The Birthplace of Poet Mihai Eminescu (Locul nașterii poetului Mihai Eminescu) marks the site in central Botoșani where Mihai Eminescu was born on January 15, 1850. The original Eminovici family house no longer survives, and the later building standing here is identified by a commemorative plaque and a bronze portrait of the poet.
The house belonged to Eminescu’s mother, Raluca Eminovici, who had acquired the property before his birth. The family was living here when Mihai, the seventh of eleven children, was born, and he remained in Botoșani during his earliest years before the family moved permanently to Ipotești. Six days after his birth, on January 21, he was baptized at nearby Uspenia Church, where the parish register recorded both his birth and baptism.
The property was damaged during the great Botoșani fire of June 3, 1887, which destroyed hundreds of houses and shops in the center of the city. Contemporary accounts indicate that the Eminovici house was not completely destroyed at that time and was repaired afterward, although the original building was later demolished and replaced. By the early 20th century, the site was already being identified publicly as Eminescu’s birthplace.
The present memorial consists of a marble plaque fixed to the later building and a bronze portrait of Eminescu created by sculptor Nora Dorian. The portrait was unveiled on January 15, 2000, marking the 150th anniversary of the poet’s birth. The plaque records that the house of the Eminovici family once stood on this site and that Mihai Eminescu was born here.
