Moldovann.adj.
/mɒlˈdəʊvən/, /ˈmɒldəvən/, U.S. /mɑlˈdoʊv(ə)n/, /mɔlˈdoʊv(ə)n/, /moʊlˈdoʊv(ə)n/ A. n.† 1. A native or inhabitant of the Romanian province of Moldavia. Cf. Moldavian n. 1a. Obsolete. rare.
ΚΠ
1835 Penny Cycl. IV. 341/1 The majority of the Bessarabians are Moldowans or Moldavians.
2. A native or inhabitant of the Republic of Moldova (formerly the Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldavia), an independent state since 1991, bordering Romania and Ukraine. Cf. Moldavian n. 1b.
ΚΠ
1990 Independent 26 Oct. 10/2 The Gagauz, who declared UDI in August, appealed to President Gorbachev to protect them from the Moldovans, who, they said, were preparing to send troops to their capital of Komrat.
2000 Economist 15 July 51 The Moldovans and Transdniestrians cannot agree on how to live together.
3. The Romanian language as spoken in the Republic of Moldova.Moldovan is a variant of the principal dialect of Romania, differing only in minor points of phonetics and vocabulary. However, it was treated as a separate language (then called Moldavian) during the period of Soviet rule (see Moldavian n. 2) and was accorded the status of national language in Moldova's 1994 constitution.Moldovan is officially written in the Roman alphabet, although for less formal writing many Moldovans continue to use the Cyrillic alphabet adopted under Soviet rule.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > languages of the world > Indo-Hittite > [noun] > Indo-European > postulated Italo-Celtic > Romance > Romanian > Moldavian
Moldavian1847
Moldovan1992
1992 Keesing's Contemp. Archives (BNC) Mar. Moldovan presidential advisers suggested that a special economic zone be introduced in the Dnestr region and that the introduction of Moldovan as the official language be delayed there until 2000.
1994 Whitaker's Almanack 959/1 Moldovan was made the official language (written in Latin script) in 1989 but the use of Russian and Ukranian in official business is permitted.
1999 Encycl. Brit. Online (Version 99.1) at Moldova In 1989 the script of the Moldovan language was changed to Roman; thereupon began a heated debate over whether the language should be called Romanian or Moldovan.
B. adj.
Of or relating to Moldova, its inhabitants, or their language.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > named regions of earth > Europe > countries of Eastern Europe > [adjective] > regions of Romania
Moldavian1625
Wallachianc1791
Transylvanian1843
Moldo-Wallachian1848
Moldavo-Wallachian1971
Moldovan1990
the world > people > nations > native or inhabitant of Asia > native or inhabitant of Russia, the Russian Empire, or the Soviet Union > [adjective] > states or provinces
Georgian1585
Balticc1590
Armenic1609
Crimean1679
Siberian1719
Lithuanian1797
White Russian1799
Livonian1824
Ossetan1892
Sibiriak1903
Moldovan1990
1990 Summary of World Broadcasts Pt. 1: U.S.S.R. (B.B.C) 30 July SU/0829/B/1 The session of the Supreme Soviet of the Moldovan SSR ended today.
1992 Independent 20 Oct. 8/7 The idea seems to have Mr Yeltsin's backing, and the Moldovan conflict gives a foretaste of what it could mean in practice.
2000 Internat. Herald-Tribune (Electronic ed.) 16 June Oddly, the Communists..[protested] the absence of ‘Moldovan language and literature’ in the curriculum of higher education institutions and..[stressed] that the preponderance of ‘Romanian language and literature’ was a violation of the country's constitution. This despite the fact the two languages are virtually identical.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.adj.1835