Terms for ʻthe sun setsʼ in Romanian linguistic atlases

The article approaches the terms for the notion ʻthe sun setsʼ in the Daco-Roma-nian dialect, having as a basis the answers obtained for the ALR I (the questions 1221 Soarele apune and 1222 Soarele asfințește ʻthe sun setsʼ) and the answers from the regional atlases of the NALR series (question 1589 Soarele apune ʻthe sun setsʼ). The conclusion of the present study is that the main terms from ALR I, such as (s-)apune, (se) (a)sfințește, (se) (a)sfinte and scapătă, can also be found in the regional atlases, organized in approximately the same areas. The distribution of these terms in the Daco-Romanian territory proves the fact that, in the context of Romanity, the Romanian language is characterized by an obvious diatopic unity and that the discussed terms reflect both the Latin origin of the Romanian language and the influence of the contacts with other languages over time.