Mehedinți County () is a county () of

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

on the border with

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. It is mostly located in the historical province of

Oltenia Oltenia (), also called Lesser Wallachia in antiquated versions – with the alternative Latin names , , and between 1718 and 1739 – is a historical province and geographical region of Romania in western Wallachia. It is situated between the Da ...

, with one municipality ( Orșova) and three communes ( Dubova, Eșelnița, and Svinița) located in the

Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...

. The county seat is Drobeta-Turnu Severin.

Name

The county's name is or in Hungarian. The Romanian form originates from the first one, and a third originates from the Romanian: . The territory was famous for its apiaries, that's why it was named from the Hungarian word meaning bee.

Demographics

In 2021, it had a population of 234,339 and the population density was 48/km². *

Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...

– 93.9% * Roma – 5.4% *

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

– 0.3% *

Czechs The Czechs (, ; singular Czech, masculine: ''Čech'' , singular feminine: ''Češka'' ), or the Czech people (), are a West Slavs, West Slavic ethnic group and a nation native to the Czech Republic in Central Europe, who share a common Bohemia ...

– 0.1% * Others – 0.3%

Geography

This county has a total area of 4,933 km². In the North-West there are the Mehedinți Mountains with heights up to 1500 m, part of the Western end of the

Southern Carpathians The Southern Carpathians (also known as the Transylvanian Alps; ; ) are a group of mountain ranges located in southern Romania. They cover the part of the Carpathian Mountains located between the Prahova River in the east and the Timiș and ...

. The heights decrease towards the East, passing through the hills to a high plain - the Western end of the Romanian Plain. In the South the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

flows, forming a wide valley, with channels and ponds. Another important river is the

Motru River The Motru is a right tributary of the river Jiu (river), Jiu in Southwestern Romania. It discharges into the Jiu in Gura Motrului, near the town Filiași. Its length is and its hydrological basin size is . Towns and villages The following tow ...

in the East side, an affluent of the Jiu River. Also, in the West side there is the Cerna River forming a passage between the

region and the

region.

Neighbours

in the South - Vidin Province. *

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

in the West and South-West -

Bor District The Bor District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image ...

. * Caraș-Severin County in the North-West. *

Gorj County Gorj County () is a county () of Romania, in Oltenia, with its capital city at Târgu Jiu. ''Gorj'' comes from the Slavic ''Gornji'' Jiu (“upper Jiu”), in contrast with Dolnji (“lower Jiu”). Demographics At the 2011 census, the count ...

in the North-East. *

Dolj County Dolj County (; originally meant ''Dol(no)-Jiu River, Jiu'', "lower Jiu", as opposed to ''Gorj'' (''upper Jiu'')) is a county (județ) of Romania on the border with Bulgaria, in Oltenia, with the capital city at Craiova. Demographics In 2011, ...

in the South-East.

Economy

The energetic sector is highly developed in the county, on the

being two big hydro electrical power plants (Iron Gates I and Iron Gates II). Also in NE of Drobeta-Turnu Severin there is a

heavy water Heavy water (deuterium oxide, , ) is a form of water (molecule), water in which hydrogen atoms are all deuterium ( or D, also known as ''heavy hydrogen'') rather than the common hydrogen-1 isotope (, also called ''protium'') that makes up most o ...

complex (Romag Prod). The predominant industries in the county are: * Chemical industry. * Food and beverages industry. * Textile industry. * Mechanical components industry. * Railway and ship equipment industry. * Wood and paper industry. In the North,

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

and

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

are extracted. The South is mainly agricultural, suited for growing cereals on large surfaces. Also vegetables are cultivated and there are important surfaces of

wines Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

and fruit orchards.

Tourism

The main tourist destinations are: * The city of Drobeta-Turnu Severin - the ruins of

Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier ...

's first bridge over the

* The city of Orșova. * The Mehedinți Mountains. * The

's Iron Gates. * Baia de Aramă Monastery * The

Via Transilvanica Via Transilvanica 'The Transylvanian Trail' is a hiking trail that crosses the Transylvania, Bukovina and Banat regions of Romania, and is meant to promote their cultural, ethnic, historical and natural diversity. It was built between 2018 and ...

long-distance hiking and biking

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...

, which crosses the county

Politics

The Mehedinți County Council, renewed at the 2020 local elections, consists of 30 counsellors, with the following party composition:

Administrative divisions

Mehedinți County has 2 municipalities, 3 towns and 61 communes *Municipalities ** Drobeta-Turnu Severin - capital city; population: 86,475 (as of 2011) ** Orșova *Towns **

Baia de Aramă Baia de Aramă is a small Romanian town located in Mehedinți County, in the historical region of Oltenia, with a population of 4,478 as of 2021. Eight villages are administered by the town: Bratilovu, Brebina, Dealu Mare, Mărășești, Negoeș ...

** Strehaia ** Vânju Mare *Communes ** Bâcleș ** Bala ** Bălăcița ** Balta ** Bâlvănești ** Braniștea ** Breznița-Motru ** Breznița-Ocol ** Broșteni ** Burila Mare ** Butoiești **

Căzănești Căzănești is a town in Ialomița County, Muntenia, Romania. It is situated on the left bank of the river Ialomița (river), Ialomița, west of the county seat, Slobozia. The town is crossed by the Roads in Romania, national road (part of Eur ...

** Cireșu ** Corcova ** Corlățel ** Cujmir ** Dârvari ** Devesel ** Dubova ** Dumbrava ** Eșelnița ** Florești ** Gârla Mare ** Godeanu ** Gogoșu ** Greci ** Grozești ** Gruia ** Hinova ** Husnicioara ** Ilovăț ** Ilovița ** Isverna ** Izvoru Bârzii ** Jiana ** Livezile ** Malovăț ** Obârșia de Câmp ** Obârșia-Cloșani ** Oprișor ** Pădina Mare ** Pătulele ** Podeni ** Ponoarele ** Poroina Mare ** Pristol ** Prunișor ** Punghina ** Rogova ** Salcia ** Șișești ** Șimian ** Șovarna ** Stângăceaua ** Svinița ** Tâmna ** Vânători ** Vânjuleț ** Vlădaia ** Voloiac **

Vrata Vrata is a Sanskrit word that means "vow, resolve, devotion", and refers to pious observances such as Fasting#Hinduism, fasting and pilgrimage (Tirtha (Hinduism), Tirtha) found in Indian religions such as Hinduism and Jainism. It is typically ...

Historical county

Historically, the county was located in the southwestern part of Greater Romania, in the western part of the historical region of

. Its capital was

Târgu Jiu Târgu Jiu (, is the capital city, capital of Gorj County in the Oltenia region of Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathian Mountains, Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu (river), Jiu. Eight localities are administered by the ...

. The interwar county territory comprised a large part of the current Mehedinți County. At present, its territory comprises a large part of the current territory of Mehedinţi County except for the northern part belonging to

, while a small part of the former Severin County where Orsova was located is currently part of Mehedinti County. It was bordered on the west by the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

, in the northwest by Severin County, to the north by

Hunedoara County Hunedoara County () is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Deva, Romania, Deva. The county is part of the Danube–Criș–Mureș–Tisa Euroregion. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian, it is known as , ...

, to the east by the counties of Gorj and Dolj, and in the south by the

Kingdom of Bulgaria The Tsardom of Bulgaria (), also known as the Third Bulgarian Tsardom (), usually known in English as the Kingdom of Bulgaria, or simply Bulgaria, was a constitutional monarchy in Southeastern Europe, which was established on , when the Bulgaria ...

Administration

The county was originally divided into four administrative districts ('' plăși''):Portretul României Interbelice - Județul Mehedinți
/ref> #Plasa Câmpul #Plasa Cloșani, headquartered at Cloșani #Plasa Motru, headquartered at

Motru Motru () is a municipiu, city in Romania, Gorj County. It is situated on the river Motru (river), Motru and its tributary, the river Ploștina (river), Ploștina, in western Oltenia. The county capital Târgu Jiu is located about northeast. The ...

#Plasa Ocolul, headquartered at

Turnu Severin Drobeta-Turnu Severin (), colloquially Severin, is a city in Mehedinți County, Oltenia, Romania, on the northern bank of the Danube, close to the Iron Gates. It is one of six Romanian county seats lying on the river Danube. "Drobeta" is the name ...

Subsequently, Plasa Câmpul was disbanded and replaced with five more districts: #Plasa Bâcleș, headquartered at Bâcleș #Plasa Broșteni, headquartered at Broșteni #Plasa Cujmir, headquartered at Cujmiru #Plasa Devesel, headquartered at Devesel #Plasa Vânju Mare, headquartered at Vânju Mare

Population

According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 303,878 inhabitants, ethnically divided as follows: 98.7% Romanians, 1.2% Romanis, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the population was 99.0% Eastern Orthodox, 0.5% Roman Catholic, 0.2% Jewish, as well as other minorities.

Urban population

In 1930, the county's urban population comprised 91.3% Romanians, 2.5% Germans, 1.3% Romanies, 1.3% Jews, 1.1% Serbs and Croats, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population was composed of 92.9% Eastern Orthodox, 4.3% Roman Catholic, 1.5% Jewish, 0.4% Greek Catholic, 0.4% Lutheran, as well as other minorities.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehedinti County Counties of Romania 1879 establishments in Romania 1938 disestablishments in Romania 1940 establishments in Romania 1950 disestablishments in Romania 1968 establishments in Romania States and territories established in 1879 States and territories disestablished in 1938 States and territories established in 1940 States and territories disestablished in 1950 States and territories established in 1968