Vâlcele (, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune in

Covasna County Covasna County (, , ) is a county (județ) of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Sfântu Gheorghe. Demographics In 2011, it had a population of 210,177, making it the second least populous of Romania's 41 counties and the ...

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

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 ...

composed of four villages: Araci (''Árapatak'', the commune center), Ariușd (''Erősd''), Hetea (''Hetye''), and Vâlcele.

Geography

The commune is located in the south-western part of Covasna County, from the county seat,

Sfântu Gheorghe Sfântu Gheorghe (; or ''Szentgyörgy'' ; ; English lit.: ''Saint George'') is a city that serves as the seat of Covasna County in Transylvania, Romania. Located in the central part of the country, it lies on the Olt River in a valley between ...

, on the border with

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

. It is situated at an altitude of , at the foot of the

Baraolt Mountains The Baraolt Mountains () is a mountain range, entirely in Covasna County of Romania. Geologically the Baraolts are part of the Inner Eastern Carpathians Divisions of the Carpathians are a categorization of the Carpathian mountains system ...

. The

Olt River The Olt ( Romanian and Hungarian; ; or ', , ''Alytos'') is a river in Romania. It is long, and its basin area is . It is the longest river flowing exclusively through Romania. Its average discharge at the mouth is . It originates in the Hă ...

passes through the southern part of the commune.

Demographics

Vâlcele has an ethnically mixed population. According to the 2011 census, it had a population of 4,292, of which 48.3% or 2,071 were

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 ...

, 39.4% or 1,689 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, ...

, 9.9% or 427 were Székely

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

, and 2.3% or 100 people belonged to other ethnicities. At the 2021 census, the commune had a population of 5,559, of which 58.84% were Roma, 31.59% were Romanians, and 5.05% were Székely Hungarians.

Natives

* Romulus Cioflec (1882 – 1955), writer, journalist, and activist * Nicolae Colan (1893 – 1967), cleric, a metropolitan bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Church

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Valcele, Covasna Communes in Covasna County Localities in Transylvania Romani communities in Romania