National Brand- Romania

 Every nation begins to define its population and culture according to the nation’s value, history, and national vision. However, for Romania, developing this sense of national brand has been harder to develop, because of their complicated history. This inability to solidify what Romania’s national vision is, and to take pride in that unified brand, is visible in their inconsistent performance, which increasingly reflects British, and Western European cultures, instead of featuring distinctly Romanian culture as the TV program progresses. This not only reflects the lack of strength in Romania’s National Identity but also their changing culture which places greater emphasis on Westernization within the national brand.

Defining National Identity

According to Oxford dictionary, National Identity is a sense of a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language. What this means, in practice, is that defining the national identity is a process of determining what elements make that nation different, and what features unify the people of that nation. This has also been called the development of a national brand, which focuses on what elements a nation wants the outside world to use to define them.

The development of a national brand is significant because it ensures that there is one identity in the nation, to which all citizens can feel like they belong (Ashmore, Jussim, & Wilder, 2001). This allows citizens to see their country in a positive light, and to engage in the sense of patriotism related to their country. This is, in part, created through shared experiences. As such, Romania’s particular national identity can be considered as it relates to their local history.

Romania’s National Identity

    It is first important to consider the development of Romania’s national identity, and why Romania has struggled to create a cohesive vision of what defines their national culture. Romania was not established as a nation until 1881, and a large part of its identity is still in the process of developing because they were colonized by Russia for so long. To truly understand the national identity of Romania, we must look at the historical period from 1944 to 1989, during the Soviet occupation. They see this period of communism as a humiliation in their history and have tried to minimize its impact on the national brand.

In my opinion, Romania’s identity can be described according to two critical features. First, it can be viewed as a country with a very limited national identity. This identity is very tied to the traditions of Romanian life, including old-fashioned clothing style and speaking the native Romanian language. This takes pride in the nation’s pre-communist history and focuses on the Romani cultures and artistic styles.

In contrast, however, there is a growing national identity that is based on the globalization and Westernization of the culture, as Romania works to separate itself from the Russian construct of communism and align itself with the more mainstream European cultures of France and England.

The blend of these two positions has to do with how Romanians and the others see the country and its culture. According to a scholarly article from Selous Foundation called” Globalization and National Identity: The case of Romania,” the author stated that “In the end, Romania needs to see itself for what is, a blending of East and West, a traditional Christian Orthodox society, which has a strong national identity and a rich, beautiful history” (Constantin 2016). These two features, the honoring of a very traditional culture, and the Westernization of the national brand as a whole are the transition between the two, as presented by the Selous Foundation, which is moving Romanism toward Westernization and the globalization of their national brand.

Romania’s Eurovision Performances

    The Eurovision Song Contest is an international TV competition, that is designed to inspire the European development of original music from a variety of genres. Competing nations from among the associate nations of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) enter original songs, into a live contest. The public then casts votes to select the winning nation.

Romania has taken part in the Eurovision Song Context seventeen times. Romania first competed in 1994 and had placed in the competition’s Top Ten a total of five times, out of 17 entries (Romania Country Profile 1). Among these Top Ten showings, it placed third in both 2010, and 2005, and fourth in 2006.  In these performances, Romania was distinguished by the literary, visual, and musical devices used to display the nation’s talents, and general viewpoints. More specifically, the performances suggest that the nation has a high level of tolerance for diversity, and embraces a variety of talents, and cultures, in its artistic scene.

Identities that Represent Romania: The Eurovision Performances in Relation to National Brand

    These performances can be closely analyzed to say a lot about Romania’s identity based on the literary elements of the songs performed. More specifically, the first song that was used to represent the country in the composition was a love ballad, by “Dicolo de Nori,” or Beyond the Clouds, was written in Romanian, and uses a combination of metaphors like “a ray of love” and very direct language like “I am not asking for forgiveness” (Bittman 1). This is significant first because it demonstrates the pride that Romanian’s have for their country and their native language. Additionally, it shows how the Romanian language can be used descriptively, and poetically to describe complex actions and emotions. This same theme was seen in the 1998 performance of “Eu Cred,” which was also a love ballad performed in Romanian (Romcescu 1). This shows that not only the pride that the nation has in its native language but also the clear national appreciation, or popularity of love ballads.

    Further, visual performance of Beyond the Cloud similarly demonstrates a dedication to Romanian culture. The first performance, from 1994 largely lacks visual appeal (Bittman 0:10). The main singer is dressed in a fairly traditionally Romanian fashion in a blousy white shirt and vest. However the backdrop has a generic city scape and spotlighting. This shows pride in the local flavor but in a very low-key way. While this certainly prevented the song from ostracizing the greater European market, it also did not attract or engage listeners.

In contrast, the performance of “Eu Cred,” on the other hand, has nothing on stage put a lovely woman singing, in a very non-descript gold dress (Romcescu, :21). This is interesting because there is nothing specific to the Romanian culture on the stage. The performance is instead attractively and generically European, allowing it to visually appeal to a wider market. This demonstrates the shift in Romania’s national vision that is moving it away from a pre-communism Romanian style, and toward a more contemporary and globalized national identity.

    This trend continues to be seen in a close analysis of the 2000 performance, when Taxi was nominated to represent Romania with the song “The Moon” which contrasted with previous entries because it was performed in English, rather than Romanian (Train 1:21). This was significant because it showed the influence of other nations, or cultures, on the Romanian music scene. This created a gateway by which music, in English, could find popularity in the Romanian music scene, leading to the 2002 competition, in which Monica Anghel & Marcel Pavel performed “Tell Me Why” in English (1). This was significant because it was the first of the Romanian entries to be recorded only in English. The fact that the song was not recorded in Romanian is significant because it demonstrates a growing globalism, or embracing of English, as a shared language, within the Romanian culture. This international impact on Romanian culture, and music, and their willingness to embrace diversity was again reflected in the song selected and performed in 2007, "Liubi, Liubi, I Love You" The song was performed in six different languages, moving through English, Italian, Spanish, Russian, French and Romanian, with one line of the song performed in each language (Mister M 1). At the end of each verse, however, the new country was explicitly stated in the lyrics of the song, which may have been a poor choice, in terms of literary decisions, because it detracted from the meaning, and demonstrated not so much the diversity of the Romanian nation, but rather the diversity within the competition, and the increased Westernization of the Romanian cultural identity, as a whole.  

From a cultural perspective, this demonstrates that Romania is working to embrace the growing, English-speaking version of multiculturalism, and redefining their national brand to be internationally competitive, or an embrace of a more global society. However, it is equally apparent that this embrace of an intercultural concept, or language, is recent, and so not yet developed.

Conclusion

Overall, there is clear evidence that while Romania has struggled to create a unified national vision for some time, that it is moving toward a more consistent national brand that is based on two main features. First, respect for national heritage, and pre-communist culture, including traditional Romani cultural elements, and the native Romanian language, and second, a growing integration of the Western world. This has resulted in confusion, at certain times, but is getting more consistent every year. This evolution can be most clearly seen in the changing song selection presented by the Romanian competitors at the Eurovision contest, which represents not only Romania’s struggle to protect its traditions but also its focus on becoming more Westernized, and part of an orthodox and global society.

(Word Count: 1587).

Work Cited:

Ashmore, Richard; Jussim, Lee; Wilder, David Social Identity, Intergroup Conflict, and Conflict Reduction. USA: Oxford University Press. 2001. Print

Anghel, Monica & Marcel Pavel. “Tell Me Why” Eurovision Song Contest 2002.  2002. Video

Billstrom, Mikaela. “Nationalism and National Identity In Romania” Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyal, Philologia, LII, 2, 2008. Web.http://www.diacronia.ro/en/indexing/details/A15425/pdf

Bittman, Dan. “Dincolo de Nori.” Eurovision Song Contest 1994.  1994. Video

Drace-Francis, Alex. Making of Modern Romanian Culture Literacy and the Development of National Identity. London: I.B.Tauris, 2005. Web.

Fricker, Karen, and Ronit Lenṭin. Performing Global Networks. Newcastle, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2007. Print.

"Globalization and National Identity: The Case of Romania." SFPPR. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

"Romania - a Lost Identity." Romania - a Lost Identity. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

"Romania."Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

“Romania Company Profile” Eurovision Song Contest. 2017. Web. 

Leca, Irina, et al. “Romanian’s National Identity Within a World of Differences” Cross-Cultural Management Journal Volume XVIII, 2016, pp. 17-21,

Lynch, Kevin. “Eurovision recognised by Guinness World Records as the longest-running annual TV music competition (international)” Guinness World Record. 2015. Web.

Mister M "Liubi, Liubi, I Love You" Eurovision Song Contest 2007.  2007. Video.

O'Connor, John K. The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History. London: Carlton, 2010. Print.

Raykoff, Ivan. A Song for Europe: Popular Music and Politics in the Eurovision Song Contest. Aldershot [u.a.: Ashgate, 2007. Print.

Romcescu. Adrian. “Eu Cred” Eurovision Song Contest 1998.  1998. Video.

Train. “The. Moon” Eurovision Song Contest 2000.  2000. Video. 

Nation on Stage- Romania

The Nation on Stage-Romania

Introduction

      The Eurovision Song Contest is an international TV competition concerning music. It is the longest-running competition and held among the associate nations of the (EBU) the “European Broadcasting Union.” The most popular song is chosen on vote bases after its performance on the radio and live television. Other nations with time have allowed taking part in the competition such as America, China, Canada, and Australia, which shows that diversity, has taken place over time. The contest is broadcasted throughout the work, and with the advancement in technology, the show is found on the internet as well. When a nation wins, the career of the artist is boosted for a short time but the success gained is a long term goal (O'Connor 5-16).
      Romania has taken part in the Eurovision Song Context for seventeen times. It began in the 1994 contest where they had a number of ten placements and the best results witnessed in the year 2005. In April 22nd, 2016, Romania participation was suspended. In the year 2000, Romania was presented in the contest which was held in Stockholm, Sweden. It was represented by the band known as Taxi where the first song was based on the topic English. The band failed which made Romania lose its chance to participate in the Denmark 2001 contest. However, they managed to get the initial 12 points which were awarded by Macedonia. Throughout the performances, those who represented the band expressed different attributes and attitude and diversity determined each year’s performance.    

Identities that Represent Romania

      In the year 2000, Romania was represented by a name recognized as Taxi with the song known as ‘The Moon.' The song was performed in the English language, and it was the first song which did not include any Romanian lyrics. The music can be categorized as a ballad and t gains tempo throughout its development. The pan flutes were used during the performance of this song, which is a group of musical instruments which are founded on the closed tube principle and made up of several pipes of different lengths. The pipes were made up of local reeds, bamboo or giant cane. “The Moon” is a song which uses nature things in its expression, such as “the wind is playing with the stars of my night” and “the moon I playing on and on with my heart.” The initial lyrics of the composition were in Romania, but the band translated and sang in English. At that time, the song was recorded as the best Romanian performance of the time (Raykoff 2-9).
      In 2001, Romania did not participate in the contest as they lose in the 2000 competition. In 2002, Marcel Pavel and Monica Anghel represented the nation with the song known as ‘Tell Me Why.' It was categorized as a ballad where the performers cried at the end of the relationship. It is a love song where the love had to end, and it was hurting, and they both wondered if love can be termed as a stupid lie. Anghel had tried to represent Romania in 1996 competition though she could not qualify due to the rules they had at that time. The song was a duo, with the two questioning each other the reasons why the love had to end. The song made Romania occupy the 9th position with 71 points
      Nicole represented Romania in the 2003 Eurovision contest which took place at Riga she played a music known as “don’t break my heart.” With this song, Romania was able to reach top ten positions, and it received 73 points, thus giving the go ahead for the performance of the next year. A piano was used in the performance as it was a solo song. At that time, the lyrics of all songs performed were written in two languages which were mostly the Romania and English version. The fictional language was mostly used for performance during this year. The song was an original work as it was not allowed to be a cover song or a sample from another artists work.
      In the year 2004, Sanda was given the privilege to present the nation at the Eurovision competition. The song that was performed was known as “I admit.” With the performance, the nation gained the 18th position and had only 18 points. It meant that Romania had to compete in the semi-finals so that it could gain a chance to take part in the subsequent year’s competition. The song can be categorized as an up-tempo number where the performer was confessing the way she felt towards her lover. While she was performing, Sanda wore a black outfit which resulted in the description of using the fewer clothes and more hair method Des Mangan, an Australian commentator (Reid, Robert, and Leif Pettersen 3-7).
      Sistem and Luminita Anghel were the performers sent in the year 2005 to represent Romania in the Eurovision contest. They sang the song “let me try” which features the percussion background of the Sistem band. The song gained the third position and earned the nation a total of 158 points. The song was addressed to a lover where Anghel was saying that she did not want to say goodbye and the lyrics express the end of a relationship. The Sistem band acted as the backup group, and they used drums of industrial waste. The band members were wearing the drum lids as shoes. Anghel as well took part in the activities when the instruments were being played. The way Anghel had dressed her hair made her win more points during the performance.

Evaluation based on Attitude and Diversity

      Over the years, attitude change and diversity have been witnessed keeping in mind the performance of the nation. Considering the time period between the year 2000 to 2005, Romania performance changed drastically, and by the year 2005, they were performing much better. The Eurovision contest also gave room for improvement, considering the harsh rules they had when the competition was just beginning. From the study, it is seen that the rules were harsh to the point that a Romania performer was denied participation permission. Later, changes were accepted in things such as performance, where all artists were given a chance to take part, and they could even dress as they wished. Sanda, the 2004 representative of Romania, is an example of the artists who were able to take part in the competition; sing her own way of dressing, such as less clothing and more hair makeup (Alina 1-7). It changed the attitude of the people towards the way of dressing of the artist, and as years have passed by, the most recent nation's representatives are allowed to use any type of clothing that they feel are best. Accepting all types of costumes is a way of showing the diversity, and the performers are not confined to the European culture alone. They can also use other themes to gain a competitive advantage.
      The types of instruments used have been seen to change over time and much better adopted which makes the artist performing feel part of the performance. In the year 2000, a plan flute was used to complement the song being played by the band. The make of the musical instrument can be seen to be traditional since it is only a join up of bamboo or local reeds. There was no technology used in making the instruments as during that time; it had not been adopted in the Eurovision contest. With time, piano and drums were used, and it is even witnessed in the year 2005 that the artist could take part in the body movements. Luminita Anghel, for instance, the Romania representative of the year 2005 was backed up by the Sistem band which used drums and wore drum lid shoes, which they used in making the song more interesting (Beissinger, Margaret, Speranța Rădulescu, and Anca 36-41). With the great performance, the song becomes the best recorded Romania representative in comparison to the past years.
      Language has changed over time, showing a positive attitude to adopting other people language so that the competition can be appreciated globally. The Romania songs which have been played were originally written in the Romanian language; they were however translated to the English language while being performed so that all people listening to them internationally would understand. It shows a change of attitude since the Romanians were willing to adopt other methods such as other languages.  

Conclusion

      Participation of Romania in the Eurovision contest is a chance to interact with other nations and learn other things. It is also a method of spreading their ideology to the other nation people so that they can learn what Romani is all about. Other nations with time have allowed taking part in the competition such as America, China, Canada, and Australia, which shows that diversity, has taken place over time. The contest is broadcasted throughout the work, and with the advancement in technology, the show is found on the internet as well (Fricker, Karen, and Ronit 1-6).
      Language has changed over time, showing a positive attitude to adopting other people language so that the competition can be appreciated globally. The types of instruments used have been seen to change over time and much better adopted which makes the artist performing feel part of the performance. The Eurovision contest also gave room for improvement, considering the harsh rules they had when the competition was just beginning.
(Word count 1579)

Works Cited

Alina, Stoica I. H. M. M. T. R. Culture and Paradiplomatic Identity: Instruments in Sustaining Eu Policies. Place of publication not identified: Cambridge Scholars Publis, n.d.. Internet resource.

Beissinger, Margaret H, Speranța Rădulescu, and Anca Giurchescu. Manele in Romania: Cultural Expression and Social Meaning in Balkan Popular Music. , 2016. Internet resource.

Fricker, Karen, and Ronit Lenṭin. Performing Global Networks. Newcastle, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2007. Print.

O'Connor, John K. The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History. London: Carlton, 2010. Print.

Raykoff, Ivan. A Song for Europe: Popular Music and Politics in the Eurovision Song Contest. Aldershot [u.a.: Ashgate, 2007. Print.

Reid, Robert, and Leif Pettersen. Romania & Moldova. Footscray (Vic.: Lonely Planet Publications, 2007. Print.

Romania National Identity- A Real Struggle

Romania National Identity- A Real Struggle

National identity can be defined as the feeling of cohesiveness in a nation which is represented by particular language, traditions, and culture. Romania is a nation which has been struggling with national identity for a long time due to the blend of the east and west traditions. The nation is made up of different cultures, which all experience different hardship since they do not have a specific language which can guide all the operations. The mixture has caused a struggle as the nation tried to define its national identity. Romania can be seen as a nation which has experienced a lack of national identity and it struggling to gain it so that they can be united to promote the welfare of all members. 

The real struggle exists between the Euro-skeptics and the Europhiles who have different views on how the nation should be run. The Euro-skeptics believe in national independence while the Europhiles hold to uniformity and harmonization. Most communist nation’s especially Romania has been affected by the social realities which affect all other sectors of life. Their economy is much lower compared to other western nations which believed in capitalism. The effect is also on social tranquility (Mitu, p38 2001), and the purpose of people lives. Romania suffered for a long time from lack of social stress, trying to determine how the west and east characteristics could be blended to benefit the nation.

The change has been contributed to a larger percent by dynamism. All sectors of life including the social life have been dynamic, and a nation is lacking wholeness will be affected. It becomes had to unite the people against any factors that might destroy the peace and unity which lead to developing the nations. Roman has tried to bring its people together despite being of different cultures, languages, backgrounds and mentalities together which will help develop a national identity. Despite the idea being considered as noble, there are those who think that it will result in democratic void since the authority will be single and thus hard to be respected by the people.

Romania is hoping to reach to the supra-nationalist powers which will help create the uniformity. It will begin with caring for all people in the nation, including the refugees who have moved in the area since the lack of cohesions had been associated with refusing to host the migrants. The people of the nation have different views on migrants and the talks of supporting them have been associated with conflicts (Billstrom, p58-69, 2008).

The lack of national identity can be traced back when the Dacia Kingdom blended with the Romans the mixture of the culture resulted in a lack of identity. The Romanians then separated into three groups which live separately and though all had the same origin, they did not have the culture which joined them together. They were colonized by the Hungarians, Turks and the Ottoman and all had their different ways of life which they impacted on Romania. With the blend of all these ways of life, there was no specific culture or traditions that the Romanians would claim to be theirs. The lack of identity can be blamed to the Soviet Union as well. It was in charge of the nation since 1944 to 1989, and that is when the nation became a communist country through the Romanians did not want to include the idea into their national identity, as it was considered humiliating. It was concluded that “no underlying loyalty to the idea of Europe [and] there is no single authority that anybody respects or understands. That is causing this massive democratic void” (Romania - a Lost Identity, 1)

All these “Others” which took part in the nation affairs contributed to the weakening of the national identity of Romania (Drace-Francis, 2005). Each nation was different from the other in their traditional practices, cultures, and beliefs. They all believed that their practices were the best and introduced them to Romania. All the nations involved in the welfare of the place introduced their different languages, and thus no specific language which could unite the people was present. With each introduction of a new idea, more confusion rose, it became hard for the Romanians to determine which practices were the best and with the mix-up, a struggle for national identity has been experienced in the nation for a long time. The nation is, however, trying to look for ways which can amend the situation through determination of ways that can unify all people. Being a blend between the east and the west, Romania can decide to choose which ever culture that makes them stronger, since the blending might be associated with some confusing ideas, thus making the retaining of the national identity hard (Leca, Irina, et al, 17-21 2016).

In conclusion, other nations such as Spain and France also experience a lack of national identity; however, they have struggled over time and gained their identity globally. These nations underwent various years of reform which facilitated the reforms. It is a duty of self-evaluation and explanatory where the nation determines which practices to do away with and those to retain to be identified as unique. The Romania language should be promoted in the entire nation, and all people encouraged taking part in it, where they will be able to appreciate their culture, music and other factors. ‘History of modern Romania Civilization, and thus should give something to think about to primarily intellectual and political elite’ (Globalization and National Identity, 1). The journey through which Romani has passed through as it searches for national identity can be identified as a real struggle. It has endured for 20 years, and in the present, it can be recognized among the nations which are struggling to establish a national brand, pride, spirit, and identity.

Works Cited

"Romania - a Lost Identity." Romania - a Lost Identity. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

http://www.aspeninstitute.ro/articole/romania-a-lost-identity

"Globalization and National Identity: The Case of Romania." SFPPR. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

http://sfppr.org/2016/08/globalization-and-national-identity-the-case-of-romania/

Billstrom, Mikaela. “Nationalism and National Identity In Romania” Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyal, Philologia, LII, 2, 2008. Web.

http://www.diacronia.ro/en/indexing/details/A15425/pdf

Drace-Francis, Alex. Making of Modern Romanian Culture Literacy and the Development of National Identity. London: I.B.Tauris, 2005. Web.

Leca, Irina, et al. “Romanian’s National Identity Within a World of Differences” Cross-Cultural Management Journal Volume XVIII, 2016, pp. 17-21,

http://seaopenresearch.eu/Journals/articles/CMJ_9_2.pdf

Mitu, Sorin. National Identity of Romanians in Transylvania. New York: Central European University Press, 2001. Print.

Dumitrana, Magdalena. Romanian Cultural Identity and Education for Civil Society =: Romania. Washington, DC: Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, 2004. Print.