Balinț
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Balinț (; or ''Balintin'') 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 four villages: Balinț (commune seat), Bodo, Fădimac and Târgoviște. It borders Bara to the north,
Coșteiu Coșteiu (; ) is a commune in Timiș County, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Coșteiu (commune seat), Hezeriș, Păru, Țipari and Valea Lungă Română. It is located on the right bank of the Timiș River, downstream from Lugoj. His ...
to the south, Belinț and Ghizela to the west and Bethausen to the east.


History


Balinț

Since the 10th–11th centuries, there have been numerous
flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...
s on the middle course of the Bega River. Balinț, being located from the Bega riverbed, was periodically flooded. In the 11th century, some of the villagers moved to a hearth protected from floods. A new village appears, derived from the first, ''Balințul de Sus'' (Upper Balinț), located in the Church valley, and ''Balințul de Jos'' (Lower Balinț) remains on the old hearth. The first recorded mention of Balinț dates from 1488, when Count Ferenc Haraszti donates the ''Felső-Bályncz'' estate to his daughter. By 1554 the two settlements merged under the name ''Balinch''. In 1604, around Balinț, there are battles between the troops of
George I Rákóczi George I Rákóczi (8 June 1593 – 11 October 1648) was Prince of Transylvania from 1630 until his death in 1648. Prior to that, he was a leader of the Protestant faction in Hungary and a faithful supporter of Gabriel Bethlen, his predecessor ...
and the rebels of
Stephen Bocskai Stephen Bocskai or Bocskay (, ; 1 January 155729 December 1606) was Prince of Transylvania and Hungary from 1605 to 1606. He was born to a Hungarian nobility, Hungarian noble family. His father's estates were located in the Eastern Hungarian Kin ...
(future
Prince of Transylvania The Prince of Transylvania (, , , Fallenbüchl 1988, p. 77.) was the head of state of the Principality of Transylvania from the late-16th century until the mid-18th century. John Sigismund Zápolya was the first to adopt the title in 1 ...
) and
Gabriel Bethlen Gabriel Bethlen (; 1580 – 15 November 1629) was Prince of Transylvania from 1613 to 1629 and Duke of Opole from 1622 to 1625. He was also King-elect of Hungary from 1620 to 1621, but he never took control of the whole kingdom. Bethlen, sup ...
. Balinț is mentioned in the documents from 1690 and 1717, meaning that it continued to exist during the Turkish occupation. At the 1717 census it had 20 houses. In 1739 Austrian troops retaliated against the villagers who supported the Turks during the Austro-Turkish War of 1737–1739 and took part in the uprising. The villages of Balinț, Fădimac and Târgoviște were burned down by the imperial armies. By 1740 the Austrians set new hearths for the burned villages. At the end of the 19th century, Balinț was the seat of the Béga District of the
Krassó-Szörény County Krassó-Szörény (Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Krassó-Szörény'', Romanian language, Romanian: ''Caraș-Severin'', Serbian language, Serbian: ''Karaš-Severin'' or Караш-Северин) was an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingd ...
; it was a small village with Romanian, German and Hungarian inhabitants and had a post and telegraph office, as well as a sawmill.


Bodo

Bodo (; ) seems to have existed since at least the 14th century, mentioned by the name ''Bodov'' in 1344. Later, in 1401, a certain ''Bodofalva'' is mentioned. However, the village itself was founded only in 1890, by Hungarian colonists who settled near the Romanian village of Păru, forming the current hearth of the village. Between 1880 and 1890, more than 50 Hungarian families settled here, most of them from the
Debrecen Debrecen ( ; ; ; ) is Hungary's cities of Hungary, second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain Regions of Hungary, region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the large ...
area. It was named ''Andrásfalva'' for a while, in honor of András Bethlen, its founder. For a short period after the union 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 ...
with Romania, the village was called ''Bodofalva'', while the
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, ...
also called it ''Bodăul Mare''.


Fădimac

The first recorded mention of Fădimac (; ) can be considered a diploma from 1488 where the name ''Fagymag'' appears. From the period 1500–1550 there are numerous other Hungarian and Turkish documents attesting the village under different derived names. The village has always been Romanian and was located on the hill to the north of the village. After conquering
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 Austrians named it ''Vitigmak''. At the 1717 census it appeared with 23 houses and was owned by the state.


Târgoviște

The first recorded mention of Târgoviște (; ) dates from 1690 in
Marsigli Count Luigi Ferdinando Marsili (or Marsigli, ; 10 July 1658 – 1 November 1730) was an Italian scholar and natural scientist, who also served as an emissary and soldier. Biography Born in Bologna, he was a member of an ancient patrician fa ...
's notes. The village is probably older, since the traces of a medieval earth fortification were discovered here.


Politics and administration

The commune of Balinț is administered by a mayor and a local council composed of 11 councilors. The mayor, Andrei-Dumitru Popa, from the
Save Romania Union The Save Romania Union (, USR) is a Liberalism, liberal List of political parties in Romania, political party in Romania. It is the fourth-largest party in the Parliament of Romania, holding 40 seats in the Chamber of Deputies (Romania), Chamber ...
, has been in office since 2024. As from the 2024 local elections, the local council has the following composition by political parties:


Demographics

Balinț had 1,596 inhabitants at the 2011 census, down 9% from the 2002 census. Most inhabitants are
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, ...
(69.05%), larger minorities being represented by
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 ...
(23.37%) and
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 ...
(2.19%). For 4.32% of the population, ethnicity is unknown. By religion, most inhabitants are
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
(66.79%), but there are also minorities of
Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...
(19.74%),
Greek Catholic Greek Catholic Church or Byzantine-Catholic Church may refer to: * The Catholic Church in Greece * The Eastern Catholic Churches The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Ea ...
s (3.57%),
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
s (2.88%) and
Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...
s (1.69%). For 4.32% of the population, religious affiliation is unknown.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balint Communes in Timiș County Localities in Romanian Banat