Fundata (; ) is a commune in

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 ...

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 ...

, in the historic region of

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 ...

. It is composed of three villages: Fundata, Fundățica (''Kleinkertzberg''; ''Kisfundáta''), and Șirnea (''Schirnen''; ''Sirnea''). The place offers panoramas for the

Piatra Craiului Mountains The Piatra Craiului Mountains (, ) are a mountain range in the Southern Carpathians in Romania. Its name is translated as ''Kings' Rock'' or ''The Rock of the Prince''. The mountain range is located in Brașov County, Brașov and Argeș Coun ...

and

Bucegi Mountains The Bucegi Mountains ( ) are located in central Romania, south of the city of Brașov. They are part of the Southern Carpathians group of the Carpathian Mountains. At , ''Omu Peak, Omu'' is its highest point. To the east, the Bucegi Mountains ha ...

. During the 2013 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival, it held the

biathlon The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...

competition in the new venue of the town.

Presentation

Surrounded by the

and the

, Fundata's altitude of makes it the highest commune in Romania. Șirnea was first attested in 1729, and Fundata in 1732.Comuna Fundata
at the Fundata Town Hall site; accessed October 5, 2012 It lies on the southern border of

, with

Argeș County Argeș County () is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in Muntenia, with the county seat at Pitești. Demographics At the 2021 Romanian census, 2021 census, the county had a population of 569,932 and the population density was . At the 2011 Ro ...

on the other side, in the middle of the Rucăr-Bran Pass, along European route E574. It is from

Brașov Brașov (, , ; , also ''Brasau''; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the county seat (i.e. administrative centre) of Brașov County. According to the 2021 Romanian census, ...

and from Râșnov. In August 1916, when troops from the Romanian Old Kingdom entered

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

, the first village they took was Fundata, also capturing their first prisoners there and suffering their first battle death. A traditional lifestyle of herding sheep and cows is preserved, augmented by tourism. Indeed, Șirnea was declared the country's first tourist village in 1968. Aside from the mountainous scenery, attractions in Fundata include a wooden

Romanian Orthodox The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the Eastern Orthodox Church. S ...

church (1830) and one of stone (1939–1943); in Șirnea, there is a church from 1893–1894 as well as an ethnographic museum. There is an annual festival held around July 20, feast of the prophet

Elijah Elijah ( ) or Elias was a prophet and miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BC), according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah defended the worsh ...

, called ''Nedeia Munților'' ("Mountain Celebration"). Originally a "feast of two countries" (Transylvania and

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

), it was revived in 1969, and features folklore displays as well as local cheeses and meats. Simona Suciu
"Nedeia Munților la Fundata și Sântilia la Săcele"
''

Adevărul (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published during the Kingd ...

'', July 20, 2012; accessed October 5, 2012 At the 2011 census, all but one of the commune's inhabitants were ethnic Romanians.Romanian census data, 2011
; accessed October 5, 2012

Natives

* Gheorghe Bădescu * Ion Țeposu

Gallery

File:VS Fundata Brasov 01 Piatra Craiului.JPG, Piatra Craiului Mountains from Fundata File:VS Fundata Brasov 03 muntii Bucegi.JPG, Bucegi Mountains from Fundata File:VS Fundata Brasov vara dupa ploaie.JPG, Rainbow in Fundata File:VS Fundata Brasov 06 Fundata iarna.JPG, Fundata in winter File:Sirnea.jpg, Mountains from Șirnea File:Sirnea2.png, Șirnea landscape File:VS cheese wrapped in fir bark.jpg, Cheese ('' brânză de burduf'') wrapped in fir bark

Notes

{{Braşov County Communes in Brașov County Localities in Transylvania