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Draft:Dumitru de Sinka

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Genus (gens) Sinka
CountryKingdom of Hungary, Principality of Transylvania, Habsburg Empire
Current regionTransylvania
Earlier spellingsSynka, Sinka, Sinca
Place of originTransylvania
Foundedlate 13th to 15th centuries
Historic seatȘinca Valley (Făgăraș Land)
Cadet branchesMultiple branches, including: Boila de Sinka, Bălan de Sinka, Bârsan de Sinka, Dumitru de Sinka, Ilie de Sinka, Oltean de Sinka, Stoia de Sinka, Strîmbu de Sinka și Vad

Sinka, also spelt Șinca (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈʃiŋka]), was a noble (boyar) lineage of Romanian origin established in southern Transylvania, in the historic region of Făgăraș Land, attested from the 15th century.

Historical background

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The Sinka boyars were part of the military elite, known in the southern Transylvanian context as the old and good boyars (“boieri vechi și buni”), first mentioned in historical records during the period when the Wallachian princes (voivodes) ruled Făgăraș Land as dukes (from the 14th to the 15th century).[1] This military noble class is the equivalent of the Western concept of the Nobility of the Sword (Noblesse d’Épée), as opposed to the later Noblesse de Robe, which emerged primarily through the acquisition of venal offices or administrative service.

The origin of this Romanian military elite from Făgăraș Land could possibly be linked with the rights granted to the population living in that area by Ladislaus IV, the King of Hungary and Croatia (1272 to 1290), to ensure the defence of the southern borders from the Golden Horde's attacks.[2] The territory was known to be inhabited in the 13th century, before the first invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary, by Pechenegs and Vlachs, with the name Făgăraș being asserted a Turkic etymology.

The Sinka kindred owned properties in Șinca Valley from ancient times (ab antiquo), donated by Wallachian princes to the Făgăraș boyars since the 14th century.[3] Through successive generations, the Sinka boyars divided their estates, giving rise to multiple branches established between the 15th and the 16th centuries. Although the division of the estate and political changes led to the impoverishment of these lineages, their noble status was consistently reaffirmed by the rulers of Transylvania from the 16th to the 18th centuries, preserving a series of privileges in comparison with the rest of the Transylvanian Romanian population.[4]

Heraldry

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The heraldic symbolism of the coat of arms of Sinka boyars, dating from the late 16th century, aligns closely with the martial heritage of this lineage.[5] The lion represents courage, strength, valour, and authority, with its dynamic, upright posture emphasising military readiness and leadership. The curved sword, characteristic of Eastern European armoury, denotes martial prowess, defence of the homeland, and reflects the military traditions prevalent in Transylvania. The azure field conveys loyalty, truth, and steadfastness, while silver (argent) symbolises purity and peace, and gold (or), inferred for the coronet, represents nobility, generosity, and grandeur.

Branches

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The oldest known member of this boyar kin was Solomon Boila, who was born around the mid-15th century and established the Boila de Sinka branch, reconfirmed in their rights at the end of the 16th century.[6]

The lineage Dumitru de Sinka was founded in the 16th century, with Aldea Dumitru de Sinka, the son of Stan Solomon de Sinka, a supporter of Mihnea I Basarab, the Voivode of Wallachia, born in the late 15th century.[7][8] Their status was confirmed by Ștefan Mailat, the Voivode of Transylvania, in 1534, and later, reconfirmed by Maria Christina of Austria, the Princess of Transylvania, in 1598.[9] Nonetheless, in the context of the changing economic and political landscape in the first half of the 17th century, the lineage of the Dumitru de Sinka branch was forced to abandon its remaining estates and seek refuge in the nearby Saxon Lands (Lat. Fundus Regius).[10] Here they developed multiple lineages in the villages of Șona, Ticușu Nou, and Homorod, then part of the former Rupea Seat (Ger. Repser Stuhl) - an administrative unit that existed from the 14th to the 19th century in southern Transylvania, now part of Brașov County.[11][12][13] The branch that settled in Rupea Seat on the Saxon Lands continued to practice their Orthodox faith, but they lost their noble privileges along with the name particle de Sinka, being known only by the name Dumitru.[14][15]

Other collateral branches of the Sinka boyars include the Strîmbu branch, formed by the 16th century, which embraced the Greek-Catholic faith in the 18th century, and some of the members became priests, while Ștefan Strîmbu Sinkay, literatus, became a border officer at Turnu-Roșu around 1729.[16] The most prominent descendant of this line was Ștefan's descendant, Gheorghe Șincai (1754–1816), historian, philologist, translator and poet, and a leading figure of the Transylvanian School during the Enlightenment. Two national colleges in Romania are named in his honour, one in Baia Mare and one in Bucharest.

Among the descendants of Sinka boyars, can be named also the Oltean de Sinka lineage, whose ancestor, named Oltean de Sinka, was assessor of the boyar seat of Făgăraș (1511).[17] Other members of this lineage include Ioan Olteanu, the bishop of Lugoj (1870-1873), bishop of Oradea (1873-1875) and Ladislau Oltean, district-level official (praetor) in Hunyad County (1863) and Vasile Oltean, lawyer in Blaj.[18]

The remaining branches from Făgăraș Land, known as Bârsan de Sinka, Bălan de Sinka and Stoia de Sinka, continued to maintain their properties in Șinca Veche in the 17th and 18th centuries, where they were reconfirmed in their rights, in 1657 by Zsuzsanna Lorántffy, the Princess consort of Transylvania, and in 1689 by Michael Apafi, the Prince of Transylvania.[19][20] After the formation of the Transylvanian Military Frontier (German: Siebenbürgische Militärgrenze) by the Habsburgs in 1762, some of their descendants converted to Greek-Catholicism and became part of the 11th Company of the 1st Romanian Border Guards Regiment until its dissolution in 1851.[21]

A collateral branch converted to Roman Catholicism and entered the ranks of the Hungarian nobility as early as the 17th century, losing their Romanian cultural identity.[22] Through their integration into the administrative elite, they managed to expand their estate during the late 17th and the 18th centuries, while relocating their seat to Hunyad County.[23] Members of this branch held a number of regional offices, including Deputy Lieutenant (Mag. Alszolgabíró), Judge (Ger. Stuhlrichter), and Councillor at the Transylvanian Gubernium (Mag. Főkormányszéki ülnök).[24]

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References

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  1. ^ Ioan-Aurel Pop, "Genealogie și istorie: o familie boierească din Țara Făgărașului în secolele XV-XVII," Arhiva genealogică, 1994, I (VI), no. 1-2, p. 1.
  2. ^ Alexandru Madgearu, "The Mongol domination and the detachment of the Romanians of Walachia from the domination of the Hungarian Kingdom," De Medio Aevo 12, 2018, pp.227-228.
  3. ^ Victor Vizauer, "The Statutes of the Transylvanian Romanians from Făgăraș (1508). A Historical Perspective and a Comparison with the Transylvanian Saxon and Szekler Customary Laws," Balcanica Posnaniensia. Acta et studia, XXXI, Poznań 2024, Wydawnictwo Wydziału Historii UAM, p. 55.
  4. ^ Ioan Puşcariu, Fragmente istorice. Despre boierii din Ţara Făgăraşului, vol. III (Tipariul tipografiei archidiecesane: Sibiu, 1904), pp. 42-46.
  5. ^ Constantin Reichenauer von Reichenau, Géza Csergheő, Oszkár von Bárczay, Der Adel von Siebenbürgen (Nürnberg: Bauer & Raspe, 1898), p. 613.
  6. ^ Ioan Puşcariu, Date istorice privitoare la familiele nobile române, II (Sibiiu: Tipariulu tipografiei arhidiecesane,1895), p. 18.
  7. ^ National Archives of Romania - BV - Fond Primăria orașului Brașov - Colecția Documente privilegiale - Nr. 439.
  8. ^ Puşcariu, Fragmente, III (1904), pp. 47-48.
  9. ^ Puşcariu, Date, II, pp. 18-19.
  10. ^ National Archives of Romania, BV - Fond Primăria Sighișoara, Registre (c.1600-1642).
  11. ^ National Archives of Romania - BV - Colecția Registre parohiale și de stare civilă - Ticușu Nou (1812-1925).
  12. ^ National Archives of Romania - SB - Colecția de acte fasciculare - Românii de pe teritoriul săsesc (1771).
  13. ^ National Archives of Romania - SB - Colecția de Urbarii și Conscripții - Conscripții (c.1721).
  14. ^ National Archives of Romania, BV - Fond Primăria Sighișoara, Registre; Registre Ticusu Nou.
  15. ^ National Archives of Romania - BV - Colecția Registre parohiale și de stare civilă - Ticușu Nou (1812-1925).
  16. ^ Puşcariu, Date, II, pp. 348, 372-373.
  17. ^ Puşcariu, Date, II, p. 276.
  18. ^ Puşcariu, Date, II, p. 276.
  19. ^ Puşcariu, Date, II, pp. 8, 368.
  20. ^ Puşcariu, Fragmente, III (1904), pp. 47-48.
  21. ^ Puşcariu, Fragmente, III (1904), p. 46.
  22. ^ Nagy Iván, Magyarország családai czímerekkel és nemzékrendi táblákkal: Tizedik-kötet (Pest: Ráth Mór, 1868), p. 213.
  23. ^ Iván, Magyarország, p. 213.
  24. ^ Iván, Magyarország, p. 213.
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