@Bi: Aphorisms in Romanian --- I am glad to reproduce the originals of the two aphorisms in Romanian. However, I am afraid that there are no cognates in English.

'Strămoșii mei nu erau analfabeți. Ei citeau în stele. '

The other aphorism might be more relevant in this respect, because the words "țăran" (peasant), "țară" (country) descend directly from the Latin "terra".

'Țăranul nu poate fi considerat filosof, deoarece are limbajul prea clar.'

Speaking about 'cognates' (a notion learnt from you, during this course, thank you!) the most amazing and numerous correspondence between Romanian and Italian. Had I had a new life and career I would have studied those correspondences.

Why? Because, if for instance, in addition of being a Romance language, French has had an intellectual influence (Romanian writers, painters, engineers, politicians etc. who studied in France, or Romanian intellectuals who became known after writing in French - Eugen Ionescu, Emil Cioran, Tristan Tzara etc.), the relationship between the literary Italian and the Romanian originates mostly in their common Latin roots.

Most of those correspondences do not exist between Italian and Spanish, Portuguese or French!

Source author: Petru Dumitriu PetruD@diplomacy.edu