Controversy Over Linguistic and Ethnic Identity in Moldova - Moldovenism

Moldovenism

The Soviet attempts, which started after 1924 and were fully implemented after 1940, to strongly emphasize the local Moldovan identity and transform it into a separate ethnicity, as well as its reiteration in the post-independence Moldovan politics, especially during the Communist government (2001–2009), is often referred to as Moldovanism. The Moldovanist position refutes the purported Romanian-Moldovan ethnic identity, and also at times the existence of a common language. US historian James Stuart Olson, in his book - An Ethnohistorical dictionary of the Russian and Soviet empires - considers that Moldavians and Romanians are so closely related to the Romanian language, ethnicity and historical development that they can be considered one and the same people.

Since "Moldovan" is widely considered merely a political term used to designate the Romanian language, the supporters of a distinct language are often regarded as anti-scientific or politicianist. A typical example is the Moldovan-Romanian dictionary.