I once saw, “Top 100 Români de Pretutindeni” translated as “Top 100 Romanians from everywhere.” The translation appears to come from a self-published author who happened to get on that list.
But what is that list? I think “Pretutindeni” can also be translated as “far and wide” or in this context, “Romanians abroad.” So, the list is not everyone. It does NOT include any Romanians in Romania.
The list has no priests serving in Romania, for instance, but it has the Romanian Orthodox bishop for Northern Europe. I guess there are enough Romanians in Northern Europe to merit a bishop there, but like the head of the Anglican church in Eastern Europe, I don’t think most Romanians have heard of him. Or have they?
Marius Dan
His name is Marius Dan. Dan, the “Preasfințitul Episcop Macarie al Europei de Nord” is actually from Cluj! Well, he went to a middle school here, and then studied at university at Babes-Bolyai. If there were a “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” set in 1990-1991 Romania, would he be Greg, or Fregley, or Preston Mudd, or someone else? Perhaps he would have been more like Rowley Jefferson of Diary of an Awesome Kid. Who knows?
From 1996-2000 Dan studied in Cluj-Napoca, at the theological school in Babeș Bolyai.
in 1998-2003, Marius Dan was “redactor” (normally translated as “editor” but I think in this case it would be “producer”) of the radio station, “Radio Renaşterea.” His other job at the time was being a secretary to the Orthodox Archbishop of Cluj.
Dan left Cluj, and Romania, to study abroad. Perhaps this led to his new job.
Anyway, he has ten books published, most in Romanian but some in English, and six published right here in Cluj. Okay, maybe Marius Dan is someone we should have heard of.
Also on the list are the managing director for Asahi in France and Holland, the General Manager of Avon Philippe, a lawyer in Connecticut, some guy who runs the Czech division of a magazine company owned by a Belgian supermarket, and a math teacher in London. Asahi is apparently an Asian beverage brand, very big in Asia. So, any Asians travelling to Holland might be impressed.
But, the President of Romania, the head of the Romanian church in Romania, the head of the Romanian ministry of anything, or any of the Romanian billionaires, CEOs of big Romanian companies, famous Romanian athletes, Romanian based musicians, academics, writers, soldiers, cobblers, editors, math teachers, etc, are absent… basically, no one I heard of is on that list.
Although “Pretutindeni” is often translated as “everywhere,” I think “Români de Pretutindeni” would be better translated as “Romanians abroad.” This is like a list of Romanian expats. (Which, really, should include some people we actually have heard of like Nadia Comăneci.) And each year, it appears to change. So, maybe it should be “Romanian expats of the year.”
Yes, they are successful people, but don’t be sad if you never heard of anyone on that list. If I had to write a list of the 100 most famous Romanians, I do not think I would include very many people from that website, if any at all.
Still, if you made the list, congratulations. Your parents must be proud.
In fact, this list inspires us. We might make our own list of “the top Romanian expats according to some random guy.”