Romanian language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Romanian |
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| Daco-Romanian limba română |
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| Native to | Romania, Moldova, Transnistria (Disputed region) Minority in: Israel, Serbia, Ukraine, Hungary, diaspora in Italy, Spain, Scotland, Portugal and other parts of Western Europe |
| Native speakers | 24 million (2007) Second language: 4 million |
| Language family |
Indo-European
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| Early forms: |
Proto-Romanian
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| Dialects |
Megleno-Romanian
Istro-Romanian
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| Writing system | Latin (Romanian alphabet) Romanian Braille |
| Official status | |
| Official language in |  Romania MoldovaVojvodina  European Union |
| Recognised minority language in |  Hungary Italy Serbia Spain Scotland Ukraine |
| Regulated by | Academia Română Academy of Sciences of Moldova |
| Linguasphere | 51-AAD-c (varieties: 51-AAD-ca to -ck) |
Blue: region where Romanian is the dominant language. Green: areas with a notable minority of Romanian speakers.
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The Romanian language is a special language that comes from Latin. It is part of the Romance language family, just like French, Spanish, and Italian. This means these languages all share a common ancestor: the Latin spoken by the ancient Romans.
About 66% of Romanian words come from Latin. Another 20% of its words come from Slavic languages. The rest of its words come from other languages like Dacian, Turkish, Greek, and English.
Around 28 million people speak Romanian. For 24 million people, it is their mother tongue (their first language). Another 4 million people have learned it as a second language.
Where Romanian is Spoken
Romanian is mainly spoken in Romania. It is also the most spoken language in Moldova, a country located northeast of Romania.
Romanian and Moldovan Languages
The language spoken in Moldova is often called the Moldovan language. It is actually a type of Romanian. There are some small differences in how people speak it, like the accent and certain words. But overall, they are very similar.
Images for kids
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Official usage of Romanian language in Vojvodina, Serbia
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Romanian language in the Romance language family
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Neacșu's letter is the oldest surviving document written in Romanian.
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A sample of Romanian written in the Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, which was still in use in the early 19th century
See also
In Spanish: Idioma rumano para niños
