Memories of my boyhood

"I am born at March 1 1837 in Humulesti village, Neamt county, from Romanian parents: Stefan of Petrea the shoemaker and his wife Smaranda, born David Creanga, from Pipirig village, Neamt county..." (Memories of my boyhood")

Creangă was born in the village of Humuleşti, located in the foothills of the Eastern Carpathians, in northern Moldavia, in 1837. As the first child of eight, Creangă's mother wanted him to be educated for Orthodox priesthood, traditionally a prestigious position in the village community.

With the help of Maiorescu, Creangă was reinstated in 1874. The following year, during an inspection of the school where Creangă taught, he encountered Mihai Eminescu, the young poet who then worked as a school inspector. A lasting friendship resulted.

Eminescu encouraged Creangă to write down the tales that he frequently recounted orally, and brought him to the Junimea literary society. The bulk of Creangă's work was written during this period, between 1875 and 1883 when he began to suffer from health problems. Beside his masterpiece, Amintiri din copilărie (Childhood memories), some of his most famous stories are Moş Ion Roată şi Unirea, Dănilă Prepeleac, Povestea porcului, Fata babei şi fata moşului and Ivan Turbincă. He retired as a teacher in 1887 and died two years later, on 31 December, from an attack of epilepsy.