The Ancient Origins Of International Law In Ion Țurcanu’s Scientific Legacy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31861/jiel.2026.1.65-76Keywords:
Ion Țurcanu, history of international law, international public law, international private law, international treaties, diplomatic relations, Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi UniversityAbstract
The article studies the activities of a prominent scholar, educator, researcher of the history of international law, international public law, and sociology of law, Romanian public figure and government official Ion Țurcanu. His professional formation began at the University of Vienna, continued at Chernivtsi University, and ended up at the University of Iași. I. Țurcanu’s scientific and pedagogical activity is closely related to his public and administrative service. For a long time, he has occupied various positions within the regional administrative bodies of Bukovyna.
Today, I. Țurcanu’s scientific legacy arouses considerable interest in terms of studying the issues of collective security and the importance of international law in ensuring its guarantees. In his academic research, I. Țurcanu regarded the genesis of international law in terms of global challenges caused by military aggression and the ways to overcome these challenges for further practical application in international relations.
I. Țurcanu made a significant contribution to the study of the history of international law, particularly of its ancient period, presenting his views in the work «International Law of the Ancient Period» (1938). In this publication, the scholar analyzed social processes associated with the emergence of the first state formations and their interrelations, attempting to substantiate the idea that international law originated alongside the formation of the first social entities. In this way, the author emphasized that the earliest social entities had caused the emergence of international law, and its level of development depended on the evolution of respective civilizations and the factors that affected the entire process (religion, political and economic relations, etc.).
In general, the study of I. Țurcanu’s scholarly legacy is of both cognitive and practical significance from the standpoint of preserving the academic traditions of the Faculty of Law of Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi University. At the same time, the Ukrainian translation of I. Țurcanu’s scientific accomplishments is, in essence, the very first attempt to introduce his academic legacy and its significance for jurisprudence to legal scholars and law students.
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