CTITORII ALE ASOCIAŢIUNII ASTRA
ACHIEVEMENTS OF ASTRA ASSOCIATION
Author(s): Ilie MoiseSubject(s): Cultural history, School education, History of Education, Sociology of Culture, 19th Century, Pre-WW I & WW I (1900 -1919)
Published by: Editura Academiei Române
Keywords: cultural strategies; the Girls’ Civil School; Romanian Encyclopedia; Museum; cultural identity;
Summary/Abstract: The present paper commemorates the founding of Astra – the most important cultural association in Romania (1861). The cultural strategies employed by Astra and their effectiveness are the fruits of the institutions it created by the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century: The Girls’ Civil School and the Museum of the Association. The shaping of the Romanian cultural identity was crowned by the editing and printing of the monumental first “Romanian Encyclopedia” (1898–1904), coordonated by Dr. Cornel Diaconovici. The structure of the three-volume edition and the large number of Romanian and foreign contributors are suggestive of the European aspirations of the managers of Astra at that particular time. Through the institutions it founded, Astra succeeded in offering the Romanian people the defining elements of their cultural identity, in perpetuating their perennial values and securing a position among the civilized nations of Europe.
Journal: Anuarul Institutului de Cercetări Socio-Umane Sibiu
- Issue Year: XVIII/2011
- Issue No: 18
- Page Range: 5-15
- Page Count: 12
- Language: Romanian
- Content File-PDF