Prepositions that take the dative

Romanian has a small, useful group of prepositions and preposition-like selectors whose complement is dative-valued: Am reușit datorită sprijinului tău. (I succeeded thanks to your support.) The noun ending often looks like a genitive ending, because Romanian normally uses the same visible form for genitive and dative nouns. For the larger case map, see the Romanian case system.

Which Romanian items govern the dative?

For neutral Standard Romanian, learn datorită, grație, mulțumită, conform, potrivit, and contrar as the core set; the first three are the explicit “thanks to” prepositions, while the last three express conformity or contrast.

In traditional case descriptions, all six items above are taught with a dative complement. Current dictionary entries label conform, potrivit, and contrar as adverbs in these uses, so “dative-governing” here describes the case value of the following noun phrase, not an inflectional change in the selector itself. The three thanks to forms are prepositions.

What noun forms appear after them?

Use the ordinary genitive-dative form of the noun phrase: the indefinite article is unui, unei, or unor, and the definite article is usually -(u)lui, -i, or -lor. The selector is invariable; gender and number belong to the noun phrase and any agreeing adjective.

• A feminine singular noun can visibly change its stem: lege becomes legii, and colegă becomes colegei. This is a noun-form issue, not agreement with datorită or conform.
• A definite plural ends in -lor: datorită eforturilor, conform regulilor, and contrar așteptărilor. The same -lor ending can therefore be genitive or dative; the selector and meaning decide.
• Do not make the selector agree: use conform legii, not a feminine form such as conformă legii. In its adverbial selector use, potrivit also stays potrivit, even before a feminine or plural noun.

Which pronoun forms reveal the dative?

With a pronoun, use the strong dative form rather than a possessive adjective or an unstressed verbal clitic: datorită ție (thanks to you), not datorită ta. These forms make the case contrast visible when noun forms do not.

A prepositional dative is not the same as a clitic attached to a verb. Say Datorită profesorului, am înțeles lecția. (Thanks to the teacher, I understood the lesson.), without îi. The clitic îi belongs to a verbal dative such as I-am mulțumit profesorului. (I thanked the teacher.) or I-am trimis profesorului raportul. (I sent the teacher the report.)

How do these forms contrast with genitive and ordinary indirect objects?

Romanian nouns normally syncretize genitive and dative: profesorului can be either case. For the full noun paradigms, see genitive-dative noun forms. A genitive-governing phrase expresses possession, source, or a relation such as “because of,” while a dative selector expresses a credited cause, conformity, or contrast. An ordinary indirect object is instead licensed by a verb and typically identifies a recipient or beneficiary.

What meaning and register should you choose?

The case rule is grammatical, but the lexical choice carries meaning and style. Lead with datorită in ordinary neutral prose; choose mulțumită when the appreciative force is prominent and grație when a polished or formal tone suits the context. For an unwanted cause, neutral Romanian usually prefers genitive-governing din cauza: Din cauza traficului, am întârziat. (Because of the traffic, I was late.)

• Datorită is not an absolute ban on negative outcomes: a speaker can use it deliberately to credit a cause or create irony. It is simply a poor neutral choice when the intended message is straightforward blame or damage.
• Conform is especially natural with a rule, plan, contract, or regulation: Conform contractului, plata se face lunar. (According to the contract, payment is made monthly.) Potrivit often introduces a source or assessment: Potrivit raportului, riscul este redus. (According to the report, the risk is low.) Both are common in formal, professional, and journalistic writing.
• Contrar means “contrary to” and frames a concession or opposition: Contrar așteptărilor, rezultatul a fost bun. (Contrary to expectations, the result was good.) It is more formal than an everyday paraphrase such as spre deosebire de in many contexts.
• DOOM3 records conform cu planul as well as bare conform planului, and potrivit cu ocaziile alongside potrivit ocaziilor. In the versions with cu, cu governs an accusative phrase: conform cu planul, not conform cu planului.

Mistakes to avoid

• Do not use a possessive after a dative selector: datorită ție, not datorită ta; din cauza ta is the genitive contrast.
• Do not add a verbal clitic before a prepositional dative: Datorită profesorului am reușit, not Îi datorită profesorului am reușit.
• Do not infer the case from -ului, -ei, or -lor alone. Compare conform regulilor (dative-valued) with în ciuda regulilor (genitive-valued).
• Do not mix the two conform patterns: bare conform regulamentului uses the genitive-dative form, whereas conform cu regulamentul has cu followed by the accusative form.