Moldova

Moldova was one of the first countries to inspire me to do this project-- I was looking at a map several years ago and saw this little country, sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine and realized I had never ever even so much as heard of it. So, here goes.

MOLDOVA: population 3,538,288 (as of 2014). Capital city: Chișinău

Moldova is the poorest country in Europe, despite having a 99% literacy rate. The service sector is the largest employer, though there is a lot of agriculture and some manufacturing. Moldova is known for its wine making, and has historically been a major food supplier for Europe due to its awesome soil and temperate climate.

Moldova declared independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, and is a parliamentary republic. Most people are Orthodox Christians. The official language is Moldovan, which is pretty much the same thing as Romanian, though there are picky political nuances which dictate whether you call it Moldovan or Romanian. Moldovan was written using the Cyrillic alphabet until 1989, when the Romanian Latin alphabet was adopted.

Transnistria is a breakaway region on the eastern shore of Moldova's main river, the Dniester that stretches to the border with Ukraine. There was a brief civil war in 1992 over the region, and currently, though not recognized by the U.N., Moldova designates it as the Transnistria autonomous territorial unit with special legal status.

Fun Fact: Strong Drinks Museum, in Tirnauca village, is the largest building in the world in the shape of a bottle