Romanian transhumance:
the voices of shepherds and sheep farmers
An experiment in oral history
funded by the Raţiu Foundation
and Helen Maclagan
Din când e transhumanţa? Din când e lumea şi pământul
(How old is transhumance? As old as the world and the soil)
From an interview with Gheorghe Pavelescu, June 2008 (this link
takes you to my appreciation not to his recordings.)
A flock during winter transhumance on its way across Transylvania from Răşinari to Satu Mare
The chief shepherd (baciu) of the flock (shown opposite) with his dogs
Photo courtesy of Muzeul Etnografic, Sălişte, Sibiu
We also talk to
shepherds in Wales
This is, as it says, an experiment and focusing on transhumance is a means to an end. Having spent a lot of time in Romania researching guidebooks and a travel book, I’ve been struck by the wealth of knowledge people have there about farming and the land. English-speaking visitors often go into raptures over Romania’s rural traditions and picturesque landscapes but apart from an occasional newspaper or magazine article about Romania’s switch to the European Union, or books on folklore and the politics of land use in rural areas by intrepid academics such as Gail Kligman and Katherine Verdery, few of us ask what it’s really like for Romanians to work the land or consider what farmers think of their role in life. It’s generally accepted among those who have no first-hand knowledge that the lives of people that economists call ‘subsistence farmers’ are deplorable and must be changed, which usually means made to look like the lives of the rest of the ‘civilised world’ without taking account of the fact that the civilised world has lost touch with that crucial element in man’s development, that of working in balance with nature. Most farmers in Romania are small-holders working with a few hectares and I’d like to challenge that view. For Romania’s future, tourism, and especially eco-tourism are seen as great white hopes. So how does this tie in with the day to day necessities of farming and the constraints of conservation? This website isn’t big enough to hold many large audio files so you’ll only find snippets from the recordings I’ve made (and the Romanian interviews have not been translated). I’m hoping to lodge them with a larger host soon and can send copies by e-mail. If you’re interested in finding more about the background to this experiment, please click here.
