the 1989 state language law of the former moldavian soviet socialist republic declared that moldovan, written in the latin script, was the sole state language, intending it to serve as a primary means of communication among all citizens of the republic. the law speaks of a common moldovan-romanian linguistic identity. until 1989 moldova used the cyrillic alphabet for writing a language that was, by that time, no different from standard bucharest romanian; in part of moldova, the separatist pridnestrovian moldavian republic, the old script is still used in schools and on street signs. even after shifting to the latin alphabet, some moldovan officials continue to insist that the designated "state language" is an east-romance idiom somehow separate from romanian.