INFORMATION BULLETIN

The end of World War I represented a turning point in the evolution of the Romanian-American community. A sizeable number of the early Romanian immigrants decided to return to the old country at the end of the war, but many more postponed such a decision, at least for a later and rather vague date.

Those who remained started to use the money saved to purchase businesses, to send children to school, etc. In other words, they tried to integrate themselves into the mainstream of the American society. This process was in many as­pects difficult as it implied to modify traditions and beliefs and to adapt to the new environment. One of the major adjustments was the adoption of the English language.

As it is known, the first Romanian immigrants did not plan to stay for any length of time in America. They planned to remain only long enough to save some money (the thousand dollars) and to return home to buy land. For that reason, they were not preoccupied to learn English. After they decided to establish themselves for a longer pe­riod, the knowledge of at least a basic English became a necessity.

First of all, it was a must in order to properly function in society: to look for a job, to complete a transaction, to purchase a business, etc. In the mean­time, the knowledge of English or at least a fair capacity to communicate, was almost automatically accompanied by a raise in salary or a promotion.

In his book, “The Romanian Abroad,” published in New York in 1910, Iancu Roman amply informed his conationals about this aspect. “After living a few years in America, the Romanian will realize that he has to surpass a diffi­cult obstacle, that of not being able to communicate with those in authority. In America, English is the official as well as the day to day language. In these circumstances, it is necessary to know at least some basic English in order to succeed in this country.”

To help the Romanian immigrants, in his book of 187 pages, Iancu Roman dedicated 27 pages to some practical English. He grouped this information in: grammar, numbers, practical con­versation (on the street, on the train, at the Post Office, at shopping) and miscellaneous. It is very illustrative to mention that in 1910 the “Romanian Library” (Biblioteca Română) from New York published a special handbook: “How to Learn the English Language.”

Ads were placed in the Romanian-American newspapers which informed the readers that the handbook had 500 pages, contained a vocabulary of over 4,00C words and an ample Romanian-English conversation guide. The hand­book had hardcovers and sold for $1.00.

A very important Romanian-Ameri­can newspaper published in New York, “Steaua Noastră” (Our Star), in its is­sues of 1912-1913, included a large number of Romanian-English conver­sation lessons. They were grouped in subjects of practical use such as: on the street, when traveling, when shopping, etc.

After World War I, the Romanian-American newspapers and those with a larger experience in the United States, urged continuously their conationals to learn English.

The editorial in “America” of March 29, 1918, the official organ of the Union of the Romanian Societies, was entitled “The English language is of utmost importance for us now and in the fu­ture.” The editorial urged the Roma­nians to improve their English since it was instrumental for them to prosper in their new country.

Numerous articles mentioned the importance of learning English. Some of these articles warned their readers that this was the only way to be fully accepted in society and to become a citizen.

In very explicit manner, an edito­rial of “America” of May 22, 1922, entitled “We and America,” said: “We cannot be both in Romania and in America ” and it continued stating that those who decided to remain in America have to learn the English language and to adapt to the new conditions and the new way of life.

But the greatest promoter of the English language in the Romanian-American community were the children born in America or brought here at an early age. They became an important carrier of the new language and of the new ideas. From interviews collected and published between the wars, we found details regarding this fact.

A Romanian-American mother from Detroit said: “/ began to learn English because I did not want my two girls to be ahead of me and later, perhaps, be ashamed of my inability to speak the language of the Americans. I often find it difficult to keep up with them, for they can learn faster than myself. But it is fun to learn things one does not know.”

In a pretty similar way a Romanian-American mother in Cleveland said that her seventeen-year-old daughter who is in high school “teaches her English and tries to keep her in touch with ev­erything she is taught. It is wonderful to see how much the children know about the practical issues of life - trade, bookkeeping, transactions, raw mate­rials, etc. It took me nearly my whole lifetime to learn the trade of keeping a store, and now my daughter learns as much or more in her school days.”

These aspects represent another mo­ment from the evolution of our Roma­nian-American community.

ALEXANDRU NEMOIANU