Pre-History

Let's take a giant leap backward through time to set the context of Romania's history. Before we can devote our attention specifically to Romania, I'd like to spend a little time talking about the geological and archaeological past.

Tectonic Movement

Over millions of years, the interplay between the Earth's tectonic plates shoved and jostled against each other, creating a series of mountain ranges in the Mediterranean region along the geological frontier between Europe and Africa.

Balkan Mountain Ranges

Stretching from the Iberian peninsula in the west to the ranges of southeastern Europe in the east, they eventually link up with the mountain chains of Asia Minor and central Asia. To their north, the great expanse of the Eurasian lowlands extends across the continent, with scarcely a break, from Calais to the Urals.

Carpathian Mountains

About 65 million years ago, the continents shifted and formed the Carpathian Mountains and the Transylvanian Basin.

Black Sea

Some 40 million years ago, the Black Sea separated from both the Caspian Sea and the Aral Sea.

Open to Invasion

Unlike the imposing mountain chains guarding the entrance into the heart of the Iberian and Italian peninsulas, the Balkans offer little or no barrier against invasion. For millenia, the region was thus left virtually open to easy access and attack from both the north and the east. On the other hand, their irregular shape hindered movement between one valley and the next.

Commerce

Communication in ancient times was often easier with those outside the Balkan Peninsula than with those inside. In this fasion, the mountains have made commerce within the region more expensive and has made the process of political unification more complicated.

Even the Danube has contributed to the difficulty of engaging in commerce, being blocked by the mountains. And even more unfavorable for trade, the Danube bends north in quite the wrong direction from a merchant's point of view before reaching the Black Sea.

Before the Second World War, the lower Danube iced over for four to five months of the year. And before the early 19th century, while the subject of many skirmishes between the Russians and Turks, it was scarcely used for commerce at all. Instead, trade caravans between the Balkans and central Europe went by road. Meanwhile diplomats and other travelers on their way to the Ottoman capital at Istanbul (Constantinople) frequently left the river halfway along its course and completed their journey overland.

Empty Landscape

About 4 million years ago, humanoids began their journey out of Africa, eventually arriving in Europe.

During most of the prehistoric time period, the European continent was the domain of animals, not humans. Unlike the contemporary city-states found in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Levant, Europe was a vast landscape that was relatively empty. Only a few, small, widely dispersed groups of humans inhabited the region.

Events this far back in history can't easily be tied specifically to one particular region, such as Romania, but it does set the stage for what takes place in recorded history. So if you'll excuse my little foray into the deep, dark past, let's take a very brief look at pre-historic antiquity.

Go Elsewhere

At this point, you have a couple of options:

• Return to the History Department to choose another timeframe.
• Select a specific Section topic (shown in preferred reading order):
  • Geologic Ages: Overview
  • Pleistocene Epoch: Overview
  • Archaeological Ages: Overview
  • Lower Paleolithic (1,000,000-100,000 BP)
  • Middle Paleolithic (100,000-40,000 BP)
  • Upper Paleolithic (40,000-10,000 BP)
  • Mesolithic (10,000-5,500 BP)
  • Neolithic (5,500-2,500 BP)
  • Copper Age (4500-2500 BC)
  • Bronze Age: Early (2500-1300 BC)
  • Urnfield Period (1300-600 BC)
  • Iron Age (800-140 BC)
• Rewind to the previous timeframe, the Introduction Section.
• Fast forward to the next timeframe, the Greek Period Section.

Enjoy your stay and have a great day!