16 years without Grigore Vieru. The poet, eternally alive through his works
Today it turns 16 years since the death of the great poet, Grigore Vieru, the one who remains eternally alive in our memory through the works he left as a legacy. One of the most emblematic personalities of Romanian literature in Bassarabia, Vieru remains a symbol of love for country, language and people.
Grigore Vieru was born on February 14, 1935, in the village of Pererîta, Hotin County, into a modest family. He started literary debut in 1957, with the volume "Alarma", based on poems for children. Among his best-known works are the volumes "Numele tău", "Trei iezi" and "Rădăcina de foc".
In the late 1980s, Grigore Vieru became actively involved in the National Liberation Movement of Bassarabia, being a strong voice in the process of awakening the national consciousness of the Bassarabians. He was one of the initiators of the Popular Front and an active leader of the Great National Assembly of August 27, 1989. Vieru also took part in the debates of the 13th session of the Supreme Soviet of the Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic, contributing to the adoption of decisions declaring Romanian as the official language and the return to the Latin script of writing.
His activity was also recognized internationally: in 1989, Grigore Vieru was named an Honorary Member of the Romanian Academy, and two years later he became a member of the State Commission for Language Issues. The Romanian Academy nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992.
The poet passed away on January 18, 2009, exactly two days after the accident, following a cardiac arrest. On January 20, Grigore Vieru was buried in Chișinău, in the Central Cemetery on "Armeană" Str. The funeral was attended by tens of thousands of people, and January 20, 2009 was declared a day of national mourning in the Republic of Moldova.
Posthumously, Grigore Vieru was decorated with the National Order "Star of Romania", and several schools in the Republic of Moldova, a boulevard in Chișinău and a street in Iași bear the name of Grigore Vieru.
The wife of the late poet, Raisa Vieru, passed away on October 26, 2024. She lived a life of over five decades with the great poet, with many beautiful moments and challenges. Throughout this time, she was a source of peace and inspiration for the poet.
