Odorhei County was a county (

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 ...

: '' județ'') in 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 ...

. The county seat was

Odorheiu Secuiesc Odorheiu Secuiesc (; hu, Székelyudvarhely, ; german: Odorhellen) is the second largest municipality in Harghita County, Transylvania, Romania. In its short form, it is also known as ''Odorhei'' in Romanian and ''Udvarhely'' in Hungarian. The Hun ...

Geography

Odorhei County covered 2,977 km² and was located in central part of

Greater Romania The term Greater Romania ( ro, România Mare) usually refers to the borders of the Kingdom of Romania in the interwar period, achieved after the Great Union. It also refers to a pan-nationalist idea. As a concept, its main goal is the creation ...

, in eastern part of the historical region 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 was bordered by

Târnava-Mică County Târnava-Mică County was a county (Romanian: '' județ'') in the Kingdom of Romania, the successor to Kis-Küküllő County of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its capital was Diciosânmartin (now Târnăveni, in Mureș County) until 1926, and afterward ...

and Târnava-Mare County to the west and southwest,

Mureș County Mureș County (, ro, Județul Mures, hu, Maros megye) is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania, with the administrative centre in Târgu Mureș. The county was established in 1968, after the administrative ...

to the north,

Ciuc County Ciuc County was a county (Romanian: ''județ'') in the Kingdom of Romania. Its capital was Miercurea Ciuc. Its name was derived from the former county of the Kingdom of Hungary, Csík. History Prior to World War I, the territory of the county bel ...

to the east, and

Brașov County Brașov County () is a county (județ) of Romania, in Transylvania. Its capital city is Brașov. The county incorporates within its boundaries most of the Medieval "lands" (''țări'') Burzenland and Făgăraș. Name In Hungarian, it is kno ...

and

Trei-Scaune County Trei Scaune County is one of the historical counties of the Kingdom of Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. The county seat was Sfântu Gheorghe. Geography The county covered and was located in the central part of Greater Romania, i ...

to the south. Odorhei county was abolished in the administrative reforms of September 6, 1950. Currently, the territory that comprised the greater part of Odorhei County is now part of

Harghita County Harghita (, hu, Hargita megye, ) is a county (județ) in the center of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Miercurea Ciuc. Demographics 2002 census In 2002, Harghita County had a population of 326,222 and a populatio ...

, with some territory now belonging to the present-day counties of Covasna and Mureș.

History

Prior to

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 territory of the county belonged to

Austria-Hungary 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 ...

and was identical with the Udvarhely County of the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

. The territory of Odorhei County was transferred to Romania from Hungary as successor state to Austria-Hungary in 1920 under the

Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in Versailles on 4 June 1920. It forma ...

. After the administrative unification law in 1925, the name of the county remained as it was, but the territory was reorganized. In 1938,

King Carol II Carol II (4 April 1953) was King of Romania from 8 June 1930 until his forced abdication on 6 September 1940. The eldest son of Ferdinand I of Romania, Ferdinand I, he became crown prince upon the death of his grand-uncle, King Carol I of Roman ...

promulgated a new

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

, and subsequently he had the administrative division of the Romanian territory changed. 10 ''ținuturi'' (approximate translation: "lands") were created (by merging the counties) to be ruled by ''rezidenți regali'' (approximate translation: "Royal Residents") - appointed directly by the King - instead of the

prefects Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

. Odorhei County became part of

Ținutul Mureș Ținutul Mureș (or Ținutul Alba Iulia) was one of the ten ''ținuturi'' ("lands") of Romania, founded in 1938 after King Carol II initiated an institutional reform by modifying the 1923 Constitution and the law of territorial administration. It ...

. In 1940, the county was transferred back to Hungary with the rest of Northern Transylvania under 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 ...

. Beginning in 1944, Romanian forces with Soviet assistance recaptured the ceded territory and reintegrated it into Romania, re-establishing the county. Romanian jurisdiction over the county per the Treaty of Trianon was reaffirmed in the Paris Peace Treaties, 1947. The county was disestablished by the communist government of Romania in 1950, and not re-established in 1968 when Romania restored the county administrative system.

Administrative organization

Administratively, Odorhei County was divided into four districts ('' plăși''):Portretul României Interbelice - Județul Odorhei
/ref> #Plasa Cristur, headquartered at

Cristuru Secuiesc Cristuru Secuiesc (; hu, Székelykeresztúr, ) is a town in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. The town administers two villages: Betești (''Betfalva''), part of Mugeni u ...

#Plasa Ocland, headquartered at Ocland #Plasa Odorhei, headquartered at

#Plasa Praid, headquartered at

Praid Praid (, Hungarian pronunciation: ; german: Salzberg) is a commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania, and is composed of six villages: Demographics The commune has an a ...

Later, the county was reorganized from the administrative and territorial point of view into five districts: #Plasa Sângeorgiu de Pădure, headquartered at Sângeorgiu de Pădure (with 20 villages) #Plasa I.G. Duca, headquartered at I.G. Duca (with 33 villages) #Plasa Ocland, headquartered at Ocland (with 30 villages) #Plasa Odorhei, headquartered at Odorhei (with 49 villages) #Plasa Praid, headquartered at

(with 8 villages)

Population

According to the Romanian census of 1930 the population of Odorhei County was 130,282, of which 91.6% were ethnic

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...

, 4.9% ethnic

Romanians The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Roman ...

, 2.0% Romani, 1.0%

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 ...

, and 0.4%

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

, as well as other minorities.Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 316-321 Classified by religion: 37.4% were Reformed (Calivinist), 34.6% were

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

, 20.6% Unitarian, 3.7% Orthodox Christian, 1.1%

Jewish 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 ...

, and 1.1%

Greek-Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

, as well as other minorities.Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 679-681

Urban population

In 1930 the urban population of Odorhei County was 8,518, which included 81.3% Hungarians, 11.3% Romanians, 3.3% Jews, 2.0% Germans, and 1.4% Roma by ethnicity, as well as other minorities. The religious mix of the urban population was 51.3% Roman Catholic, 25.9% Reformed, 8.0% Eastern Orthodox, 5.3% Unitarian, 3.7% Jewish, 3.3% Greek-Catholic, and 1.9%

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

, as well as other minorities.

References

External links

*
Odorhei County on memoria.ro
{{coord missing, Romania Former counties of Romania Geography of Transylvania 1925 establishments in Romania 1938 disestablishments in Romania 1944 establishments in Romania 1950 disestablishments in Romania States and territories established in 1925 States and territories disestablished in 1938 States and territories established in 1944 States and territories disestablished in 1950