Mănăstirea Secu. Buletin istoric şi cultural, I, Galaţi, 2025, pp. 193-202
ASPECTE PRIVIND POLITICA LINGVISTICĂ ÎN CADRUL BISERICII ORTODOXE DIN BASARABIA ÎN PERIOADA LUI PAVEL LEBEDEV (1871-1882). CONSIDERAŢII GENERALE
AUTOR: Sergiu DEMERJI
Cuvinte Cheie: Eparhia Chişinăului şi a Hotinului, politică lingvistică, biserica ortodoxă, asimilare lingvistică, rusificare
Keywords: : Diocese of Chişinău and Hotin, linguistic politics, the Orthodox Church, linguistic assimilation, russification
ASPECTS OF LINGUISTIC POLICY WITHIN THE ORTHODOX CHURCH OF BESSARABIA DURING THE EPISCOPATE OF PAVEL LEBEDEV (1871–1882): GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
(Abstract)
Following the annexation of Bessarabia by the Russian Empire in 1812, the tsarist authorities initiated a comprehensive process of transforming the territory into a Russian province. Central to this effort was a policy of ethnic and linguistic assimilation aimed at the indigenous Romanian-speaking population.
Given the significant influence of the Orthodox Church over the local population, the authorities in St. Petersburg sought to subordinate this institution to the broader imperial objective of integrating Bessarabia into the Russian ethnocultural sphere. Consequently, a targeted Russification policy was implemented within the ecclesiastical structure, with the explicit aim of eliminating the Romanian language from church life.
This policy reached its peak during the episcopate of Pavel Lebedev, who governed the Diocese of Chişinău and Hotin between 1871 and 1882. Under his leadership, Russification efforts were markedly intensified: Romanian liturgical books were systematically replaced by texts in Church Slavonic and Russian, and official ecclesiastical documents were required to be drafted exclusively in Russian.
This article seeks to explore several general aspects of the linguistic policy pursued within the Orthodox Church of Bessarabia during Lebedev’s tenure. Particular attention is paid to the mechanisms of linguistic exclusion and their role in the broader imperial strategy of cultural assimilation.