[lwptoc]
Iași is the biggest city in eastern Romania and the administrative center of Iași County. Iași, located in the historical province of Moldavia, has long been one of the most important centers of Romanian social, cultural, intellectual, and artistic life. From 1564 until 1859, the city was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia, then of the United Principalities from 1859 to 1862, and of Romania from 1916 to 1918.
Iași, known as Romania’s Cultural Capital, is a historical emblem in Romania. According to historian Nicolae Iorga, “no Romanian should be unaware of it.” Iași, still known as the Moldavian Capital, is the primary commercial and business center of Romania’s Moldavian region.
According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 290,422, ranking it fourth in Romania. As of 2014, the Iași urban area has 464,711 inhabitants, making it the second most populated in Romania (after Bucharest), with over 500,000 people living in its peri-urban region. Iași, home of Romania’s oldest university and the country’s first engineering school, is one of the country’s most significant education and research centers, with over 60,000 students enrolled in five public institutions. The social and cultural life revolves around the Vasile Alecsandri National Theater (the oldest in Romania), the Moldova State Philharmonic, the Opera House, the Tătărași Athenaeum, a famous Botanical Garden (the oldest and largest in Romania), the Central University Library (the oldest in Romania), a variety of museums, memorial houses, religious and historical monuments, and an array of museums, memorial houses, religious and historical monuments.