Romanian Language Day, celebrated in Italy

Romanian Language Day is marked on August 31.

Established by a law voted by parliament in 2013, the holiday will be marked by public authorities and institutions, including diplomatic representations and cultural institutes abroad.

In Italy, RRA correspondent Elena Postelnicu discussed the significance of the event with Romanians living in this country:

Tancau Emilian: My name is Tancau Emilian, I'm from Vrancea. Here in Italy we formed the music group Emisfera. It was an honor, it was a chance for us to try to make, using music, a message that, wherever we are, we must not forget the Romanian language, we must pass it on to the children and, more than that, we must not forget it.

Reporter: You have tears when you talk about your mother tongue.

Tancau Emilian: Yes, it's normal. I think it's normal. Anyone who is Romanian and feels Romanian experiences this feeling, and not necessarily because they are in Italy, and they are not in Romania. It is the language in which we think, the language in which we pray, the language in which we suffer, the language in which we imagine, the language in which we are silent.

Translated by: Radu Matei