Baia Mare ( , ; hu, Nagybánya; german: Frauenbach or Groß-Neustadt; la, Rivulus Dominarum) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

along the

Săsar River The Săsar ( hu, Zazar) is a right tributary of the river Lăpuș in Maramureș County, Romania. It discharges into the Lăpuș in Bozânta Mare, southwest of Baia Mare.Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

; it is the capital of

Maramureș County Maramureș County () is a county (județ) in Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian it is known as ''Máramaros megye'', in Ukrainian language, Ukrainian as Мараморо́щ� ...

. The city lies in the region of

Maramureș or Marmaroshchyna ( ro, Maramureș ; uk, Мармарощина, Marmaroshchyna; hu, Máramaros) is a geographical, historical and cultural region in northern Romania and western Ukraine. It is situated in the northeastern Carpathians, alon ...

, a subregion of

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

. It is situated about from

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

, from the border with

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, and from the border with

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. Located south of Igniș and

Gutâi Mountains The Gutin Mountains (; hu, Gutin-hegység; uk, Гутинський масив) are a mountain range within the Vihorlat-Gutin Area of the Inner Eastern Carpathians. They are centered in Maramureș County in Romania, bordering Satu Mare County ...

, Baia Mare had a population of 123,738 at the 2011 census, and a

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...

home to 230,932 residents. The city administers four villages: Blidari (''Kőbánya''), Firiza (''Felsőfernezely''), Valea Borcutului (''Borpatak'') and Valea Neagră (''Feketepatak''). Baia Mare has been named the Romanian Youth Capital from 2 May 2018 to 1 May 2019.

History

Prehistory

The city's development on the middle course of

Săsar River The Săsar ( hu, Zazar) is a right tributary of the river Lăpuș in Maramureș County, Romania. It discharges into the Lăpuș in Bozânta Mare, southwest of Baia Mare.plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

with a warm Mediterranean-like climate, has facilitated living conditions since the

Palaeolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

Ancient times

During the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

the region was inhabited by

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

tribes. Later, it was included in the

Dacian Kingdom Dacia (, ; ) was the land inhabited by the Dacians, its core in Transylvania, stretching to the Danube in the south, the Black Sea in the east, and the Tisza in the west. The Carpathian Mountains were located in the middle of Dacia. It t ...

formed by the King

Burebista Burebista ( grc, Βυρεβίστας, Βοιρεβίστας) was the king of the Getae and Dacian tribes from 82/61BC to 45/44BC. He was the first king who successfully unified the tribes of the Dacian kingdom, which comprised the area loca ...

when the mining exploration began, as the area is rich in

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

and

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

Middle Ages

Baia Mare is first mentioned in written documents released by

Charles I of Hungary Charles I, also known as Charles Robert ( hu, Károly Róbert; hr, Karlo Robert; sk, Karol Róbert; 128816 July 1342) was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1308 to his death. He was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou and the only son of ...

in 1328 under the name of ''Rivulus Dominarum'' ( en, Ladies' River). In 1347 the town was identified in documents by

Louis I of Hungary Louis I, also Louis the Great ( hu, Nagy Lajos; hr, Ludovik Veliki; sk, Ľudovít Veľký) or Louis the Hungarian ( pl, Ludwik Węgierski; 5 March 132610 September 1382), was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1342 and King of Poland from 1370 ...

as an important

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

town with a prosperous

mining industry Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

. Its rules of organisation were characteristic of the "free towns" of that time. In 1411 the town and its surrounding areas, including the mines, were transferred into the property of the

Hunyadi family The Hunyadi family was one of the most powerful noble families in the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th century. A member of the family, Matthias Corvinus, was King of Hungary from 1458 until 1490, King of Bohemia (ruling in Moravia, Lowe ...

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it '' Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

, King of Hungary (later also Holy Roman Emperor), who recognised

Janos Hunyadi John Hunyadi (, , , ; 1406 – 11 August 1456) was a leading Hungarian military and political figure in Central and Southeastern Europe during the 15th century. According to most contemporary sources, he was the member of a noble family of ...

's contribution to stop the Turkish invasion of Europe. The town went into a period of prosperity, during which the St. Stephen

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

was built. Today the cathedral tower is one of the best-known of the town's historic landmarks (see Stephen's Tower). The first

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

, named ''Schola Rivulina'', was opened in Baia Mare in 1547 by the

Reformed Church Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...

following the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

Modern period

In 1703 Pintea Viteazul and his band managed to free the town for a short period of time from the German Imperial rule, under which it belonged the royal treasury. Since then Pintea is considered an important figure in the town's history, representing the idea of freedom. The Budești Church has Pintea's chain mail shirt and a helmet, reportedly worn by him in his battles. The Museum of Baia Mare displays his weapons and their harness. In 1748 the city's

made a leap forward when the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n authorities created the headquarters of "Superior Mining". In the late nineteenth century,

Simon Hollósy Simon Hollósy; (2 February 1857, Máramarossziget (now Sighetu Marmației, Romania) – 8 May 1918, Técső (now Tiachiv, Ukraine) was a Hungarian painter of Armenian ancestry; original name was: Choriban (Korbuly).Gudenus János József:Ör ...

István Réti István Réti (26 December 1872 – 17 January 1945) was a Hungarian painter, professor, art historian and leading member, as well as a founder and theoretician, of the Nagybánya artists' colony, located in what is present-day Baia Mare, ...

, János Thorma,

Béla Iványi-Grünwald Béla Iványi-Grünwald (6 May 1867 – 24 September 1940) was a Hungarian painter, a leading member of the Nagybánya artists' colony and founder of the Kecskemét artists' colony. Life Born in Som, Iványi-Grünwald began his artistic ...

, and

Károly Ferenczy Károly Ferenczy (February 8, 1862 – March 18, 1917) was a Kingdom of Hungary, Hungarian painter and leading member of the Nagybánya artists' colony.Ilona Sármány-Parsons"Károly Ferenczy" Oxford Art Online He was among several artists who ...

were among numerous young Hungarians who left the area to study the arts in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, as Hungary lacked an academy of art in those times.''Munich in Hungarian, Hungarian Artists in Munich 1850-1914''
, 2 October 2009 - Jan 2010, Hungarian National Gallery Simon Hollósy, the young Hungarian painter, was teaching in his studio new western European techniques. BaiaMareFotoThalerTamas

Some of those young painters decided to settle down together in Baia Mare, then called Nagybánya, to work on art. They persuaded Hollósy to join them and founded the

Nagybánya artists' colony The Nagybánya artists' colony was an art colony in Nagybánya, a town in eastern Hungary that became Baia Mare in Romania after World War I. The colony started as a summer retreat for artists, mainly painters from Simon Hollósy's ''szabadiskola' ...

, working on naturalism and ''

plein air ''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or ''plein air'' painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting ...

'' painting. The artists' colony became known later on for influencing the development of twentieth-century Hungarian and Romanian art. Works by each of these important painters is held by the

Hungarian National Gallery The Hungarian National Gallery (also known as Magyar Nemzeti Galéria), was established in 1957 as the national art museum. It is located in Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary. Its collections cover Hungarian art in all genres, including the works ...

in Budapest, which in 2009 opened the exhibit
''Munich in Hungarian, Hungarian Artists in Munich 1850-1914''
2 Oct 2009 - Jan 2010. In addition, in 1966 the museum held a major exhibition of their work: ''The Art of Nagybánya. Centennial Exhibition in Celebration of the Artists' Colony in Nagybánya''.Valerie Majoros, "Lajos Tihanyi and his friends in the Paris of the nineteen-thirties"
, ''French Cultural Studies'', 2000, Vol. 11:387, Footnote, p. 388, Sage Publications, accessed 30 January 2013 Biserica reformata Baia Mare

Following

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

was dissolved, and in 1920, Baia Mare officially became part of the

Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...

. It became part of Hungary again between since 1940 by the

Second Vienna Award The Second Vienna Award, also known as the Vienna Diktat, was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all o ...

, until the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Near the end of that period, the city hosted the Baia Mare ghetto. After the war, the city was returned to Romania. Shortly after World War II in postwar development, the town of Baia Mare started to grow both in population and inhabited area. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, a new

town centre A town centre is the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train or bus s ...

was developed with

modern architecture Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...

buildings and structures. On 30 January 2000, Baia Mare was the site of what has been considered Europe's worst ecological disaster since

Chernobyl Chernobyl ( , ; russian: Чернобыль, ) or Chornobyl ( uk, Чорнобиль, ) is a partially abandoned city in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, situated in the Vyshhorod Raion of northern Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine. Chernobyl is about no ...

, which took place at gold mining company Aurul, a joint-venture of the Australian company Esmeralda Exploration and the Romanian government.
The tailing dam at the gold processing plant broke and 70 tons of toxic

cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

and heavy metal-laced waste water escaped into the River

Tisza The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa, is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. Once, it was called "the most Hungarian river" because it flowed entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national borders. The Tisza be ...

and into Hungary, making its way into the Danube and affecting Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia, and Bulgaria. More than 1,400 tons of fish, numerous eagles, storks and otters died. Scientists fear the release may have led to the ultimate extinction of at least five fish species. Despite the accident's happening in Romania, much of the adverse effects were suffered in Hungary. The accident prompted Hungary to ban the use of cyanide in gold processing and it has urged the rest of Europe to do the same. Since 2013, local

romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

businessman Daniel Boldor has been operating out of the CUPROM mine and refinery outside of Baia Mare, selling what he claims are under-extracted

Ore concentrate Ore concentrate, dressed ore or simply concentrate is the product generally produced by metal ore mines. The raw ore is usually ground finely in various comminution operations and gangue (waste) is removed, thus concentrating the metal component. ...

shipments to international metal traders in China, South Korea, Thailand, and the United States. Based on claims that the material was, in fact, worthless mining sludge, the

public prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...

's office in

Constanța Constanța (, ; ; rup, Custantsa; bg, Кюстенджа, Kyustendzha, or bg, Констанца, Konstantsa, label=none; el, Κωνστάντζα, Kōnstántza, or el, Κωνστάντια, Kōnstántia, label=none; tr, Köstence), histo ...

filed an indictment against Boldor in June 2018 on charges of money laundering, customs fraud, document forgery, the collection and transport of hazardous waste, and tax evasion.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Baia Mare was granted to the city by the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

in the late 1990s, early 2000s, some years after the communist symbols established in 1968 where de facto out of use starting 1989. The

shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of a ...

is party per pale. In dexter,

gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...

a miner in a

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

, in

sinister Sinister commonly refers to: * Evil * Ominous Sinister may also refer to: Left side * Sinister, Latin for the direction " left" * Sinister, in heraldry, is the bearer's true left side (viewers' right side) of an escutcheon or coat of arms; see ...

, azure a church tower or. The shield is topped by a

mural crown A mural crown ( la, corona muralis) is a crown or headpiece representing city walls, towers, or fortresses. In classical antiquity, it was an emblem of tutelary deities who watched over a city, and among the Romans a military decoration. Later ...

with seven towers. The miner refers to the main local economical activity. The church tower refers to the local cultural/ecclesiastical tradition. The crest shows the city's status as a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

seat.

Geography

The city is situated in the vicinity of the Gutâi and Igniș Mountains. Altitudes reach 1400 meters in some peaks. The area is famous for its outstanding landscapes, and the mountains are easily accessible from the city, famous routes being: Igniș (1307 m), Mogoșa (1246 m), Gutâi (1443 m), Creasta Cocoșului (1450 m), Piatra Soimului (839 m), Plestioara (803 m), Dealul Bulat (683 m), Murgau (633 m), Dealul Crucii (500 m) etc. The city is situated in the Baia Mare valley and is encircled on all sides by hills and mountains, which makes the climate in the city milder than the rest of the surrounding area. Proof of this is that the outskirts of Baia Mare are the only areas where you can find chestnut trees that usually need

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

climate to grow. This is the northernmost reach of the

chestnut tree The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

. However, abrupt temperature changes take place and, during the winters, the temperatures may occasionally drop below -20 degrees Celsius. The summers are mild, cooler than in the rest of the country. The precipitations in this area are quite high, due to the mountains in the north and east which do not allow the air masses to pass beyond the region's limits, the average rainfall being almost 1000 mm/year. The city of Baia Mare is the most populous of northern Romanian cities ( Satu Mare,

Suceava Suceava () is the largest urban settlement and the seat town ( ro, oraș reședință de județ) of Suceava County, situated in the historical region of Bukovina, northeastern Romania, and at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central and Eastern E ...

, and Botoșani), with a population of approximately 124,000. It also has a high level of culture and education, being home to theatres, schools, museums and art galleries. Not far from the city there are a few very important natural reservations, among them Creasta Cocoșului, Cheile Tătărului, Lacul Albastru etc. Because of its privileged location in the Eastern Carpathian mountains it is considered one of the most picturesque cities in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

Demographics

As of 2011 census data, Baia Mare has a population of 123,738, a decrease from the figure recorded at the 2002 census. The ethnic composition of the city is as follows: *

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

: (84.11%) * Hungarian: (12.25%) *

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

: (2.76%) *

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

(i.e.

Zipser Germans The Zipser Germans or Zipsers (german: Zipser, ro, Țipțeri, hu, Cipszer) are a German-speaking (specifically Zipser German-speaking) sub-ethnic group which developed in the Szepes County (german: Zips; sk, Spiš) of Upper Hungary—today mostl ...

): (0.24%) *

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

: (0.16%) *

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

s: (0.02%) and 642 others, including

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...

Italians , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...

Lipovans , flag = Flag of the Lipovans.png , flag_caption = Flag of the Lipovans , image = Evstafiev-lipovane-slava-cherkeza.jpg , caption = Lipovans during a ceremony in front of the Lipovan church in the Romanian village of Slava Cercheză in 200 ...

Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...

, and

Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovak. In Slovakia, 4.4 mi ...

Baia Mare metropolitan area Baia Mare Metropolitan Area (BMMA) is located in northwestern Romania and consists of Baia Mare City ( Maramureș County seat) and localities found within a distance of 35 km. For the 2014–2020 time period, the Baia Mare Metropolitan Area ...

has a population of 215,932, an area of 1,395.38 square kilometres (538.76 sq mi), and includes the municipality of Baia Mare, five towns (

Baia Sprie Baia Sprie (; hu, Felsőbánya, german: Mittelstadt) is a town in Maramureș County, northern Romania. Baia Sprie is situated at a distance of from Baia Mare. The town administers three villages: Chiuzbaia (''Kisbánya''), Satu Nou de Sus (''F ...

Cavnic Cavnic ( hu, Kapnikbánya; german: Kapnik) is a former mining town located in the valley of the river Cavnic, east of Baia Mare, in Maramureș County, northern Romania. The town covers , at altitudes ranging from 500 to 1050 meters above sea l ...

Seini Seini (German: ''Leuchtenburg''; Hungarian: ''Szinérváralja'') is a town in Maramureș County, Romania. It administers two villages, Săbișa (''Kissebespatak'') and Viile Apei (''Apahegy''). It officially became a town in 1989, as a result of ...

Șomcuta Mare Șomcuta Mare ( hu, Nagysomkút; german: Großhorn) is a town in Maramureș County, Romania. The town administers seven villages: Buciumi (''Törökfalu''), Buteasa (''Bucsonfalva''), Ciolt (''Csolt''), Codru Butesii (''Kodrulytelep''), Finteușu ...

, and

Tăuții-Măgherăuș Tăuții-Măgherăuș ( hu, Miszmogyorós) is a town in Maramureș County, Romania. The town administers six villages: Băița (''Láposbánya''), Bozânta Mare (''Nagybozinta''), Bușag (''Buság''), Merișor, Nistru (''Miszbánya'') and Ulmoasa ...

), and 13 communes ( Cernești,

Cicârlău Cicârlău ( hu, Nagysikárló) is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the n ...

Coaș Coas is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

, Coltău,

Copalnic-Mănăștur Copalnic-Mănăștur ( hu, Kápolnokmonostor) is a commune in Maramureș County, Transylvania, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to ...

, Dumbrăvița, Groși, Mireșu Mare, Recea,

Remetea Chioarului Remetea Chioarului ( hu, Kővárremete) is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine t ...

Satulung Satulung ( Hungarian: ''Kővárhosszúfalu''; German: ''Langendorf'') is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania. Its name, translated in English, means "the long village". It is composed of seven villages: Arieșu de Pădure (''Erdőaranyos''), ...

Săcălășeni Săcălășeni ( hu, Szakállasfalva) is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania. It is made up of three villages: Coruia (''Karuly''), Culcea (''Kővárkölcse'') and Săcălășeni. From 1968 to 2004, it also included four other villages. These w ...

, and

Valea Chioarului Valea Chioarului ( hu, Kővárgara) is a commune in Maramureș County, Romania. It is composed of six villages: Curtuiușu Mare (''Nagykörtvélyes''), Durușa (''Durusa''), Fericea (''Szamosfericse''), Mesteacăn (''Kisnyíres''), Valea Chioarulu ...

Historical population

In 1912, out of the total population of 12,877 people, 9,992 were Hungarians (including Jews), 2,677 Romanians, and 175 Germans (i.e. Zipser Germans). In 1920, of the 12,780 inhabitants, 5,005 were Romanians, 4,652 Hungarians, 1,792 Jews, 1,232 Germans, and 99 of other ethnicities. Many inhabitants declared themselves as Hungarian-speakers during previous censuses, despite not being ethnic Hungarians Before the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Baia Mare had a community of more than 1,000

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. In 1944, most of the Jews were deported by the Hungarian occupation authorities to Nazi concentration and extermination camps. Most of the few survivors emigrated from the area. , 32 Jews lived in the city. Along with

Rădăuți Rădăuți (; german: Radautz; hu, Radóc; pl, Radowce; uk, Радівці, ''Radivtsi''; yi, ראַדעװיץ ''Radevits''; tr, Radoviçe) is a town in Suceava County, north-eastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Buko ...

Gura Humorului Gura Humorului (; Hebrew and Yiddish: גורה חומורולוי - ''Gure Humuruluei'' or גורא הומאָרא - ''Gura Humora''; German and Polish: ''Gura Humora'') is a town in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the his ...

and others, Baia Mare had a Jewish

shtetl A shtetl or shtetel (; yi, שטעטל, translit=shtetl (singular); שטעטלעך, romanized: ''shtetlekh'' (plural)) is a Yiddish term for the small towns with predominantly Ashkenazi Jewish populations which existed in Eastern Europe before ...

, or settlement. The

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

dates from 1885.

Politics

The Baia Mare Municipal Council, elected at the 2012 local elections, had the following political composition: The Baia Mare Municipal Council, elected at the 2016 local elections, had the following political composition: The Baia Mare Municipal Council, renewed at the 2020 local elections, consists of 23 counsellors and has the following political composition:

Economy

Sphalerite (Herja Mine, Baia Mare, Romania)

The economic activity of Baia Mare has been based on the mining activities located in the surrounding areas. However, after the 1989 Revolution and industrial changes, such mining declined considerably. They have been replaced with several activities which have improved the city's economy in recent years. Baia Mare has become one of the most economically evolved cities in the region. As a result, several supermarkets have been built in the city as well as one of the biggest shopping malls in over radius. The largest sofa manufacturing plant in Eastern Europe, ''Italsofa'', is located near the Baia Mare city highway ring. The city has a mainline (and branch) passenger and freight railway service provided by ''CFR'', the national railway carrier.

Culture

In Baia Mare there is one library (with a few branches), 6 museums, one planetarium and observatory, 2 theaters, 2 cultural centers, one art school and one popular university. * "Petre Dulfu" County Library * County Museum of History and Archeology Baia Mare * Museum of Mineralogy Baia Mare * Planetarium and astronomical observatory Baia Mare * Arts center Baia Mare- Art Museum * Ethnography and folk art Museum Baia Mare * Municipal Theater Baia Mare * Puppet Theater Baia Mare

Natives

Sportsmen

* Eugen Apjok * Camelia Balint-Hotea * Alin Bota *

Daniel Brata Daniel Brata (born 29 December 1984) is a Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the wes ...

Cristian Bud Cristian Ionuț Bud (; born 26 June 1985) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a striker for CS Făurei. Career Early years In 2004, Bud began his career with his hometown club Liberty Salonta after being bought from Sporting ...

Romulus Buia Romulus "Romică" Buia (born 15 June 1970 in Baia Mare) is a Romanian former football player and currently a manager. He was nicknamed "Figo from Berceni" by the fans of Rocar București which played the home games on the "Drumul Găzarului" fi ...

Claudiu Bumba Claudiu Vasile Bumba (born 5 January 1994) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a winger or an attacking midfielder for Nemzeti Bajnokság I club Fehérvár. He started out at as a senior at Baia Mare teams FC and FCMU, before ...

Rodica Dunca Rodica Dunca (later ''Kőszegi'', born 16 May 1965) is a retired Romanian artistic gymnast Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics in which athletes perform short routines on different apparatuses. The sport is governed by the Fé ...

Melinda Geiger Melinda Anamaria Geiger (born 28 March 1987) is a Romanian handball player who is playing for CS Gloria 2018 Bistrița-Năsăud and the Romanian national team. Geiger announced her retirement in February 2019 at the age of 31 citing recurring ...

Vasile Gergely László Vasile Gergely ( hu, Gergely László; born 28 October 1941) is a Romanian former football player and manager. Club career Vasile Gergely was born on 28 October 1941 in Baia Mare and started playing football in Divizia B at local club, ...

* Ioan Gherghel *

Ovidiu Hoban Ovidiu Ștefan Hoban (born 27 December 1982) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Liga I club CFR Cluj. International career Hoban made his international debut against Trinidad & Tobago, playing the seco ...

* Ákos Koller * Noemi Lung * Teodora Măgurean * Darius Makaria *

Vasile Miriuță Vasile Laszlo Miriuță (born 19 September 1968) is a football manager and former player. From December 2020, he was the head coach of Liga III side Minaur Baia Mare, until July 2021. From July 2021 he was enrolled as the technical director of ...

* Bogdan Pereș * Daniel Sabou *

Alexandru Terheș Alexandru Terheș (born 25 July 1960) is a Romanian former football player, who currently works for FRF. He played for Minerul Cavnic, Baia Mare, Sportul Studențesc, Brașov and Bihor Oradea. Terheş won 2 caps for Romania in 1978 agains ...

Raluca Udroiu Raluca Antonia Udroiu (born 12 May 1982 in Baia Mare, Maramureş, Romania) is an international backstroke swimmer from Romania, who represented her native country at the 2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the G ...

* Ciprian Vasilache

Singers and composers

* Dora Cojocaru - composer and musicologist * Gheorghe Costin - conductor and composer * Adrian Sina- singer and composer *

Paula Seling Paula Seling (, born 25 December 1978) is a Romanian singer, songwriter, record producer, DJ, and television personality. Raised in Baia Mare, she attended Gheorghe Șincai National College and later moved to Bucharest to pursue a career in musi ...

- singer and composer * AMI (Romanian singer) - singer and composer

Painters

Adrian Ghenie Adrian Ghenie (; born 13 August 1977 in Baia Mare) is a contemporary Romanian painter, who lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Early life and education The son of a dentist, he studied fine arts at the Arts and Crafts School in Baia Mare betwee ...

Others

* Csaba Ferenc Asztalos - politician * Mihai Morar - entertainment journalist *

Lucian Mureșan Lucian Mureșan (born 23 May 1931) is the first and current Major Archbishop of the Greek Catholic Archdiocese of Făgăraș and Alba Iulia and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. As Major Archbishop of Făgăraș and Alba Iulia (resident in Blaj ...

- Cardinal, Major Archbishop of Făgăraș-Alba Iulia *

László Németh László Németh (18 April 1901 – 3 March 1975) was a Hungary, Hungarian dentist, writer, dramatist and essayist. He was born in Baia Mare, Nagybánya the son of József Németh (1873–1946) and Vilma Gaál (1879–1957). Over the Chr ...

- writer

Residents

Writers, poets

* Ion Burnar -

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

Augustin Buzura Augustin Buzura (; September 22, 1938 – July 10, 2017) was a Romanian novelist and short story writer, also known as a journalist, essayist and literary critic. A member of the Romanian Academy, he has been the president of the Romanian Cultural ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

* Mária Földes -

n born

ish-Hungarian

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

* Ioan Groșan -

* Florin Tătaru - Romanian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

* Igor Ursenco -

fiction writer Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

, and culturologist

Education

In Baia Mare there are 23 schools, 34 kindergartens and 18 highschools. Higher education is represented by: * Northern University * Bogdan Vodă University from Baia Mare * "Vatra" University of Arts from Baia Mare * "Vasile Goldiș" Western University Baia Mare National highschools from Baia Mare: * Gheorghe Șincai National College * Emil Racoviță Theoretical Highschool *

Vasile Lucaciu National College Vasile Lucaciu National College ( ro, Colegiul Naţional Vasile Lucaciu) is a public day school for students aged 10 to 19, established in 1962 and located in Baia Mare, Romania. The college is named after Vasile Lucaciu, a Greek Catholic priest ...

* Mihai Eminescu National College * Arts College * "Nicolae Titulescu" Economics College * Highschool of Sports * "George Barițiu" Technical College * "Anghel Saligny" Technical College * "C.D. Nenițescu" Technical College * "Németh László" Theoretical Highschool

Twin towns – sister cities

Baia Mare is twinned with: *

Bielsko-Biała Bielsko-Biała (; cs, Bílsko-Bělá, german: Bielitz-Biala, szl, Bjylsko-Bjoło) is a city in southern Poland, with a population of approximately 168,319 as of December 2021, making it the 22nd largest city in Poland, and an area of . It is a ...

, Poland (2001) *

Combs-la-Ville Combs-la-Ville () is a commune in the south-eastern suburbs of Paris, in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located from the center of Paris, in the " new town" of Sénart, created in the 1970s. ...

, France (2009) * Hódmezővásárhely, Hungary (2001) * Hollywood, United States (2001) *

Kitwe Kitwe is the third largest city in terms of infrastructure development (after Lusaka and Ndola) and second largest city in terms of size and population (after Lusaka) in Zambia. With a population of 517,543 (''2010 census provisional'') Kitwe is ...

, Zambia (1972) *

Nyíregyháza Nyíregyháza (, sk, Níreďháza) is a city with county rights in northeastern Hungary and the county capital of Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg. With a population of 118,001, it is the seventh-largest city in Hungary and the second largest in t ...

, Hungary (2001) *

Serino Serino is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Avellino, Campania, southern Italy. Famous for its very clean water source, Serino is from Naples, from Salerno, from Avellino and from Rome. Serino is known for its production of chestnuts ...

, Italy (2003) *

Szolnok Szolnok (; also known by other #Name and etymology, alternative names) is the county seat of Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county in central Hungary. A City with county rights, city with county rights, it is located on the banks of the Tisza river, i ...

, Hungary (1990) *

Wels Wels (; Central Bavarian: ''Wös'') is a city in Upper Austria, on the Traun River near Linz. It is the county seat of Wels-Land, and with a population of approximately 60,000, the eighth largest city in Austria. Geography Wels is in the H ...

, Austria (2000)

Structures

* Chimney of Phoenix Copper Smelter, height: 351.5 metres, which is the tallest structure in Romania.

References

External links

Official website

University of Baia Mare

Photos of the city and its surroundings
in the dedicated

Flickr Flickr ( ; ) is an American image hosting and video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was a popular way for amateur and professional ...

group * {{Authority control Cities in Romania Capitals of Romanian counties Populated places in Maramureș County Mining communities in Romania 1142 establishments in Europe 12th-century establishments in Romania