The National Library of Moldova is hosting an exhibition of documents entitled “Nicolae Costin – forerunner of the National Movement. 85 years of birth” between April 7 and May 7. According to the organizers, the goal of the event is to propagate the historical truth about one of the founders and leaders of the National Renaissance Movement, the first Democratic mayor after 1989 – Nicolae Costin.

Contacted by IPN, the National Library’s director general Elena Pintilei said the users’ interest in this politician and great personality of the nation should be manifested by knowledge of the fact that Nicolae Costin, being mayor of the municipality of Chisinau, during a short period of time managed to do a number of reforms and develop Chisinau. For example, he opened a number of education institutions, such as the lyceums “Mircea Eliade”, “Gheorghe Asachi” and “Dante Alighieri”. The studying of the Romanian language and of languages of international communication started there.

Nicolae Costin also opened a number of Romanian book libraries, such as the central library “B.P. Hasdeu”, the libraries “Onisifor Ghibu” and “Transilvania”, and helped reopen churches in Chisinau, including the God’s Birth Cathedral. He contributed to placing new busts on the Classics Alley in the central park of Chisinau and to renaming streets and bringing back Romanian to the local administration. More than 700 streets in the municipality of Chisinau were given names of remarkable personalities of Bessarabia. During his mayoralty, the monument of Ștefan cel Mare was brought back and placed in central Chisinau.

Elena Pintilei noted that in the past the National Library staged more events cantering on this personality. “In the recent past, we concentrated on the 85th anniversary of his birth. We identified a series of documents, encyclopedias, articles from periodicals written about and by Nicolae Costin, materials offered by the National Achieve of the Republic of Moldova, photos and other documents about his life and work. I think the life and work of Nicolae Costin will be further examined and on other anniversaries, we will come with more comprehensive information so as to reconstitute this name in the gallery of personalities of our nation,” stated Elena Pintilei.

The exhibition can be visited in the central block from Monday through Friday between 9am and 5pm, including in groups of at most three persons.