When you learn Romanian, you learn the language most similar to the Latin spoken in the Roman Empire. Not only is Romanian spoken in Romania, but also in neighboring Moldova, parts of Serbia and in pockets throughout Europe and North America.
Because it is a Romance language, an Indo-European language descended from Latin, it has many similarities to Italian, French and other Romance languages. But, Romanian is very Latin. It has retained Latin characteristics longer than any other Romance language. There is also some Slavic influence from its neighboring languages, and also from Greek, Hungarian and Turkish, making Romanian somewhat exotic. Unlike its cousin Romance languages, there are very few resources to learn Romanian.
Internet/Free Romanian Lessons.com A basic site to get an introduction to Romanian. Basic lessons, vocabulary, grammar and
some audio to get you started.
Internet/Free Romanian Lessons.com A good source of audio input for learning Romanian. This podcast picks up where published methods leave off.
Book/Audio Combo Teach Yourself Romanian The longstanding Teach Yourself series has always had the widest variety of languages, and Romanian is no exception. The Teach Yourself Romanian coursebook comes with two audio cd's and makes a good introduction to Romanian. It is inexpensive and is easy to find as it is available in most bookstores or online.
Software
This inexpensive software program to learn Romanian is a great tool to have in your arsenal. Lots of vocabulary and phrases, dialogues, audio from native speakers, games and activities and much more to get you started.
Audio Pimsleur Romanian Comprehensive I
Pimsleurs Romanian Comprehensive Level 1 is a new addition to the Pimsleur line. Pimsleurs all-audio format is a great introduction to the language, and with it you'll develop a better accent and conversation ability than with any other published language method. It's a great way to begin to learn Romanian. For a more in-depth look at how Pimsleur products work, read my
review of Pimsleur products,
or you can listen to the first lesson of Pimsleur Romanian free below!