Academician Ioan Bolovan: “I am proud that I was born on the plains of Arad and attended high school in Arad”

JA: Professor, you were born in Pâncota and you were a student of the Pedagogical High School in Arad, after which you continued your studies at the Faculty of History and Philosophy of the “Babeș-Bolyai” University in Cluj Napoca. For those who do not know you very well, please tell us why this passion for history and what were some of the milestones in your evolution to the stature of the academic and specialist you are today.

IB: Why this passion? Perhaps the main reason was teenage curiosity about the past, but also an early preoccupation with historical truth, at a time when history was far too “styled”. During high school, my idea of ​​pursuing higher studies in history was reinforced, and thus I became a student of the Faculty of History and Philosophy of “Babeș-Bolyai” University in Cluj Napoca. After graduation, I was assigned as a trainee teacher at Dragu General School, Sălaj, and in 1989 I became a researcher at the “George Baritiu” Institute of History in Cluj Napoca. An impact fact for me was the two scholarships for documentation and study at the University of Debrecen and University College London. Then, under the coordination of Prof. Univ. Dr. Nicolae Bocșan, I defended my doctoral thesis on the topic “Rural population of Transylvania between the Revolution of 1848 and the First World War”. In 2001 I was appointed university associate professor, and from 2008 university professor at Babeș-Bolyai, between 2012-2020 being vice-rector of “Babeș Bolyai” University. Since 2018, I am the director of the “George Barițiu” Institute of History of the Academy, after being the interim director of the Center for Transylvanian Studies, where previously I was also an editor and researcher.

JA: An intense activity. We also know your contribution to many publications in the country and abroad. Truly, a great passion for history. Could you name the direction in which your passion focuses the most?

IB: It is true, a large part of my research work is embodied in published articles and studies, but also in books written individually or as a result of collective research and study. All these published both in the country and abroad. Many times I also supported scientific communications in scientific sessions organized in the country and in various European countries. I do not say these things as praise, but so that you can see that the activity of a historian is not just an office or library presence. And if I have to answer your question, I think you already know my passion and interest in Transylvanian, Banat history. And the reasons are obvious: I was born in this part of the country, and Transylvania is the most complex province from an ethnic, religious and mental point of view. And not only that. Transylvania, Banat, are regions with a still visible history, even if we only look at it from an architectural point of view. And speaking of this aspect, you realize how proud I am that I was born on the plains of Arad and attended high school in Arad. Honestly, all Transylvanian cities have an architecture with deep roots in the architectural art of the former empire, but I think Arad excels in this regard. It’s not called the “city of palaces” for nothing. And I want to confess to you that I am extremely happy to see, every time I pass through Arad, how, one by one, these buildings regain their original beauty.

JA: If you still brought up Arad, how do you see it now, so many years after you left here to pursue your career as a historian?

IB: First of all, I must confess that Arad, as is natural, has a very special place in my heart. Here I trained, here I had my first mentors, including the late professors Mircea Popa, Vasile Popeangă, Nicolae Rosuţ, as well as outstanding collaborators such as Corneliu Pădurean or Doru Sinaci. Then, I confess to you that I was particularly honored to receive the title of Honorary Citizen of Arad from the hands of the mayor Călin Bibarț, a man whom I greatly appreciate for his jovial way of being and for his so natural way of relate to people. You know, as a historian I am fascinated by how Arad manages to blend its historical past with the modern present so beautifully. And what I appreciate is the fact that, despite the transformations so obvious and for the better, the city retains the charm that it always had and that I remember from my adolescence. The Mureșului embankment or the Boulevard, especially as it looks now, has such a charming air. So I have enough reasons to come back to Arad anytime with pleasure and joy.

JA: Professor, we welcome you anytime in Arad.

IB: I assure you that I always return with pleasure and will honor any opportunity to visit, just as the city of my adolescence honored me.