Pyrlitsa (Ungensky District)

Pyrlitsa village is known for its ancient and rich history. The name of the village comes from the word fire victims ( mold. Pârliţi ). From the traditions of the village it is known that the village was burned and rebuilt three times.

Here, at the direction of the Russian Empress Catherine II , land was provided for settlement. The population, whose ancestors had lived in this village for a long time, preserved documents describing the instructions of the Zemstvo economy on the improvement and planning of land plots received for inheritance, on the planning of houses and farm buildings of the village, certified by land managers of the Imperial Court.

Thanks to the instructions of Emperor Nicholas II on the development of Bessarabian lands in the village, 2 bridge roads from wild granite were built, one of which has been preserved and still serves the inhabitants of the village, a railway junction has been created, connecting 3 directions.

The favorable location contributed to the rapid development of the commercial importance of the village in the region. There was a large bazaar in the village where weekly residents of nearby villages and even villages gathered more than 40 km away. Even residents of the city of Kalaras came to trade here.

The future writer Iosif Abramovich Gerasimov (Gershenbaum), who worked as a journalist in Ungheni, witnessed the deportation of the population on July 6–7, 1949 in Pyrlits. Later, these events formed the basis of his novel “A Knock at the Door” and the film of the same name, shot by Clement Chimidov in 1989.

The village is located at a fork in highways going in three directions: to Chisinau , Balti and Ungheni . Also, a railway passes through the village.

The height of the village is 106 meters above sea level ^[1] .

It is divided into 2 parts: “Old Pyrlitsa” ( Mold. Pîrliţa-sat ) and “Pyrlitsa-small town” ( Mold. Pîrliţa-tîrg ).

According to the 2004 census , 4474 people live in the village of Pirlitsa (2185 men, 2289 women) ^[2] .

Since ancient times, people of different nationalities lived in the village: Moldovans, Ukrainians, Russians, Jews, Gypsies, Gagauz, Bulgarians, Greeks and others. Moldavians and Ukrainians made up the bulk of the population of the village. Until the mid-80s of the 20th century, a large Jewish community lived in Pirlitsa. It was thanks to the Jewish community that the part of the village where Jews lived compactly was named by them “Town”. There was a large synagogue in the village.

The ethnic composition of the village ^[7] :

Also in the village of Pyrlitsa, an Orthodox church was built, which was considered to be a “semi-cathedral” in architectural scale. It was partially destroyed as a result of hostilities of the Second World War . Currently, it has been restored thanks to the efforts of the clergyman and residents of the village and is a beautiful functioning Church of St. John the Baptist with a beautiful, landscaped front garden. There is also another Orthodox church located near the train station.

Also in the village is the Evangelical Christian-Baptist Prayer House, which has its own community and holds weekly meetings of service to the Lord.

Currently, Pyrlitsa is a developed village, where there are 2 schools, an enterprise for the production of wine products, a railway station, shops, the Agricultural Association, a beautiful House of Culture. This is an interesting old village with beautiful people of different nationalities living in the world, preserving their traditions and their identity.

• Godea, Mihai (born 1974) - Moldovan politician, member of the Parliament of Moldova .
• Ciobanu, Victor (born 1984) - Moldavian politician, chairman of the Christian Democratic People's Party .
• Yakir, Yakov Iosifovich ( Yankl Yakir , 1908-1980) - a Bessarabian Jewish writer.