Cîrnăţeni
Cîrnăţeni is a village in the Causeni district. The village has an area of about 2.63 km2, with a perimeter of 10.31 km, being at a distance of 5 km from Causeni city and 78 km from Chisinau. The village of Cîrnăţeni was first officially mentioned in 1651.
“Once a great merchant from Tighina stood here. Other merchants and travelers stopped and expressed their wish that “if there were any place to eat and drink, the passers-by would rest and dine. After hearing the travelers’ wish, the merchant from Tighina ordered for such a place to be built. The hikers stopped, rested and ate nearby the village. Local cooks would prepare the most delicious sausages of various kinds. The news about the local sausages has quickly spread through the land. From those tasty sausages came the name of the village – Cîrnăţeni.”
Originally, the village was famous for having five windmills and a wooden church with the official village holiday being the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel’s Day, which is still celebrated annually on the 21st of November.
In a village with a population of approximately 2,800 people, the streets don’t have official names. The issue is as old as the village itself and dates back to 1827 – the year when Cîrnăţeni was founded. The locals would like for the streets in their village to bear official names and the mayor of the village claims that there are official documents suggesting that such names exist. However, when it comes to receiving their bills, locals would only see their names and surnames on the bills and no street names. Hence, in Cîrnățeni, bills and letters reach their destination thanks to the postman who knows every person in the village. Thus, if a new person finds themselves in Cîrnățeni someday, they might have a difficult time finding a local villager if they don’t know them personally.
Cârnăţeni is located close to the Botna River, and the villages of Popeasca, Plop-Ştiubei and Grădinița. The village is also close to the Nighicea Gardens, which is the only and the oldest plantation of fruit trees in the Republic of Moldova. The gardens are more than 100 years old. They also host many springs that feed one of the main local streams which flows into the Nistru River.
