Lazăr Șăineanu (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈlazər ʃəiˈne̯anu], also spelled Șeineanu, born Eliezer Schein; Francisized Lazare Sainéan, French pronunciation: [lazaʁ sa.ine.ɑ̃], or Sainéanu; April 23, 1859 – May 11, 1934) was a Romanian-born philologist, linguist, folklorist and cultural historian. A specialist in Oriental and Romance studies, as well as a Germanist, he was primarily known for his contribution to Yiddish and Romanian philology, his work in evolutionary linguistics, and his activity as a literary and philological comparatist. Șăineanu also had innovative contributions to the investigation and anthologizing of Romanian folklore, placed in relation to Balkan and East Central European traditions, as well as to the historical evolution of Romanian in a larger Balkan context, and w