(; , archaic ,
Transylvanian Saxon: , ) is the capital city of
Bistrița-Năsăud County
Bistrița-Năsăud () is a county (județ) of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Bistrița.
Name
In Hungarian language, Hungarian, it is known as ''Beszterce-Naszód megye'', and in German language, German as ''Kreis Bistritz-N ...
, in northern
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. It is situated on the
Bistrița River. The city has a population of 78,877 inhabitants as of 2021 and administers six villages: (; ), (; ), (; ), (; ), (until 1950 ; ; ) and (; ). There is a project for the creation of a metropolitan area that will contain the municipality of Bistrița and 3 surrounding localities (
Șieu-Măgheruș,
Budacu de Jos, and
Livezile), whose combined population would be over 91,600 inhabitants.
Etymology
The town was named after the River, whose name comes from the
Slavic word meaning 'fast-moving water'.
History
The earliest sign of settlement in the area of is in
Neolithic
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
remains. The
Turkic Pechenegs
The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks, , Middle Turkic languages, Middle Turkic: , , , , , , ka, პაჭანიკი, , , ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pečenezi, separator=/, Печенези, also known as Pecheneg Turks were a semi-nomadic Turkic peopl ...
settled the area in 12th century following attacks of the
Cumans
The Cumans or Kumans were a Turkic people, Turkic nomadic people from Central Asia comprising the western branch of the Cumania, Cuman–Kipchak confederation who spoke the Cuman language. They are referred to as Polovtsians (''Polovtsy'') in Ru ...
.
Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler dialect, Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sa ...
settled the area in 1206 and called the region . A large part of settlers were fugitives, convicts, and poor people looking for lands and opportunities. The destruction of ("Market Nösen") under the
Mongols
Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China ( Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family o ...
of central Europe is described in a document from 1241. The city was then called . Situated on several
trade route
A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over land or water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a singl ...
s, became a flourishing
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
trading post.
became a
free royal town in 1330. In 1353,
King Louis I of Hungary granted the town the right to organize an annual 15-day
fair
A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Fairs showcase a wide range of go ...
on
Saint Bartholomew
Bartholomew was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Most scholars today identify Bartholomew as Nathanael, who appears in the Gospel of John (1:45–51; cf. 21:2).
New Testament references
The name ''Bartholomew ...
day, as well as a
seal containing the
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
of an
ostrich with a horseshoe in its beak. The town developed markets throughout
Moldavia
Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...
, and its craftsmen travelled extensively. It was given the right to be surrounded by defensive walls in 1409. In 1465, the city's fortifications had 18 defensive towers and
bastions defended by the local
guild
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular territory. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradespeople belonging to a professional association. They so ...
s. It was also defended by a , or fortified church. In 1713 the Romanian population was expelled by the
Saxon magistrates, but they returned later. The town was badly damaged by fire five times between 1836 and 1850. The church suffered from fire in 1857, when the tower's roof and the bells were destroyed. The roof was rebuilt after several years. Fires in the nineteenth century also destroyed much of the city's medieval citadel.
A Jewish community developed in after the prohibition on Jewish settlement there was lifted in 1848,
[ organizing itself in the 1860s. The synagogue, consecrated in 1893, is among Transylvania's largest and most impressive.][Shmuel Spector, Geoffrey Wigoder (eds.), ''The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust: A-J'', pp. 152-53. NYU Press, 2001, ] The community was Orthodox with a strong Hasidic section, but there were also Jews who adopted German and Hungarian culture. A Zionist
Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...
youth organization, , was founded in in 1901 by Nissan Kahan, who corresponded with Theodor Herzl
Theodor Herzl (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist and lawyer who was the father of Types of Zionism, modern political Zionism. Herzl formed the World Zionist Organization, Zionist Organizat ...
and there was significant support for the Zionist movement in the town between the two world wars. A large yeshivah flourished under the direction of the rabbi of , Solomon Zalman Ullmann, between 1924 and 1942. During World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, 138 Jews were conscripted into the Austro-Hungarian Army; 12 were killed in action.
The city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until 1918. On December 1 that year, Transylvania united with Romania, and Romanian Army troops entered on December 5. In 1925, Bistrița became the capital of Năsăud County.
World War II
In the wake of the Second Vienna Award (August 1940), the city reverted to the Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...
.[ During the war, the Hungarian authorities deported several dozen ]Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
families in 1941 from to Kamenets-Podolski in the Galician area of occupied Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
, where they were killed by Hungarian soldiers. The Jews of , as elsewhere in Hungary, were subjected to restrictions, and Jewish men of military age were drafted for forced labor service. In May 1944, the Jewish population was forced into the Bistrița ghetto, set up at Stamboli Farm, about two miles from the city. The ghetto consisted of a number of barracks and pigsties. At its peak, the ghetto held close to 6,000 Jews, including those brought in from the neighboring communities in Beszterce-Naszód County. Among these were the Jews of , , , , , , , , , and . The ghetto was liquidated with the deportation of its inhabitants to in two transports on June 2 and 6, 1944.
After King Michael's Coup
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...
of August 1944, Romania switched sides to the Allies. By October of that year, Romanian and Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
troops gained control of all of Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania (, ) was the region of the Kingdom of Romania that during World War II, as a consequence of the August 1940 territorial agreement known as the Second Vienna Award, became part of the Kingdom of Hungary (1920-1946), Kingdom ...
, which was reintegrated into Romania in March 1945. In 1950, Bistrița became the seat of ; in 1952, the region was dissolved and the city became the seat of Bistrița raion
A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...
(part of Cluj Region) until 1968.
Recent events
On June 11, 2008, the tower and roof of the church caught fire when three children who went to steal copper set it on fire while playing. The main part of the church suffered only slight damage, the interior remaining intact. It is speculated that both of the tower's bells, one dating from the 15th century, the other from the 17th, may have melted in the blaze.
Climate
According to Köppen climate classification, Bistrița has a humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(''Dfb'') with cold, snowy winters and warm, rainy summers.
Due to its modest elevation, has one of the coldest climates in Romania.
Demographics
In 1850, of the 5,214 inhabitants, 3,704 were Germans (71%), 1,207 Romanians (23.1%), 176 Roma (3.4%), 90 Hungarians (1.7%), and 37 (0.7%) of other ethnicities.
According to the census of 1910, the town had 13,236 inhabitants of whom 5,835 were German (44%), 4,470 Romanian (33.77%), 2,824 Hungarian (21.33%).
At the 2021 census, the city had a population of 78,877. According to the 2011 census, there were 75,076 inhabitants of , making it the 30th largest city in Romania, with the following ethnic makeup:
* 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, ...
: 64,214 (91.09%)
* 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 ...
: 4,109 (5.82%)
* Roma: 1,644 (2.33%)
* Germans
Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...
(Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler dialect, Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sa ...
): 304 (0.43%)
* Others: 0.16%
Prior to World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
there was a sizable Jewish community living in the town. In 1891, 718 of the 9,100 inhabitants (8%) were Jews; in 1900 (11%) and 2,198 (16%) in 1930. In 1941 there are 2,358 (14%). In 1947, 1,300 Jews resettled in , including survivors from the extermination camps, former residents of neighboring villages, and others liberated from the Nazi concentration camps
From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe.
The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...
. Given continuing discrimination and unfavorable political conditions, the Jewish population declined steadily as a result of emigration to Israel, the United States, and Canada. By 2002, only about 15 Jews lived in the city.[
]
Main sights
* The main attraction of 's central square is the Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
church, which was built by the Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler dialect, Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sa ...
and originally constructed in the 14th century in Gothic style. Between 1559 and 1563 it was altered by Petrus Italus and given Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
features. It was significantly renovated after the 2008 fire which damaged the tower.
* The Minorite Monastery, situated in the eastern side of the old town, close to the location of the former defensive walls, is one of the oldest buildings in . Built between 1270 and 1280, the building has undergone several repairs and alterations, the first one being recorded in 1494. After 1541, when the Minorite order left the town, it served as a barn and wine cellar. In 1724, the Catholic Church returned to and the church was reopened. In 1895, the Romanian Greek Catholic Church purchased the building for 35,000 florins. The church was turned into an Orthodox church in 1948, when the communist government dissolved the Romanian Greek Catholic Church and transferred its properties to the Romanian Orthodox Church
The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the East ...
, and was decorated in Neo-Byzantine
Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a Revivalism (architecture), revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine architecture, ...
style in 1978–1980.
* The County Museum, located in a former barracks
Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...
, contains Thracian
The Thracians (; ; ) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Southeast Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied the area that today is shared between north-eastern Greece, ...
, Celt
The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...
ic, and German artifacts.
* The buildings of the city's two leading high schools, Andrei Mureșanu National College and Liviu Rebreanu National College.
Popular culture
In Bram Stoker
Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912), better known by his pen name Bram Stoker, was an Irish novelist who wrote the 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. The book is widely considered a milestone in Vampire fiction, and one of t ...
's novel ''Dracula
''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...
'', the character Jonathan Harker visits (rendered as , the German name for the city, in the original text) and stays at the Golden Krone Hotel (); although no such hotel existed when the novel was written, a hotel of the same name has since been built.
In the PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...
game '' Shadow Hearts'', (where it is spelled "Biztritz") was a major place and home to the role-playing character Keith Valentine.
Transportation
The major cities directly linked by trains to this city are Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
via a night train, and via several trains. Access from to major railway lines is generally through connections in , , or , although some other trains stop at the nearby railway junction of .
also serves as a midway point for C&I, a transport service, and is a changing point for people traveling between , , , , , , and .
The nearest airport is Cluj-Napoca Airport, which is located from .
Tourism
* Arcalia Dendrological Park ( from ), hosts over 150 species of trees (such as Japanese acacia, silver fir trees, Caucasian Spruce fir, etc.); it exists in the land belonging to Babeș-Bolyai University
* Colibița Lake (artificial dam, situated in the Bârgău Mountains)
* Lakes and (glacier lakes, below Ineu Peak
Ineu (also Inău) is a peak in the Rodna Mountains, 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 w ...
)
*The city is home to a section of the Via Transilvanica
Via Transilvanica 'The Transylvanian Trail' is a hiking trail that crosses the Transylvania, Bukovina and Banat regions of Romania, and is meant to promote their cultural, ethnic, historical and natural diversity. It was built between 2018 and ...
long-distance trail
A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...
.
Natural reservations
* National park in the Rodna Mountains
Rodna Mountains (, ) are a subdivision of the Inner Eastern Carpathians in northern Romania. The name comes from the nearby Rodna Veche village. At , is the highest peak in all of the Eastern Carpathians.
The main ridge of the Rodna Mountain ...
, which covers in County
* – "Raven's Rock", a geological and vegetal park, situated in the Călimani Mountains
* The Salt Mount in
* Tăușoare Cave, the deepest cave in Romania –
Resorts
* (balneo – climatic resort, situated in the Rodna Mountains, approx. from )
* (approx. from )
* (approx. from , at an altitude of – Tihuța Pass)
* – Wine Valley – (approx. from )
Museums and exhibitions
* Transylvanian Saxons' Museum – Livezile
* Museum of Contemporary Art –
* Andrei Mureșanu Memorial House –
* Liviu Rebreanu Memorial House – Liviu Rebreanu village
* Silversmith's House –
* George Coșbuc Memorial House – Coșbuc village
* Ion-Pop Reteganul Memorial House – Reteag village
*
Notable people
* Gavril Bănulescu-Bodoni (1746–1821), bishop
* Maria Bosi (born 1954), handball player
*Adrian Crișan
Adrian Crișan (born 7 May 1980) is a Romanian professional table tennis player who currently plays with SV Werder Bremen. He competed in the Summer Olympic Games
The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of ...
(born 1980), table tennis player
* Count Maximilian von Götzen-Iturbide (born 1944), heir to the throne of Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
* Arnold Graffi (1910–2006), doctor
* Anita Hartig (born 1983), operatic soprano
* Kalinikos Kreanga (born 1972), table tennis player
* Viorel Moldovan (born 1972), football player and coach
* Valeria Motogna-Beșe (born 1979), handball player
* Andrei Mureșanu (1816–1863), writer of the Romanian national anthem
* Radu Negulescu (born 1939), table tennis player
* Remus Nicolai (born 1977), aerobic gymnast
* Max Speter (1883–1942), German chemist and science historian
* Daniel Suciu (born 1980), politician
* Gabriela Szabo (born 1975), track and field athlete
Sport
Teams
* CS Gloria 2018 Bistrița-Năsăud playing in 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 ...
's Liga Națională (women's handball), Romanian Handball Federation
* CS Gloria Bistrița-Năsăud, the city's most important team both historically and valuably, currently inactive, commonly known as Gloria is a Romanian football club based Bistrita,Bistrița-Năsăud County
Bistrița-Năsăud () is a county (județ) of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Bistrița.
Name
In Hungarian language, Hungarian, it is known as ''Beszterce-Naszód megye'', and in German language, German as ''Kreis Bistritz-N ...
, currently playing in the Liga III
The Liga 3, most often spelled as Liga III, is the third level of the Romanian football league system. It was founded in 1936 and was called Divizia C until 2006. An exception was the seasons 1992–93 to 1996–97, in which the league was call ...
.
International relations
Twin towns and sister cities
Bistrița is twinned with:
References
External links
Info Bistrița
History of Bistrița
ArtGallery Bistrița
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bistrita
Populated places in Bistrița-Năsăud County
Localities in Transylvania
Cities in Romania
Capitals of Romanian counties
Place names of Slavic origin in Romania