Location
The city is located at 44.11 degrees north latitude, in Dobrudja, 18 km far from Constanta and Medgidia, on the national road, linking Constanta to Bucharest.
The main advantage of the town is that it is located on the main roads and has rail and water transport, which link it with seaside resorts and the port of Constanta.
Murfatlar is a port of the Danube - Black Sea channel.
The city is crossed by two major channels of communication E-81 and DN-3. South of Murfatlar is the A2 highway, still under construction. Also still in construction near the city is a discharge point on the highway.
Historical
In 1975, during the excavation works in Tibisir hill chalk quarry, there were discovered churches carved in rock, galleries of graves and houses built on blocks of chalk.
Archaeologists have determined that it is an ancient human settlement.
And the discovery shows the existence of this town before 992 AD, 1200 year old.
The town was in the path of migratory people, so the settlement had to be resistant, therefore it was dug in chalk, to evoid distruction.
Reliable and valuable data on the history of the town are found in documents after 1800 and 1850, when the “cojani”and “mocani, descendants of shepherds were established here, and the ones who came from Vrancea and Transilvania.
The first name of the town was Murfatlar. The name comes from the tatar word „Murfat“, meaning the descendants of Murfat. After 1855 the settlement was populated by a turkish garrison, and after that by the tatars from Crimeea.
At the time it had a mosque and several houses.
The name Murfatlar was kept until 1921, when several localities in Dobrudja were renamed after a bill, including Murfatlar into Basarabi.
The new name was kept until 1965 when it was changed again to Murfatlar and kept like that for 10 years. From 1975 the town was called Basarabi.
In 2007 the local authorities requested a name change, from Basarabi to Murfatlar. This was approved by the government and put into practice with the support of the Mps from Constanta.
Siminoc village name comes from the flower of the same name which is abundant in these places, the old Turkish name of the village is Turmuflat.
Customs and traditions
The customs and traditions here have been kept since ancient times:
- Gurban vineyards - a ritual for protection of the vineyards.
- Carol singing on the eve of Christmas and New Year.
- „Boboteaza“ - on the day of 6th January. The custom is to recover a cross thrown into the water, young men proving this way their passage among men.
- „Dragobetele“ - love day for romanians, on 24th february.
- „Mucenicii“ (Martyrs) - it is a custom that represents the beginning of the agricultural year and it has generated a traditional romanian celebration. In Dobrogea „mucenicii“ are small and boiled in water with sugar, cinnamon and walnuts. They symbolize the lake in wich the Holy Martyrs were thrown.
On May 1 residents celebrate „Armindenul“ (maypole). It is a symbol of vegetation and protects crops and animals. It is celebrated for the fruits of the earth, livestock health, good wine, healthy people with parties in the pasture, where people eat lamb and drink wine.
Kures (tatars fights): every year, from spring to autumn, the tatars in Dobrogea fight in „Kures“ - a kind of traditional wrestling.
Many habits are related to religious holidays such as: Easter, the rise of Jesus, birth of Virgin Mary, Saint Andrew, Saint Nicholas, Christmas and New Year.
„Hramul“ is the biggest holiday of the church and is celebrated with great pomp and ceremony in local places such as: Old Church „Birth of the Virgin Mary“, new church „Saints Constantine and Helene“, monastery „Saint Teotim“ and the church in Siminoc village „Saint Bicholas“.
There are also celebrated: Heroes day, War veterans day, Anthem day, Flag day, Murfatlar day, Romanian army day, National day.
Folklore
Folklore is millennnia old. It is the result of annonymous creators, it is passed verbaly, enriched by the aport of the community. Folklore is an identity card that can differentiate and customize countries and people.
„Land of synthesis“ as Nicolae Iorga said. Dobrogea proves this by the folk heritage it posseses. To the local creation was added the one from romanians who came from over the Danube. Influences were allways accepted and overlapped the ancient ones, influencing each other.
The local costume developed with history, being the expression of traditions over the centuries.
The old costum is characterized by the contrast between the white shirt and the bright colors of the skirts. The shirt is white and has soft stitchings at the shoulders, sleeves and chest. The skirts have large geometric motifs. The specific note on the male costume is given by the illicit embellished with chenille.
Despite the impression of diversity, the Dobrogea port has all the essential aspects of the romanian port everywhere the raw material used, cuts, decoration and color.
Shepherd and fishing song preserve in their structure the oldest romanian layers.
Very popular in the middle and south of Dobrogea is a game called „geamparaua“ in which the oriental influence is most prominent.
The tatar ensemble „Nurbatlar“ that operates in the Murfatlar City Hall, has represented the town in local TV shows, in the media, festivals and competitions. We note the „International turkish - tatar festival of song, port and dance“.
In general high A.V. RADULESCU young children are initiated to follow „Murfatlar juniors“.
Today we live in a society with rapid change and modernization. We tend to forget about the traditions, customs, and values inherited from generation to generation.
Therefore, based on the idea that traditon is a bridge between the past and present, we want to revive the interest of the young from the community for the unsuspected charms of folk heritage.
