FROM MEMORY TO IDENTITY. THE TOPONYMY OF THE INTERWAR CHIȘINĂU
Adrian Nicolae PETCU Consiliul Național pentru Studierea Arhivelor Securității, București
Abstract
The identity of the interwar city was in close correlation with the space, of what the city essentially represented, and what ensured the stability of the collective mentality. In order to be able to define and legitimize the interwar community, it kept in memory the image of its own space, because each community carved out the space in its own way, established its lines, borders, being accessible to those who found themselves faithful in it, but forbidden for others. As a whole, Chișinău had an identity mark detached from the physiognomy of the former empire. Spectacular by nature and its special way of being, Chișinău had those facets that still reminded (from the wide streets, the multi-ethnic spectrum of the population etc.) of the existence of a cosmopolitan community detached from a multicultural urban space so contrasting with the outskirts of the city. Gradually, in the context of the Romanian administration, Chișinău has woven into its history the characteristics of visible Romanization especially at the level of street toponymy. Keywords: memory, identity, space, streets, toponymy, Chișinău, interwar period.
