Romanianmovement,numerousAromaniannewspapersalreadyexistedthere14.AfteralongpauseofAromanianactivitythereare newnewspapersinRomanianow,someofthemexclusivelyinAromanian15.In the1990snewAromanianorganisationshavebeenfounded,mostofthemwiththe goal of preserving Aromanian identity, language, traditions and folklore16. In nearly every village with an Aromanian population there are active folklore groups17.ThereareregularAromanianconventions,dances,concertsandpublications in the Aromanian language. Some of the leading supporters of the pro- 14 15 16 17 E. g.theAlmanahulAromânesc,FlamburaPindului,Revistaaromânească,GraiBun,Macedonia,PensinsulaBalcanica. BanaArmâneascâ(AromanianLife;Bucharest1996ff.),Deșteptarea(Awakening;Bucharest 1990ff.),Dimândarea(Demand;Bucharest1994ff.),Armânamea(TheAromanian;Bucharest 1996), Minduearea armânească (Aromanian Thought; Constanţa 1990–1994) and Almanah Macedo-român(Macedo-RomanianAlmanah;Bucharest1992ff.). The most active organizations today are the “Suţata armână din Dobrogea Picurarlu de la Pind” (Aromanian Association of Dobrudja, “The Shepheards of Pindus”), “Comuna Pindena” (Community Pindus), “Sutsata Aromânilor Andrei Șaguna” (Association of Aromanian Andrei Șaguna, Constanţa), “Sutsata culturală aromână” (Cultural Aromanian Association, Bucharest), the “Societatea de Cultură Macedo-Română” (Macedo-Romanian Cutural Association, Bucharest) and the student club “Aromanian Youth” (Giunamea Armaneasca,Constanţa). ThebestknowngroupsarethePilisteri(inBucharest),theAnsambludiSarighioldeDeal(in Sarighiol,Tulcea),theMușataArmânăandLaSteaua(inKogălniceanu). 163 RomanianmovementofthecommunistperiodarenowactiveinpurelyAromanian movements. Groupsandindividualsthatconsiderthemselvesasaminorityandtherefore have objections against identifying as Romanians are at least aware of their Romanity(orLatin)backgroundandrecognisetheRomaniansasbeingclosely related(seeLascu1993:1,16).ThisattitudeisreflectedinAromanianpublicationsandcanbeseenintheorthography. Since1991thereisanAromanianRadioserviceandin2001alocalTVstation (Neptun)inConstanţabeganbroadcastinginAromanian.Since1999and2001 there is Aromanian language instruction at primary schools in Constanţa and Bucharest.ThesurvivalofAromanianinRomaniaissurprisinginviewofthelaw oflinguisticsthatminoritylanguagesaremostatriskwhentheyareclosetothe majoritylanguageofthehoststate. 7.TheDiaspora TheAromaniansofCroatia,BosniaandHungaryare,onthewhole,assimilated. ThefewAromanianslivingtherehaveneitheractivecommunitiesnortheirown organisationsorrepresentatives. Since the 18th century the Aromanian diaspora outside of the Balkans has played a decisive role in the development of the awareness of Latinity of the Aromanians.Eventoday,thestruggletoimprovethestandingoftheAromanian language,cultureandidentity,ismainlysupportedbythediasporaAromanians. ThemostimportantorganisationsareinFrance,NorthAmerica,Australia,and Germany18.TheactivitiesofAromanianswhoemigratedlateroftendifferfrom thoseoftheearliergroups,e. g.AromanianmigrantworkersfromGreeceestablishedtheirownassociationsinGermany(e. g.theSýllogosVláchoninMendenor PanelladikósSýllogosVláchonMonáchuinMunich),whichhavenocontactwith otherAromanianassociations. 18 AssociationdesFrancaisAroumainsTrăArmânami(Paris,founded1984)withanewsletter (1984–1986,hereafteratwww.multimania.com/armanami/);FundatsiaGramostea(Princeton, founded 1913); Society Farsarotul (Trumbull, founded 1903) with “The Newsletter of the Society Farserotul” is published twice a year and available on www.farsarotul.org/ newslett.htm; Editura Frândza Vlahă with its Newsletter Frândza Vlahă (Bridgeport 1979–1982; Armâni dit Cânâdâ (Toronto, founded 1974); Fundatsia Aromânâ (Victoria/Australia,founded1964);Uniuneatrilimbâshiculturâarmâneascâ(Freiburg,founded 1982) with its organ Zborlu a nostru (Freiburg, 1984 ff.); see also www.geocities.com/ zborlu/);EdituraSammarina/CarteaAromânâ(Fayetteville,founded1984;seealsoathttps:// sites.netscape.net/aromanul/eca.html), Vlach association of Australia and Vlach Radio Programm (Preston), Armâneasca sutsatâ di culturâ shi arte (Aromanian Association for CultureandArts,Sydney). 164 Summary Evenifsomepublicationshaveoccasionallyvoicedopinionthatmayhavebeen considered politically dangerous by some governments, today none of the AromaniannewspapersororganisationssupportsindependenceforAromanians. TheactivitiesofmostAromanianslivinginWesternEuropefocusonthemaintenance of the Aromanian language, culture and identity. In their countries of origin,however,theirsuccesshasbeenratherlimited.Themostactivemembers inAromanianInternetdiscussiongroups19arediasporaAromanians. SomeAromaniangroupsinsoutheastEuropeandinthediasporahavebegunto intensifyAromanianactivities.Whetherthesegroupsofactivistswillsucceedin consolidatingapermanentnationalidentitybasedona“dzuanatsiunalā”(national day),a“limbaahoryea”(coherentlanguage)andminoritystatusinseveralcountriesofEurope,oriftheywillbetotallyassimilatedintoothercultures,istobe seen. Aromanians will continue to have difficulties in finding a way between Greek,Romanianandotherorientations.Mostpro-RomanianAromanianactivists withtheiranti-Greekpositionexcludethemostnumerousanddevelopedsegment ofAromanians,whilemostofpro-Greekactivistswiththeirxenophobicattitude towardsRomanianpropagandaexcludeallactivitiesaimedatimprovingthestatus oftheAromanianlanguage.Thus,eveninthecaseofguaranteedminorityrights, thepromotionoflanguageinstructionandofculturalmeetings,nolastingsurvival ofAromaniancanbeguaranteed.ToreachthisaimitwouldbenecessarytoimprovetheimageofAromanian,todecideonauniformorthographyacceptedby Aromaniansinallcountriesand,aboveall,toincreasetheabilityforcompromise andco-operationamongallAromaniansintheBalkans.Itisunclear,though,ifthe majorityofthesoutheastEuropeanAromanianswouldconsidertheseastheirgoals. Literature Adanır,Fikret1979:DieMakedonischeFrage.IhreEntstehungundEntwicklung bis1908.In:FrankfurterHistorischeAbhandlungen,vol.20.Wiesbaden. 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