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Etymology
Lets start with the etymology. Where does the name “Transylvania” come from?
According to Romanians, it sounds Latin, so it is of Romanian origins, but the truth could not be different.
Hungary was founded as a Catholic Kingdom, with Latin as it's official language, so Hungarian chronicles in the Middle Ages were written in Latin.
The region of Transylvania was first refereed to as “ultra silvam”, which is Latin for “beyond the woods”, in a medieval Hungarian chronicle (written in Latin), 1075.
The term Partes Transsylvanć ("parts beyond the forest") dates from the same century (used in Legenda Sancti Gerhardi, and subsequently, as Transsilvania by Medieval Latin documents compiled in the Kingdom of Hungary).
It is here, where the modern name Transylvania comes from.
Another name for Transylvania is Erdély, which comes from Erdő-elve, meaning “in front of the woods”.
The Romanian name for Transylvania (Ardeal) is a phonetic copy of Erdély, and has no meaning whatsoever in the Romanian language.
There is a contradiction between Erdő-elve (on front of the woods) and ultra silvam(beyond the woods)
This is because Erdély comes from the Conquest Era, so the incoming Hungarians saw Transylvania to be in front of the woods (the woods in the Partium/Részek), while “Ultra Silvam” comes after the Kingdom was founded, and to the chronicles, Transylvania now lay beyond the woods.
Romanians have no name of their own for Transylvania.
Transylvania is of Latin origins, first used by Hungarians
Erdély/Ardeal is of Hungarian origins, first used by Hungarians
Siebenbürgen/Sedmigradsko/Sedmihradsko/etc is of German origins, comes from the Saxon Settlers.
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