Bessarabia

American  

[bes-uh-rey-bee-uh] / ˌbɛs əˈreɪ bi ə /

noun

1. a region in Moldova, on the W shore of the Black Sea: formerly in Romania.

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Bessarabia British  

/ ˌbɛsəˈreɪbɪə /

noun

1. a region in E Europe, mostly in Moldova and Ukraine: long disputed by the Turks and Russians; a province of Romania from 1918 until 1940. Area: about 44 300 sq km (17 100 sq miles)

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Other Word Forms

• Bessarabian adjective

Example Sentences

Friday’s ceremony celebrated the 105th anniversary of Great Union Day of 1918 when modern-day Romania was formed after its unification with the neighboring regions of Transylvania, Bessarabia and Bukovina.

From Washington Times • Dec. 1, 2023

But parishioners are divided between two churches -- the Moldova Metropolis, subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church, and the Metropolis of Bessarabia, which reports to the Romanian church.

From Reuters • Nov. 17, 2023

But it fell under Soviet rule in 1940, when Stalin seized the Romanian region of Bessarabia as part of a 1939 deal with Hitler.

From New York Times • Dec. 19, 2022

It takes about half an hour to cook, stirring constantly, says Roza Jaffe, a home cook and Holocaust survivor from the region of Bessarabia, which today straddles Moldova and Ukraine.

From Salon • Mar. 19, 2022

Footnote 9: Mamalyga, a kind of porridge in Bessarabia, made principally of corn.

From Whirlpools A Novel of Modern Poland by Sienkiewicz, Henryk