Alexandru Zub

Alexandru Zub (born October 12, 1934) is a Romanian historian, biographer, essayist, political activist and academic. A former professor at the University of Iași, noted for his contribution to the study of cultural history and Romanian history, he is currently head of the A.D. Xenopol Institute of History (an office he has held since 1990). He was elected a full member of the Romanian Academy in 2004 (having been a correspondent member since 1991); currently, he serves as head of the Academy's History Department.

A political prisoner during the early years of Communist Romania, and a known dissident, Zub was selected by Vladimir Tismăneanu on the panel of the Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania, which presented its Final Report to Parliament on December 18, 2006. At the Salcia forced labor camp from Brăila Swamp labor camps he met Alexandru Paleologu, Ion Dezideriu Sîrbu, and .

After his release, he took up research in the Central University Library of Iași, This attitude notably drew criticism from Bedros Horasangian (who considered Goma's words "banterings" and their effect "void").

In 1991, Alexandru Zub supervised the Ph.D. candidature of Sorin Antohi, a fellow member of the Commission, member of the staff for the Central European University, and Zub's co-author on a 2000 volume published by Polirom. Antohi failed to complete his degree and was expelled from the program; a 2006 investigation proved that he had been misrepresenting his academic credentials, which caused his withdrawal from his academic position at Central European University. The researchers protested against Zub's managership, labeling it "despotic" and asking for his resignation.

Selected works

In Romanian Mihail Kogălniceanu, 1817-1891. Biobibliografie ("Mihail Kogălniceanu, 1817-1891. Bio-bibliography"), Editura Enciclopedică/Editura Militară, Bucharest, 1971 A. D. Xenopol, 1847-1920. Biobibliografie ("A. D. Xenopol, 1847-1920. Bio-bibliography"), 1973 Vasile Pîrvan. Efigia cărturarului ("Vasile Pîrvan. The Scholar's Effigy"), Editura Enciclopedică/Editura Militară, Bucharest, 1974; second edition, 2003 Mihail Kogălniceanu istoric ("Mihail Kogălniceanu as a Historian"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1974 Junimea. Implicații istoriografice ("Junimea.Historiographical Implications"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1976 A scrie și a face istorie. Istoriografia română postpașoptistă ("Writing and Making History. Romanian Historiography Post-1848"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1981 Biruit-au gândul. Note despre istorismul românesc ("The Thought Has Broken Through. Notes on Romanian Historicism"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1983 Pe urmele lui Vasile Pîrvan ("On the Footsteps of Vasile Pîrvan"), Editura Sport-Turism, Bucharest, 1983 Mihail Kogălniceanu, Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, Bucharest, 1984; second edition, 2004 De la istoria critică la criticism. Istoriografia română la finele secolului XIX și începutul secolului XX ("From Critical History to Criticism. Romanian Historiography at the End of the 19th Century and the Start of the 20th Century"), Editura Academiei, Bucharest, 1985; second edition, 2000 Cunoaștere de sine și integrare ("Self-awareness and Integration"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1986; second edition, 2004 Istorie și istorici în România interbelică ("History and Historians in Interwar Romania"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1989; second edition, 2003 Istorie și finalitate ("History and Finality"), Editura Academiei, Bucharest, 1991; second edition, 2004 La sfârșit de ciclu. Despre impactul Revoluției franceze ("At the End of a Cycle. On the Impact of the French Revolution"), Institutul European, Iași, 1994 Eminescu. Glose istorico-culturale (Eminescu. Historical and Cultural Glosses"), Editura Enciclopedică Gheorghe Asachi, Chișinău, 1994 În orizontul istoriei ("In History's Horizon"), Institutul European, Iași, 1994 Impasul reîntregirii ("The Deadlock of Reunion"), Editura Timpul, Iași, 1995 Chemarea istoriei. Un an de răspântie în România postcomunistă ("The Call of History. A Crucial Year in Post-Communist Romania"), Editura Junimea, Iași, 1997 Discurs istoric și tranziție ("Historical Discourse and Transition"), Institutul European, Iași, 1998 Orizont închis. Istoriografia română sub dictatură ("Restricted Horizon. Romanian Historiography under Dictatorship"), Institutul European, Iași, 2000 with Sorin Antohi: Oglinzi retrovizoare. Istorie, memorie si morală în România ("Rearview Mirrors. History, Memory, and Morals in Romania"), Polirom, Iași, 2000 Istoriografia română la vârsta sintezei: A. D. Xenopol ("Romanian Historiography at the Age of Synthesis: A. D. Xenopol"), Institutul European, Iași, 2004 Mihail Kogălniceanu, architect al României moderne ("Mihail Kogălniceanu, the Architect of Modern Romania"), Institutul European, Iași, 2005 Clio sub semnul interogației. Idei, sugestii, figuri ("Clio under the Question Mark. Ideas, Suggestions, Figures"), Polirom, Iași, 2005 Romanogermanica. Secvențe istorico-culturale ("Romanogermanica. Cultural-Historical Sequences"), Editura Universității Al. I. Cuza, Iași, 2005

In French L'Historiographie roumaine à l'âge de la synthèse: A. D. Xenopol ("Romanian Historiography at the Age of Synthesis: A. D. Xenopol"), Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, Bucharest, 1983 Les dilemmes d'un historien: Vasile Pîrvan ("Vasile Pîrvan: the Dilemmas of a Historian"), Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, 1985

In English Reflections on the Impact of the French Revolution. 1789, de Tocqueville, and the Romanian Culture, The Center for Romanian Studies, Iași/Oxford/Portland, 2000