Rumunská literatúra

Rumunská literatúra, spisy v rumunskom jazyku, ktorých vývoj je sprevádzaný bohatým folklórom - lyrickým, epickým, dramatickým a didaktickým -, ktorý pokračoval do modernej doby.

Staré obdobie

Najskoršie preklady do rumunčiny boli zo slovanských a pozostávali z interlinárnych veršov alebo interpolácií v náboženských textoch 15. storočia. Od toho istého obdobia tzv. Rhotacizingové texty, uchovávané v kópiách zo 16. storočia, ktoré boli napísané v Maramureş v severnom Sedmohradsku, pravdepodobne pod vplyvom husitského hnutia. Medzi ne patrí Žaltársky žaltár a Voronský kódex, ktorý obsahuje Skutky apoštolov a Žaltár Voronta.

Prvá kniha vytlačená vo Valašsku v roku 1508 bola slovanská liturgická kniha. Určitý diakon Coresi tlačil rumunské preklady Aktov apoštolov (1563). Ďalšie publikácie, ktoré prežili, sú Tîlcul evangheliilor şi molitvenic („Kázania a kniha modlitieb“) a Evanghelia cu invăƫătură (1581; „Komentár k evanjeliu“); všetci podporovali používanie rumunčiny. V tomto období sa vytvorila aj sekulárna literatúra, ktorá však pozostávala najmä z prekladov z gréckych, slovanských, byzantských a ázijských kníh.

Tlač rumunských náboženských kníh pokračovala v 17. storočí a dostala kontroverziu, ktorá vyplynula z protestantskej reformácie, nový impulz v Transylvánii, Valašsku a Moldavsku. Počas bojov medzi Poľskom a Tureckom utekal do Poľska moldavský metropolista, Dosoftei, veľký učenec a teológ. V roku 1673 tu vydal prvý rumunský metrický žaltár, ktorý bol tiež prvou poéziou napísanou v rumunčine. V roku 1675 sa vrátil do Moldavska av roku 1679 preložil liturgiu z gréčtiny. Jeho ďalším vynikajúcim prínosom pre rumunskú literatúru bol jeho Viaƫa şi petrecerea sfinƫilor (1682–86; „Živé sviatky“), v ktorom predstavil populárne idiómy a podporil rozvoj pružnejšieho prozaického štýlu.

Koncom 17. storočia sa kláštor Snagov neďaleko Bukurešti stal centrom literárnej činnosti a knihy boli vytlačené v rumunčine, gréčtine, slovančine a arabčine. Náboženská literatúra vyvrcholila prekladom Biblie (1688), ktorý sa stal základom všetkých neskorších prekladov.

Historiography was at its height with the humanist historiographers of 17th-century Moldavia, whose leader was Miron Costin. He wrote a chronicle of Moldavia in Romanian and a poem on the history of his country in Polish. The chronicle was continued by his son Nicolae, who also pioneered the collection of folklore and legends. Dmitry Kantemir (Dimitrie Cantemir), prince of Moldavia, a great linguist and historiographer, wrote Latin histories of Romania, Moldavia, and the Ottoman Empire. A special place among Moldavian historians is occupied by Nicolae Milescu, who wrote theological, historical, and travel works.

The 18th century

Most Romanian literature of the 18th century presents a picture of social oppression and decadence under Ottoman rule. A rich secular and apocryphal literature circulated in manuscript, but there was no progress in comparison with that of the past. In Moldavia a new cultural centre arose at Rădăuƫi. The principal achievements of the century were the Minei (“Lives of the Saints”) of 1776–80 and 1807–15 (each in 12 volumes, published in Râmnicu Vâlcea and in the monastery of Neamƫ, respectively), whose rich and lucid language put them alongside the Bible of 1688.

Lyric poetry was cultivated toward the end of the century in love songs (1769–99), in the tradition of the ancient Greek poet Anacreon, by Alecu Văcărescu. Alecu’s father, Ienăchiƫă, a moralist poet, also wrote the first Romanian grammar, while his son Iancu, the father of Romanian poetry, overshadowed his predecessors with his poems. The fourth poet of the Văcărescu family was Nicolae. The lyric tradition was carried on in Walachia by B.P. Mumuleanu.

The national renaissance

The first landmark of this period was the uprising of Tudor Vladimirescu (1821) in Walachia against the Ottoman Turks and the return of the national rulers. Romanticism carried forward the falling wave of the Latinist movement. In the second half of the 19th century, a serious literary criticism, which originated in German philosophy and French culture, inaugurated modern Romanian literature.

Transylvanian Latinism crossed the Carpathians and had beneficial effects on the Greek-inspired culture of Walachia. Ion Heliade Rădulescu, who came under this influence, founded the first Romanian newspaper in Walachia and the Societatea Filarmonică (1833), which later created a national theatre in Bucharest. He was a pioneer of Italian influence, which was taken up in Moldavia by Gheorghe Asachi, who introduced the historical short story, wrote verses in Romanian and Italian, and founded a periodical, Albina Românească. The outstanding literary personality among a galaxy of minor poets and translators who enriched the Romantic heritage was Grigore Alexandrescu. Alexandrescu wrote Poezii (1832, 1838, and 1839) and Meditaƫii (1863), fables and satires influenced mostly by French writers. A literary magazine, Dacia Literară, edited by Mihail Kogălniceanu, a leading statesman and father of modern Romanian historiography (1840), marked a beginning of the traditionalist trend in literature. Alecu Russo, another leader of 1848, enriched literature with a biblical prose poem, Cântarea României.

Leading writers of the second half of the century were Vasile Alecsandri and Mihail Eminescu. Alecsandri’s rich output comprised poetry (Doine şi lăcrimioare [1853] and Suvenire si Mărgăritărele [1856]), prose (Buchetiera din Florenƫa [“A Bouquet from Florence”] and Călătorii în Africa), and plays (Fîntîna Blanduziei, Ovidiu, and Despot Vodă). He also revealed treasures of Romanian folklore in Balade (1852–53) and Poezii populare (1866). Eminescu, a philosophical lyric poet, created modern Romanian poetry. He was influenced by Hindu thought and German philosophy but remained rooted in tradition. He raised Romanian poetry to new heights and was the guiding star in every aspect of cultural life. His writings include short stories and political and philosophical essays.