„Asociația femeilor universitare române” înființată la Cluj − prima inițiativă de solidarizare a femeilor titrate din România
“The Association of Romanian University Women” Founded in Cluj – The First Initiative of Solidarity among Academically Accomplished Women in Romania

Summary/Abstract: On April 1, 1921, at the initiative of Alice Grințescu, the Romanian Association of University Women was founded in Cluj, the first effort to unite women with academic degrees in Romania. Following a period of formal existence, the society experienced a revival, which intensified after it gained legal recognition in 1927. Although the association was unable to affiliate with the International Federation of University Women or collaborate with the National Federation of University Women in Bucharest, the Cluj society carried out a rich activity within its three sections: educational and scholastic, intellectual cooperation, and social assistance. In the summer of 1938, the leadership of the Association was handed over to Eleonora (Nora) Lemenyi, who introduced a new vision that reduced the social activities and, through the establishment of the Association's Study Circle, the focus of the activities shifted to public meetings with presentations and conferences, aimed at familiarizing women with academic degrees with societal issues, new publications, and promoting their literary creations. Among the women’s societies in Cluj, both secular and church-affiliated, most of which had charitable purposes, the Romanian Association of University Women in Cluj stood out with its distinct profile. Our study seeks to reconstruct the history of this association of women with university degrees by exploring published sources, mainly the press of the time, as well as unpublished information gathered from various archival collections preserved in specialized institutions both in Romania and abroad.

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