Bonțida (; , , transl. "Bonc's bridge"; ) is a commune in

Cluj County Cluj County () is a county () of Romania, in Transylvania. Its seat is Cluj-Napoca. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian it is known as ''Kolozs megye''. Under the Kingdom of Hungary, a county with an identical name (Kolozs County, ) existed s ...

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 ...

. It is composed of four villages: Bonțida, Coasta (''Gyulatelke''), Răscruci (''Válaszút''), and Tăușeni (''Marokháza'').

Geography

The commune lies in the

Transylvanian Plain The Transylvanian Plain (; , ) is an ethnogeographical area in Transylvania, Romania, located between the Someșul Mare and the Someșul Mic rivers to the north and west and the Mureș River Mureș may refer to: * Mureș County, Romania * Mure ...

, on the banks of the rivers

Someșul Mic The Someșul Mic (''Little Someș'', Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kis-Szamos'') is a river in north-western Romania (Cluj County). At its confluence with the Someșul Mare in Mica, Cluj, Mica, the Someș is formed. Its total length is , and ...

, Borșa, and Sicu. It is located in north-central Cluj County, northeast of the county seat,

Cluj-Napoca Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...

, and part of the Cluj-Napoca metropolitan area. Bonțida is crossed by the

national road The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road) was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road connected the Potomac and Ohio Rivers and was a main tran ...

, which connects Cluj-Napoca to

Baia Mare Baia Mare ( , ; ; ; ) is a Municipiu, city along the Săsar, Săsar River, in northwestern Romania; it is the capital of Maramureș County. The city lies in the region of Maramureș, a subregion of Transylvania. It is situated about from Buchare ...

and the Romania–Ukraine border at Halmeu.

History

Bonțida is known as the home of a Baroque castle owned by the

Bánffy family The Banffy family is an ancient Hungarian nobility, Hungarian noble family, whose members occupied prominent positions in the Kingdom of Hungary and later within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Across different branches, the family was elevated to bar ...

(of which Miklós Bánffy was a member); partly destroyed during

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 ...

and neglected by the communist regime in Romania, it is currently being restored. The Bánffy family had another castle in Răscruci, which is part of Bonțida and also the birthplace of poet Albert Wass. The Răscruci castle features in the reminiscences of an English governess, Florence Tarring, who worked for one of the branches of the Bánffy family 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 ...

(1914–1919).

Demographics

According to the census from 2002 there was a total population of 4,722 people living in this town; of this population, 65.07% were ethnic

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, ...

, 19.10% were ethnic

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 15.75% ethnic Romani. At the 2021 census, Bonțida had a population of 5,191, of which 73.8% were Romanians, 9.25% Hungarians, and 6.88% Roma.

Natives

* Ștefan Emilian (1819–1899), mathematician and architect * Dorel Vișan (born 1937), actor * Albert Wass (1908–1998), Hungarian nobleman

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bontida Communes in Cluj County Localities in Transylvania Bánffy family

Geography

History

Demographics

Natives

See also

References