How did the Protestant Reformation affect Romanian religious publishing in the 17th century?

In the 17th century, the Protestant Reformation acted as a significant catalyst for Romanian religious publishing. The theological and ideological controversies sparked by the Reformation provided a new impetus for the production of religious texts across Transylvania, Walachia, and Moldavia.1

This climate of debate encouraged scholars and religious figures to translate and print works in the Romanian language to reach a wider audience. Notable developments during this period included:

• Dosoftei’s Contributions: A prominent Moldavian metropolitan, Dosoftei, published the first Romanian metrical psalter in 1673 and later translated the liturgy from Greek in 1679. His work, including his Lives of the Saints (1682–86), helped introduce popular idioms and fostered a more flexible prose style in Romanian literature.1
• Expansion of Printing: By the end of the 17th century, centers such as the monastery of Snagov near Bucharest became hubs for literary activity, printing books in Romanian, Greek, Slavonic, and Arabic.1
• Biblical Translation: Religious literature of the era reached a significant milestone with the publication of a translation of the Bible in 1688, which subsequently served as the foundation for all future translations.1