The Heritage of the Cantemir Dynasty as a Spiritual and Cultural Symbio-sis of East and West

Abstract

The Cantemir dynasty played an important role in the world culture of the XVII–XVIII centuries. Dimitrie and Antioch Cantemir, father and son, are known not only as literary personalities, but also as political personalities in Romania, Moldova, Turkey and Russia. It is the only situation in the world culture that, two world celebrities belonging to different historical periods and different cultural spaces have such a close degree of kinship. The article examines the symbiosis of East and West in the literary, philosophical, diplomatic and cultural heritage of the Cantemirs, major figures of cultural and political life of the XVII–XVIII centuries.

Dimitrie Cantemir, as an outstanding representative of European culture and science, made his contribution to the history, geography, philosophy, as well as to the musical culture of the European cultural space. He was interested in physics and mathematics. The writer knowing 11 languages has written his works in different languages. The greatest Ottoman historian of the XVIII century, the first Russian orientalist, Dimitrie Cantemir played the role of a link among the European cultures. It can be considered as the eloquent sample of the cultural exchange of Eastern and Western Europe. Antioch Cantemir showed himself not only as a talented writer, but also as an intelligent and skillful politician. He has "brought poetry with life together" firstly in Russia and he was the first great representative of Russian fiction, according to Trediakovsky, "the most skilful Russian poet". He was also a diplomat serving to Russia adopted here the homeland and being faithful to the end of his life and considered the founder of the Russian diplomatic school honestly.

The heritage of the father and son Cantemirs who have left a deep sign in the Central and South-Eastern European cultures, as well as on the fate of the three nations - Romanian, Russian and Turkish peoples strengthens the idea of unity by the cultural diversity.