Political Dynamics of Urban Hodonyms: A Case of Chisinau, Moldova

This paper researches the role that hodonyms (street names) play in forming cultural and collective identity and awareness. Street names are thereby treated as the elements that get transformed from everyday communication and interaction to symbols constructed by political elites to direct the collective history perception and memory. The paper explores the principles of forming a new onomastic space of the capital city of the Republic of Moldova, Chisinau. Current work identifies some peculiarities of street renaming, grouping them into several categories. The main principles of renaming policies are also revealed. The analyses of renaming practices help understand the national identities that Moldovans are going to build, and the ideology that local and national authorities will impose.