Difference between revisions of "Blat (Romania)"

During the communist period (1947-1989), the word grew increasingly popular and its meaning more specific. At that time, it was used mainly to denote informal ways of securing access to various kinds of services, usually by means of negotiating with state officials. In the late 1950s, dictionaries defined ''blat'' as meaning ‘comrade’ or ‘friend’ – meanings that are now lost – while the verb a ''blătui'' in those days meant ‘to make an arrangement’ or ‘to reach an agreement’<ref>Ciorănescu, A. 2002 [1958]. Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române. Bucharest: Saeculum I.O.</ref>.  Later, the term acquired the meaning ‘to hitch a [free] ride ’or ‘thumb a lift.’ Travelling by ''blat'' became part of youth subculture and was romanticised in songs such as ‘The train without a godfather’ (‘godfather’ in this sense meaning a ticket inspector) performed in 1984 by the rock band Iris, and ‘The hymn of the ''blatists'',’ a hiking song popular in the 1980s.

During the communist period (1947-1989), the word grew increasingly popular and its meaning more specific. At that time, it was used mainly to denote informal ways of securing access to various kinds of services, usually by means of negotiating with state officials. In the late 1950s, dictionaries defined ''blat'' as meaning ‘comrade’ or ‘friend’ – meanings that are now lost – while the verb a ''blătui'' in those days meant ‘to make an arrangement’ or ‘to reach an agreement’<ref>Ciorănescu, A. 2002 [1958]. Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române. Bucharest: Saeculum I.O.</ref>.  Later, the term acquired the meaning ‘to hitch a [free] ride ’or ‘thumb a lift.’ Travelling by ''blat'' became part of youth subculture and was romanticised in songs such as ‘The train without a godfather’ (‘godfather’ in this sense meaning a ticket inspector) performed in 1984 by the rock band Iris, and ‘The hymn of the ''blatists'',’ a hiking song popular in the 1980s.

Apart from linguistic studies of the word’s origins and semantic reconfiguration, ''blat'' has so far attracted only limited academic interest in Romania. One of the few studies of post-socialist informality <ref>Stoica, C. A. 2012. ‘Old habits die hard? An exploratory analysis of communist-era social ties in post-communist Romania,’ ''European Journal of Science and Technology'', 8(1): 171-93</ref> acknowledges the existence of the practice, but focuses on ''pile'', the functional equivalent of the Russian ''blat''. Very little is known about the structural factors that shaped the development of ''blat'' and confined it to specific forms of access, or about how transactions are realised in practice. Research is needed to disentangle ''blat'' conceptually from ''pile'' and other local practices involving personal connections. The subjective motivation for and rationalisation of involvement in ''blat'' both during socialism and in the post-socialist period remain largely unresearched; rigorous data collection will be necessary to advance knowledge and understanding of the practice.

Apart from linguistic studies of the word’s origins and semantic reconfiguration, ''blat'' has so far attracted only limited academic interest in Romania. One of the few studies of post-socialist informality <ref>Stoica, C. A. 2012. ‘Old habits die hard? An exploratory analysis of communist-era social ties in post-communist Romania,’ ''European Journal of Science and Technology'', 8(1): 171-93</ref> acknowledges the existence of the practice, but focuses on ''pile'', the functional equivalent of the Russian ''blat''. Very little is known about the structural factors that shaped the development of ''blat'' and confined it to specific forms of access, or about how transactions are realised in practice. Research is needed to disentangle ''blat'' conceptually from ''pile'' and other local practices involving personal connections. The subjective motivation for and rationalisation of involvement in ''blat'' both during socialism and in the post-socialist period remain largely unresearched; rigorous data collection will be necessary to advance knowledge and understanding of the practice.