Neacșu, Ma ius-C is ian
A icle
Sil iu Negu , a human b and and a social phenomenon
Am i ea u Economic Jou nal
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
The Bucha es Uni e si y o Economic S udies
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Neacșu, Ma ius-C is ian (2024) : Sil iu Negu , a human b and and a social
phenomenon, Am i ea u Economic Jou nal, ISSN 2247-9104, The Bucha es Uni e si y o Economic
S udies, Bucha es , Vol. 26, Iss. 66, pp. 666-677,
h ps://doi.o g/10.24818/EA/2024/66/683
This Ve sion is a ailable a :
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AE
Sil iu Neguţ, a human b and and a social phenomenon
666 Am i ea u Economic
Sil iu Neguț,
a Human B and and a Social Phenomenon
Ma ius-C is ian Neacșu
Bucha es Uni e si y o Economic S udies, Bucha es , Romania
Please quo e his a icle as ollows:
Neacșu M.-C., 2024. Sil iu Neguț, a Human B and and a Social Phenomenon. Am i ea u
Economic, 26(66), pp. 666-677.
DOI: h ps://doi.o g/10.24818/EA/2024/66/666
Sil iu Neguț (b. 1945), “a man no g ea in heigh ”..., bu
g ea , e y g ea in achie emen , i we we e o pa aph ase
he “old ch onicle ”, has accomplished mo e and mo e
han anyone could imagine, knowing o seeing him. He
had wo successi e ca ee s o o e a qua e o a cen u y each,
one as edi o /edi o -in-chie a Encyclopaedic/Scien i ic and
Encyclopaedic Publishing House (1968-1993), ollowed by
ano he eaching ca ee in uni e si y educa ion (1991-p esen )
a he Academy o Economic S udies in Bucha es (“ASE”,
as i is known o he en i e coun y), g adua ing he
Uni e si y o Bucha es , as a geog aphe , bu eaching
geog aphy and geopoli ics o economis s. These we e
doubled by wo o he ca ee s un in pa allel, one o soul,
in o mal, as long as a li e ime, and ha o publicis ,
en iching he spi i ual li e and he publishing ma ke in
Romania wi h se e al good me e s o books o e/lib a y shel ( i s i le in 1972, i s book
in 1975 and he s ill w i es oday, accumula ing dozens o specialized books, ea ises,
e e ence encyclopedias, school ex books and uni e si y cou ses, hund eds o a icles,
e c.), wi h a alen ed s yle, clea , easy o unde s and, scien i ic, encyclopaedic and wi h
li e a y o e ones, as luen as a i e , wi hou any gaps and wi hou i ing he eade , on
he con a y, making him eel awkwa d and eg e ul ha he book is inished, and ano he ,
a ou h, manage ial, being consecu i ely scien i ic sec e a y (1991-1993), ice-dean
(1993-2008) and dean (a ou -yea e m, 2008-2012) o he Facul y o In e na ional
Business and Economics, a e 2012 becoming eme i us p o esso a he Facul y o
Comme ce (now, Business and Tou ism), whe e he s ill wo ks oday.
The e would be oom o a i h, scien i ic ca ee , making ele an con ibu ions, and mo e,
o he de elopmen o ields such as quan i a i e/ma hema ical geog aphy, human
geog aphy, en i onmen al geog aphy, geog aphy o ou ism, geopoli ics and geos a egy,
con ibu ions o which he has ecei ed nume ous dis inc ions ( om he “Simion
Am i ea u Economic Recommends
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Vol. 26 • No. 66 • May 2024 667
Mehedinți” P ize o he Romanian Academy in 1999, Doc o Hono is Causa o he
Uni e si y “Pe ol-Gaze” o Ploies i, 2014, o which many o he s a e o be added, o he
enume a ion o which he en i e space alloca ed o his a icle would be needed and i
would s ill no be enough), membe ships (dozens o o ganiza ions, ounda ions, p o essional
associa ions, councils, scien i ic boa ds, “commi ees and commissions”, which would ill
o he pages) and many hou s o adio-TV b oadcas ing.
A ibu e olume was dedica ed o him: Sil iu Neguț, a human geog aphy (2010), o which
ano he one was added, namely Sil iu Neguț 77. F agmen s o Li e (2022), bo h complex
w i ings wi h (au o)biog aphical, bibliog aphical, memo ialis ic, and celeb a o y sequences.
In addi ion, he has ein igo a ed “geog aphy a ASE” in he luid con ex o he 1990s-
2000s, ensu ing unin e up ed con inui y o 110 yea s - economic geog aphy is one o he
i s cou ses augh wi hou in e up ion a ASE om he ime o he ins i u ion's ounding
un il oday - a a ime when i migh well ha e disappea ed due o successi e
(in)adjus men s in he cu icula o he economic acul ies: some hough ha an economis
should only know economics, in a wo ld o knowledge, in o ma ion, digi al and global,
wi hou unde s anding how he plane wo ks, whe e and wha he esou ces a e, and
wi hou unde s anding he limi s o he wo ld economy, and ended up p oducing g adua es
who no longe know o no longe unde s and well e en economics in i s many ace s.
Mo eo e , Sil iu Neguț ounded a mini-school o geopoli ics, wi h se e al de i a ions and
esea ch di ec ions, s a ing om i s na u al geog aphical oo s: we men ion, in passing,
ha he ounde o he Romanian school o mode n, scien i ic geog aphy, o he i s cou se
and he i s uni e si y depa men o geog aphy in Romania, Simion Mehedinți s udied
di ec ly, being his doc o al s uden , wi h he spi i ual a he o uni e sal geopoli ics
himsel , he Ge man p o esso and geog aphe , F ied ich Ra zel.
As I was saying, Sil iu Neguț, a g ea , a e y g ea man, in achie emen s...
I also me P o esso Sil iu Neguț... and no in passing, no in a hu y, al hough P o esso
Sil iu Neguț's o e lowing ene gy and he apidi y wi h which he did hings (and well) is
p o e bial, as he was always in an endless ba le wi h ime. I knew him, as I said, deeply,
allowing me o be close o him o abou a qua e o a cen u y now...
Le i be he ole o chance in human li e - a heo y ha also he P o esso has de eloped -
when I i s saw his name on a co e ( he amous encyclopaedia “S a es o he Wo ld”), as
a high school s uden , p epa ing o my admission o he Facul y o Geog aphy o he
Uni e si y o Bucha es , hen when I me him physically o he i s ime on he s ai s o
Simion Mehedinți's house in Dimi ie Raco iță S ee no. 12, whe e he Ins i u e o
Geog aphy o he Romanian Academy unc ioned hen and s ill does oday. Nei he o hese
e en s p edic ed any hing: i s because I had he belie ha he au ho o a good book mus
al eady be a legend, i.e. dead (I couldn' imagine how I could be a con empo a y o a w i e ,
a book au ho , in gene al), and he mee ing a he ins i u e had passed like a lash (I was a
3 d yea s uden , somewhe e in he ea ly sp ing o 1999, I had been wo king he e o a ew
mon hs as an in e n, being “ hough o ” by hose who ecommended me o a esea ch
posi ion in, mind you..., geopoli ics!). And so, he name o he P o esso had been
ecommended o me wi h g ea an a e: “Sil iu Neguț is coming and he knows geopoli ics”.
I mus ha e been so, bu i all happened suddenly, a e a quick handshake o
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Sil iu Neguţ, a human b and and a social phenomenon
668 Am i ea u Economic
comple eness, he mee ing was “ icked o ”, his a en ion being caugh by he c owded
pla es ma king a bi hday, celeb a ed a he end o a con e ence.
I someone could ha e ead he signs and old me ha by some game o a e I would
become he disciple and panegy ic o P o esso Sil iu Neguț, I wouldn' ha e belie ed i in
he i s place... Bu all o his happened - I ha e w i en se e al imes abou hese e en s, in
he P o esso 's ibu e books, I will no elabo a e he e.
Time has passed... and, p obably, on he p inciple
ha “a e he sma people you go whe e hey
a e”, I ollowed P o esso Sil iu Neguț om he
amphi hea es o ASE on he s ee s ull o his o y
and ame o Pa is - whe e we spen mo e han
h ee days isi ing ceme e ies! (I don' hink I
lea n as much in school as I did du ing his
cul u al ou h ough he ceme e ies o Mon ma e
and Mon pa nasse, among he ombs ones o
uni e sal pe sonali ies such as Émile Zola,
S endhal, Alexand e Dumas- he son, Nijinsky, he
amous Russian balle dance , Hein ich Heine,
Hec o Be lioz and he beau i ul Dalida, immo alised
by a li e-size s a ue as a g a es one, as well as T is an Tza a, Dumon d'U ille, Cha les
Baudelai e, Jean Paul Sa e, Cons an in B âncuși, Emil Cio an, Eugen Ionescu and o he s).
We enjoyed wi h ou colleagues walking on he s ee s o Du ch ci ies, “de ou ing” he
wo ks o Van Gogh o Remb and o ea ing mussels on he No h Sea sho e ou side he po
o Ro e dam; we ba hed ou ee in he wa e o he olcanic Lake Albano, s opped o a
momen o ca ch ou b ea h and cool o by Be nini's oun ains and hen ollowed in he
oo s eps o ou ances o s back o hei o igins, om he Dacians on he T ajan's Column o
Cons an ine he G ea 's T iumphal A ch o S ephen he G ea 's Ho in... no he ho dese s
o he Saha a... Dugga, Douze, Tunis, plus Pa is, Rome, Ba i, Ancona, G öningen,
Ams e dam, Ro e dam, The Hague, Ha lem, ...
and how many mo e he e a e o men ion, no o
poin ou ou amous ips a ound he coun y, on
he occasion o he (in e )na ional con e ences o
he Romanian Geog aphical Socie y, bu also on
o he occasions, so ha we we e known among
geog aphe s as “ he (chee ul) g oup om ASE”,
and among economis s as “geog aphe s”.
I ollowed his pa h, I would call i “ he Pa h o Sil iu
Neguț”, a pa h in he his o y o human ci iliza ion, a
pa h owa ds becoming, a pa h o knowledge, a pa h
o wisdom, a pa h o ole ance, a pa h o equilib ium
and, abo e all, o iendship. On he las wo d, a
pa en hesis is wo h opening: I know, i seems
inc edible, bu how can his be he case be ween
wo di e en gene a ions, and be ween wo
Wi h P o . Jean Paul Be hélemy (in cha ge
o in e na ional ela ions), a he amous
Pa is-So bonne Uni e si y (2006)
Rep esen a i es o a "b and" in he Romanian
geog aphical communi y, known as
" he g oup om ASE", he e, in a ce ain
o mula ( om le o igh ): Sil iu Neguț,
Gheo ghe Vlăsceanu, Ma ius Neacșu,
Vio el Mionel and Ad ian Kano ici -
s anding (Bo oșani, SGR Cong ess, 2008)
Am i ea u Economic Recommends
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Vol. 26 • No. 66 • May 2024 669
di e en gene a ions in a eache -s uden /assis an ela ionship? Well, maybe i 's ha de o
explain, bu we li ed i o he ulles , he h ee o his g oup - Sil iu Neguț, Gheo ghe Vlăsceanu
and, wi h you pe mission, he au ho o hese lines - cons i u ing he co e o wha I men ioned
abo e, namely “ he g oup om ASE”, because whe e e you spo ed one o hem, you
immedia ely spo ed he o he wo.
Coming back, I saw he P o esso i eless, d i en cons an ly by an unequalled cu iosi y and
enzy, wi h a “qua k” ene gy, always accompanied by a a el no ebook and some hing o
w i e down, wi h a “c azy” need o enjoy a momen in a co ne o he wo ld and who,
al hough he e isi ed places he had isi ed be o e, said “e e y ime, you see some hing else”.
Essen ially, he ialec ics o Sil iu Neguț's philosophy could be summa ized as ollows: he
joy o eading (wisdom), he joy o a elling (knowledge, ole ance), he joy o he show
( he s age - ead he ca hed a, li e and people). A man who lo es li e so much, and whom
li e, in u n, lo es him... Su ely, i he we e o be asked and acco ding o his own
con essions, he P o esso would wan mo e, no e en sol ing hem all. Inciden ally, du ing
a ques ion session a he end o an e en I a ended - he kind o empla e ques ions like
“wha is he sec e o you success” (I always laughed when I hea d hem, people p obably
imagining ha you li e o success, ha you ea and b ea he success, and ha success has
only absolu e alue and is in angible o mos ) - he go he ollowing ques ion, “wha is he
sec e o li e?”. I don' know why, bu he P o esso 's answe s uck in my memo y: “ o be
li ed!”. O cou se, he e a e many imes in li e when you eel like gi ing up, bu ha 's
exac ly wha you don' ha e o do, you ha e o go on. O he wise, li e would ha e no
meaning. In he long cou se o exis ence, you a e one link in a chain, indispensable o he
nex . Any missing piece leads o he collapse o he whole.
Geog aphy in ASE ca ied, o a while, he name “Sil iu Neguț”. Few geog aphe s,
economis s alike, know, and e en ewe a e awa e, ha
one o he disciplines wi h which ou uni e si y s a ed
in 1913, was Economic Geog aphy (o , as i was
w i en in he Royal Dec ee es ablishing he Academy
o Highe Comme cial and Indus ial S udies/AISCI o
6 Ap il 1913, in a icle 3, posi ion 7 Economic
Geog aphy wi h De elopmen s on he Ma ke s o he
O ien ). Thus, on 4 No embe 2023 ( he da e on which
he cou ses a he “Comme cial Academy”, as i
appea ed in he p ess a he ime, ac ually s a ed), 110
yea s o con inuous and unin e up ed eaching o
Geog aphy in he ASE we e celeb a ed. Tuesdays and
Thu sdays we e Geog aphy days a ASE in i s debu
yea . In he same con ex , ou ins i u ion was also he
i s in he coun y o each a specialized cou se in
Economic Geog aphy ( augh by P o esso Gheo ghe
A ghi escu), a e Simion Mehedinți ga e he opening
lec u e in Geog aphy a he Uni e si y o Bucha es (3
No embe 1900), ma king i s debu as a uni e si y
discipline. A small con ex ual men ion: om uni e sal
geog aphy, wo basic ields ha e eme ged, namely
Geog aphy in ASE ca ied, o a while,
he name "Sil iu Neguț", a name ha has
held and s ill holds he co e I (he e,
"T ibuna În ățămân ului" magazine,
no. 27, 2022)
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Sil iu Neguţ, a human b and and a social phenomenon
670 Am i ea u Economic
physical geog aphy (which b ings oge he all he disciplines ha deal wi h he plane as a
whole, analy ically and syn he ically, om a physical poin o iew) and human geog aphy
(which concen a es he disciplines ha deal wi h humani y as a whole, as a geosphe e -
sociosphe e, in i s in e dependen ela ionship wi h he o he plane a y geosphe es and om
which economic geog aphy also eme ged).
Eigh decades la e (1993), as a newly i led uni e si y p o esso PhD (1991-1993, associa e
p o esso ), Sil iu Neguț ook o e he des iny o Geog aphy in ASE, ensu ing i s con inui y
and, mo eo e , i s de elopmen , in a pos -Decembe complica ed con ex by adminis a i e
eo ganiza ions and cu iculum e o m ha ex ended o e yea s.
Bu ha 's no all he e is o i , Geog aphy a ASE mean no only ha i was a “ ounding
discipline” bu also he ollowing: i was a compulso y discipline o he admission exam ( o
as long as ASE held admission exams); i ga e geog aphy depa men ; i ga he ed a collec i e
o geog aphe s, who wo ked pe manen ly, ega dless o he adminis a i e o mula o he
depa men 's exis ence and, a he beginning, i was also a doc o al ield ( o example, one o
he i s PhD g adua es o he AISCI was Cons an in G eceanu, he i s assis an o P o esso
Gheo ghe A ghi escu - he i s i ula o he cou se o economic geog aphy in ASE - in 1927,
wi h a hesis en i led “Loca ion o indus ies on he P aho a Valley”).
In all hese aspec s o geog aphy in ASE, P o esso Sil iu Neguț has been a cons an
p esence. Thus, he was he “geog aphic ec o ” o he Commission o he elabo a ion o
he subjec s o he Geog aphy o Romania admission exam, and he days spen “locked” in
he “Vi gil Madgea u” Hall, whe e we had o a i e a nigh (a leas a 4 a.m.), especially on
he day when he exam was gi en, emain memo able. The ec o Paul B an, a man who
dese es ou homage, ins i u ed a eal i ual in his espec . Then, he con ibu ed o he
e i aliza ion o he depa men wi hin he Facul y o In e na ional Business and
Economics/REI (a e i had disappea ed in 1985, ollowing an in e nal eo ganiza ion, o a
sho pe iod o ime), by ad oca ing and ob aining he p esence o he ph ase “geog aphy”
in he i le o he depa men , which became he Depa men o Economic His o y and
Geog aphy. Since 2011, a e ano he in e nal eo ganiza ion, i e ol ed in o he
Depa men o Tou ism and Geog aphy, wi hin he Facul y o Business and Tou ism
( o me ly Comme ce) his ime, one o he oldes acul ies in ASE, “comme ce” being also
p esen in he name o he ins i u ion since i s ounda ion.
Also, a collec i e o geog aphe s has always unc ioned in ASE, in all mo e o less good
ci cums ances (wi h i s own depa men o , o e y sho pe iods o ime, wi hin o he
collec i es), bu since he 2000s, P o esso Sil iu Neguț has played a undamen al ole in
i s g ow h, p ac ically all geog aphe s who a i ed in ASE a e ha ime passing h ough
his il e . Bu pe haps he g ea es me i o P o esso Sil iu Neguț was he de elopmen o
geog aphy in ASE, i s o all by mul iplying he geog aphic academic disciplines om
“Wo ld Economic Geog aphy” as an almos exclusi e discipline, adding Geog aphy o
Tou ism, Geog aphy o T anspo and, he "queen", Geopoli ics, wi h which he P o esso
has o e e associa ed his name, ini ially as an op ional cou se (nine ull decades a e he
i s cou se in economic geog aphy was augh a ASE), hen op ional, hen compulso y,
hen de eloped a 'pos g adua e' le el and, since 2004, wi h he ansi ion o he Bologna
sys em, a mas e 's p og amme in i s own igh .
The “Sil iu Neguț” school hus came in o being, wi hou saying oo many big wo ds, bu
only “gi ing o Caesa wha belongs o Caesa ”, by ounding he i s mas e 's deg ee in
Am i ea u Economic Recommends
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geopoli ics in highe (economic) educa ion and one o he e y ew in he coun y (ei he in
his o y, sociology o poli ical s udies; in geog aphic highe educa ion, we don' know i i
exis s), ini ially wi hin he REI Facul y, i e ol ed unde se e al o ms and names
depending on he majo changes p oposed o he le el o highe educa ion in Romania, bu
ha ing “behind” he same eam as oday (Sil iu Neguț, di ec o and Ma ius-C is ian
Neacșu, scien i ic sec e a y, la e di ec o /coo dina o o he p og am): Geopoli ics and
Geos a egy (3 semes e s), 2004-2005 (REI); Geopoli ics and In e na ional A ai s (3
semes e s), 2005-2008 (REI); Geopoli ics and In e na ional Business and Economics
(scien i ic esea ch mas e 's deg ee, 4 semes e s), 2008-2013 (REI) and Geopoli ics and
Business (p o essional mas e 's deg ee, 4 semes e s), since 2013, in he Facul y o Business
and Tou ism, and which is con inuing oday.
Wi hin his mas e 's deg ee, alongside he
discipline o Geopoli ics, o he disciplines de i ed
om geopoli ics o geog aphy, apa om egional
speci ici ies (Geopoli ics o Romania, o
example), augh exclusi ely by geog aphe s,
such as Geos a egy, Geos a egy o Resou ces,
Geopoli ics o Con lic s, Geopoli ics and Cosmic
Space, Global Issues, e c., we e also c ea ed by he
“hand and b ain” o he P o esso , who made up
he i s cu iculum o he men ioned mas e 's
deg ee. Geopoli ics was also augh du ing he
2000s in o he mas e 's p og ams a ASE (a he
Facul ies o REI, Ma ke ing, Comme ce), and nowadays in he o m o “Geopoli ics and
Tou ism”, pa icula ly a he mas e 's p og ams a he Facul y o Business and Tou ism.
And i was no only his ins i u ional p og am, he “school o geopoli ics a ASE” le
behind disciples ( o example, wo o he geog aphe s who each oday in his mas e 's
p og am a e also g adua es o he p og am, namely lec . Vio el Mionel and lec . Ad ian
Kano ici, bo h PhD), a eaching and esea ch amewo k, a eal geopoli ical hinking
en i onmen , and many g adua es, some o hem, oday, in impo an posi ions and who
ha e honou ed, as we should say, he “Sil iu Neguț” school.
The long CV o his ope a. P o esso Sil iu Neguț has always been p oud o his pe sonal
CV, long enough o make i di icul o ead (always mo e han 20 A4 pages), no o
men ion wha i con ains, i s and o emos by expe iencing he sa is ac ion o his own
e o s, hei ul ilmen in a ious o ms and he idea ha "he le some hing behind, he did
no li e in ain".
“How much has he w i en?” is ce ainly a ques ion ha can be asked - I'd say he's w i en
mo e books han o he s ha e ead in a li e ime, o e 200 i les as a sole o i s au ho alone
- bu i 's no he mos ele an ques ion, bu eally signi ican a e he ques ions o “"wha
has he w i en?” and “in wha con ex ?”, wha a e he meanings o hese wo ks:
be o e 1989, when no e e yone could publish and he e we e no “apa men
publishe s”, books appea ed unde he P o esso 's signa u e - when publishing was no e en
pa o he “job desc ip ion” - ha somehow ma ked he li es o gene a ions ha did no
ha e easy access o specialized in o ma ion, such as Geog aphical Supe la i es - small
encyclopaedia, One Single Ea h. Man and he En i onmen (1978), Foo s eps on Ea h
The “Roo s” o he Mas e o Geopoli ics:
p o . Sil iu Neguț ( ounde ), acad. Mi cea Malița
( i ula o he "Diplomacy" cou se) and
lec . Ma ius Neacșu (ASE, 2012)
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Sil iu Neguţ, a human b and and a social phenomenon
672 Am i ea u Economic
(1983), The Whi e Mi age - No h and Sou h Poles (1985, ep in ed almos ou decades
la e in 2023), Seeke s o New Lands (1987, also ep in ed in 2017, in a much mo e
elabo a e o m and wi h a new i le, The Encyclopedia o Explo e s and T a elle s o All
Times and All he Wo ld), The Spec acles o he Ea h (1989);
I e eals om he e y beginning he encyclopedic spi i , he
a ini y o eco ds and o he s anges na u al and human
p ocesses and phenomena wi h special meanings ha gi e
uniqueness o ou e es ial wo ld and acco ding o his own
con essions: “I w o e p ima ily wha I missed as a eenage ”,
“unco e ing” he special cu iosi y o he la e ca ee as
geog aphe , as eache and as publicis who wan ed o sha e
wi h o he s he inne joy o li e on such a beau i ul plane .
hen ollowed, Encyclopedias, ob iously geog aphical,
emaining o e e associa ed as a name wi h he S a es o he
Wo ld (S a es o he Wo ld om A o Z. Small Encyclopedia -
1975, S a es o he Wo ld. Small Encyclopedia - 1976,
Encyclopedia o he S a es o he Wo ld - all subsequen edi ions
up o a... XVI in 2020), he mos amous and wi h he la ges
ci cula ion, p e aced by he g ea pe sonali y Mi cea Malița;
Pe haps now, when e e yone, om child o adul , holds a
sma phone in hei hand h ough which hey can access an almos in ini e lib a y ia he
in e ne , hese encyclopedias no longe say so much o seem so use ul - al hough he
ep in ing o so many upda ed edi ions a gues agains his - bu imagine wha hey mean
when he e was no... in e ne , Google o Wikipedia, in an ideologically g ey and e en la e
wo ld?! How much has he wo ld changed in he las hal cen u y, how much ime has
passed since he i s edi ion, and how many imes has he con en changed, how many new
s a es ha e appea ed on he poli ical map o he wo ld?
A a launch o one o he edi ions I wi nessed he ollowing
con ession: 'P o esso , when I le o my pos [as
ambassado o o icial in one o ou embassies ab oad] I had
in my sui case, in addi ion o he essen ials, he... “S a es o
he Wo ld”. And ha says i all... I owned a copy mysel a
he end o high school, in he 1990s, be o e I had he honou
o mee ing he P o esso .
F om his landma k wo k ha e de i ed many o he
Encyclopedias o Asia, Eu ope, A ica, Aus alia and
Oceania, he Ame icas, o which ha e been added, o e ime,
The S a es o he Eu opean Union. Small Encyclopedia,
Capi als o he S a es o Eu ope. Small Encyclopaedia,
Encyclopedia o Explo e s and T a elle s, Small
Encyclopaedia o Romania o Child en, e c.
in he same con ex , P o esso Sil iu Neguț w o e as
he i s au ho Geog aphy ex books (manuals) o p e-
uni e si y educa ion, o all middle and high school classes.
How many gene a ions o pupils ha e g own up wi h hese ex books? How many exams
Sil iu Neguț (1978),
One Single Ea h
Ho ia Ma ei, Sil iu Neguț,
Ion Nicolae - spi i ual a he s
o he S a es o he Wo ld
(ed. 2020)
Am i ea u Economic Recommends
AE
Vol. 26 • No. 66 • May 2024 673
and how many admissions o uni e si y, whe e geog aphy was a subjec , we e gi en on
hei accoun ?
hen, he scien i ic li e a u e was en iched wi h e e ence wo ks unde he same
signa u e - Sil iu Neguț - in se e al ields and sub ields, such as quan i a i e geog aphy
(Ma hema ical modelling in human geog aphy, 1997, based on his PhD hesis - on “old
s yle”, p esen ed in 1984 - and which mean he in oduc ion o s a is ical analyses in he
analysis o human geog aphical phenomenologies), human geog aphy (wi h a homonymous
ea y, Human Geog aphy, 2011, published by he Romanian Academy Publishing House,
an unde aking wo hy o a collec i e wi h dozens o hund eds o membe s, bu a single
au ho ..., which p esen s he heo e ical and epis emological e olu ion o he ield and deals
wi h he main deba es and issues o human geog aphy as a science, as well as some
scien i ic sub ields/disciplines ha all
unde i s umb ella), geog aphy o
ou ism (Geog aphy o ou ism, 2004,
plus o he dic iona ies and ou is
guides), en i onmen al geog aphy, bu ,
by a , Sil iu Neguț's name has been
and will emain associa ed wi h
geopoli ics – a kind o “queen” o his
scien i ic conce ns (Geopoli ics, se e al
e ised and added edi ions, 2005, 2008,
2015, Geopoli ics o Romania, 2004,
La in Ame ican Geopoli ics, 2012
Geos a egy, 2022, he las h ee in
collabo a ion, bu as i s au ho ) - in a
di icul pos -communis con ex , whe e
geopoli ics was a wo d ha s ill “ igh ened”, pe sis ing in he 1990s he de ini ion in
communis li e a u e (“ eac iona y, impe ialis doc ine...”), and in he Romanian uni e si y
en i onmen , con usion was made, and s ill is made, be ween geopoli ics and poli ical
geog aphy, which is some hing else.
As I was saying, wi hou men ioning scien i ic a icles o a icles popula izing science,
scien i ic communica ions ( adio-TV b oadcas s, mo e han 1,000, no by chance being
nicknamed and ecognized in he coun y as “ he oice o Radio”, and his du ing he
communis pe iod ha e comple ed he publicis ic spi i ), he au ho 's books signed by
P o esso Sil iu Neguț can be measu ed, li e ally, in lib a y me e s.
In addi ion, ano he gain is he unique way in which P o esso Sil iu Neguț w i es, whe he
i is a cou se, a specialized book, an encyclopaedia o an a icle, he s yle is unique,
cha ming, dense, wi h accen s o de ini e li e a y alue, o ally lacking he “wooden
language” o “ e minological excess” o “linguis ic abuse” so common in academic
w i ings. The w i ing lows na u ally, like a i e , wi hou bo lenecks, syncopa ions,
kno s... Yes, w i ing is an a , a alen ha you ei he ha e o you don' ... How many people
speak beau i ully, bu can' pu wo wo ds down on pape . You can also lea n o w i e om
p ac ice, bu he esul is a i esome one... And, a e all, i is one hing o w i e o pleasu e,
i is one hing o w i e when you ha e some hing o say, and ano he o w i e because you
ha e o w i e, o o w i e because i is a end.
Geopoli ics (2015) and Geos a egy (2022) - wo e e ence
wo ks in Romanian scien i ic li e a u e
