Pădureni (until 1965 Lighed; ; ; ; ) is a commune in

Timiș County Timiș () is a county (''județ'') of western Romania on the border with Hungary and Serbia, in the historical regions of Romania, historical region of Banat, with the county seat at Timișoara. It is the westernmost and the largest county in Ro ...

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 ...

. It is composed of a single village, Pădureni. It was part of Jebel commune before being split off in 2004.

Geography

Pădureni is located about south of

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

, at the angle formed by the "dead"

Timiș The Timiș or Tamiš (, , , ) is a river that flows through the Banat region of Romania and Serbia and joins the Danube near Pančevo, in northern Serbia. Due to its position in the region, it has been labeled as the "spine of the Banat". N ...

and the "flowing" Timiș. It borders

Șag Șag (; ) is a commune in Timiș County, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Șag; Parța village broke off as a separate commune in 2004. Geography Șag is a plain commune, located in the Banat Plain, in the periurban area of Timișoa ...

to the north, Liebling to the east, Jebel to the south, and

Parța Parța (; ; ) is a commune in Timiș County, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Parța, and was part of Șag commune until 2004. History Parța was first documented in 1334 as ''Parkas'', and in 1417 the settlement of ''Maraz'', with ...

to the northwest.

History

The first recorded mention of Pădureni dates from 1332, under the name of ''Legvid''. At the same time, there is a village called ''Mira'' (1310), now disappeared, which legend has it was destroyed in a Turkish raid. In an Ottoman

defter A ''defter'' was a type of tax register and land cadastre in the Ottoman Empire. Etymology The term is derived from Greek , literally 'processed animal skin, leather, fur', meaning a book, having pages of goat parchment used along with papyrus ...

, around 1590, the name of ''Ligit'' is also mentioned. After this moment no other data are known until 1761, when it appears again mentioned with the name ''Lighed'' or ''Temeslighed'' and a number of 312 houses. University professor Remus Crețan claims that today's locality was formed towards the end of the Turkish era, "on account of the Romanian and Turkish elements from

meadow". According to historian , after the conquest of

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 ...

by the Austrians, the locality was systematized by Count Mercy, from where until then the village was a "clog" on

Trajan's Wall Trajan's Wall () is the name used for several linear earthen fortifications () found across Eastern Europe, Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine. Contrary to the name and popular belief, evidence shows the ramparts were likely not built under the reign ...

in the area called ''Iarc''. It has been mostly Romanian ever since; the Romanian majority was preserved even during the periods of intense colonization of Banat.

Demographics

Pădureni had a population of 1,938 inhabitants at the 2011 census, up 19% from the 2002 census. Most inhabitants were

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, ...

(93.09%), with a minority of

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

(1.14%); for 4.49% of the population, ethnicity was unknown. By religion, most inhabitants were Orthodox (89.16%), with a minority of

Pentecostals Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God through baptism with the Holy Spirit. The term ''Pentecostal'' is derived ...

(1.86%); for 5.88% of the population, religious affiliation was unknown. At the 2021 census, the commune had a population of 2,052; of those, 87.04% were Romanians and 3.9% Roma.

Natives

* Anișoara Odeanu (1912–1972), journalist, poet, and prose writer; the Anișoara Odeanu Memorial House was built in Pădureni in 2020.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Padureni, Timis Communes in Timiș County Localities in Romanian Banat