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Ciacova (; ; ; ) is a
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
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 administers four villages: Cebza, Macedonia, Obad and Petroman. When it was declared a town in 2004, the villages of Gad and Ghilad, which it administered up to that point, were split off to form Ghilad commune.


Name

In both Romanian and Hungarian vocabularies, there are the names ''ceacău'' (in
Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...
), ''csákó'' (in Hungarian) and ''csák'' (in Old Hungarian): * ''ceacău'', meaning " tall and hard military cap made of leather or felt"; it was used until the end of World War II by hunting and targeting troops, then only by police troops. It is therefore possible that Ciacova got its name from this word and meant a locality around a defense post. * ''csák'', meaning "peak". Accepting this translation, the Ciacova Fortress is explained as a "peak of defense" against any enemy intervention from the east or southeast. Some local historians claim that the name comes from a Dacian word, ending in "-ava" and therefore ''Ciacava''. However, no documents or other evidence can be found to support this thesis. In 1808 claims that the name ''Ciacova'' comes from the Romanian language, but does not provide evidence in support of this statement.


Geography

Ciacova is located in the Timiș Plain, on Timișul Mort River, about southwest of
Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...
.


Relief

The relief is flat, with a slight inclination to the southwest in the divagation area of Banat rivers to the
Tisa The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa (see below) is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. It was once called "the most Hungarian river" because it used to flow entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national bo ...
. The Timiș Plain is an accumulation plain originally connected to the
Pannonian Plain The Pannonian Basin, with the term Carpathian Basin being sometimes preferred in Hungarian literature, is a large sedimentary basin situated in southeastern Central Europe. After the Treaty of Trianon following World War I, the geomorphologic ...
, formed in the
Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), as well as the current and most recent of the twelve periods of the ...
by the waters that clogged the Pannonian Lake. This lake was formed by the sinking of a part of the
Carpathians The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe and Southeast Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains ...
in the
Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...
. There is only slight dishevelment in the plain. There are small depressions (
cenote A cenote ( or ; ) is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting when a collapse of limestone bedrock exposes groundwater. The term originated on the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, where the ancient Maya commonly used cenotes for water supplies, and ...
s), remnants of lakes, ponds or swamps that existed here until the 18th century, when the Austro-Hungarian Empire executed a vast plan of drainage and damming. Today, the remains of these ponds can be seen in the field in the form of slightly deepened circles that are whiter than the black plowed land; these are the so-called
salt marsh A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. I ...
es. In the Ciacova area, the surface of the various forms of microrelief is occupied 85% by field, 2.5% by
cenote A cenote ( or ; ) is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting when a collapse of limestone bedrock exposes groundwater. The term originated on the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, where the ancient Maya commonly used cenotes for water supplies, and ...
s, 3% by valleys, 2% by terraces, 1% by riverbed sands, 0.8% by dry lakes, 0.5% by floodplain and 5.2% by roads, streets and ditches.


Hydrography

Hydrologically, the territory of Ciacova belongs to the reception basin of
Timiș The Timiș or Tamiš (, , , ) is a river that flows through the Banat region of Romania and Serbia and joins the Danube near Pančevo, in northern Serbia. Due to its position in the region, it has been labeled as the "spine of the Banat". N ...
. More precisely, Ciacova is located on the left bank of Timișul Mort. Timișul Mort ("Dead Timiș") is the old and natural valley of the Timiș River in the
puszta The Hungarian puszta () is a temperate grassland biome of the Great Hungarian Plain. It is an exclave of the Pannonian Steppe, and lies mainly around the River Tisza in the eastern part of Hungary, as well as in the western part of the country ...
area of Banat. It "died" in the 18th century with the drainage of the Banat swamps, when the Austro-Hungarian Empire artificially created the current anthropic valley of the Timiș by Cebza, Macedonia, etc. Timișul Mort is today a swampy area with small waterholes, ponds full of helophyte plants, rushes, reeds, duckweeds, etc.


Climate

From a climatological point of view, Ciacova is part of the
Tisa The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa (see below) is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. It was once called "the most Hungarian river" because it used to flow entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national bo ...
climate, i.e., a moderate
continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...
with slight influences of the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...
and
oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...
climates, with relatively mild winters and hot but not excessively dry summers. The average annual temperature is , and the frequency of warm years is higher than that of cool years, due to the fact that Ciacova is south of the annual isotherm of 11 °C. The warmest month is July. The coldest month is January, with an average multiannual temperature of . The winds are determined by the development of baric systems that cross the Banat Plain. These baric systems are: the
Azores High The Azores High also known as North Atlantic (Subtropical) High/Anticyclone or the Bermuda- High, is a large subtropical semi-permanent centre of high atmospheric pressure typically found south of the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, at the Horse ...
, the (winter)
Siberian High The Siberian High (also Siberian Anticyclone; (''Aziatsky antitsiklon''); zh, 西伯利亞高壓; Pinyin ''Xībólìyǎ gāoyā''; Kazakh Азия антициклоны (''Aziya antitsiklonı'')) is a massive collection of cold dry air that a ...
, the
Icelandic Low The Icelandic Low is a semi-permanent centre of low atmospheric pressure found between Iceland and southern Greenland and extending in the Northern Hemisphere winter into the Barents Sea. In the summer, it weakens and splits into two centres, one ...
and the Mediterranean Low. In Ciacova, the dominant winds are the southwest ones. Due to the cyclonic activity and the humid air invasions from the west, the southwest and the northwest, in Banat the precipitations are more abundant than in the
Wallachian Plain The Romanian Plain () is located in southern Romania and the easternmost tip of Serbia, where it is known as the Wallachian Plain (). It is part of the larger Eurasian Steppe. It is located in the historical region of Wallachia, and bordered by ...
. In the Ciacova area the average annual precipitation amount is . The season with the richest rainfall is summer, then spring, autumn and winter. Heavy rains during the summer are due to cyclones and humid air masses coming from the Atlantic, to which is added the thermal convection that develops large
cumulonimbus cloud Cumulonimbus () is a dense, towering, vertical cloud, typically forming from water vapor condensing in the lower troposphere that builds upward carried by powerful buoyant air currents. Above the lower portions of the cumulonimbus the water ...
s from which heavy rains fall. The average number of snowy days is 20 annually. The first snow falls around 29 November, and the last around 14 March (106 days).


Flora

Ciacova is located in the
forest-steppe A forest steppe is a temperate-climate ecotone and habitat type composed of grassland interspersed with areas of woodland or forest. Locations Forest steppe primarily occurs in a belt of forest steppes across northern Eurasia from the eastern ...
area. Here are plants that belong to the Eurasian, Central European, continental, Mediterranean and Balkan floristic elements. The natural vegetation has been largely changed due to human intervention, being replaced by agricultural crops. In the 18th century, mentioned the existence of ''
Quercus An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...
'' forests in this area, with the predominance of
sessile oak ''Quercus petraea'', commonly known as the sessile oak, Welsh oak, Cornish oak, Irish oak or durmast oak, is a species of oak tree native to most of Europe and into Anatolia and Iran. The sessile oak is the national tree of Ireland, and an unof ...
. Today these forests have been cleared. However, a small patch of forest can still be seen in the village of Macedonia, near the Timiș River. The species here include: ''
Quercus robur ''Quercus robur'', the pedunculate oak, is a species of flowering plant in the beech and oak family, Fagaceae. It is a large tree, native plant, native to most of Europe and western Asia, and is widely cultivated in other temperate regions. It ...
'', ''
Ulmus glabra ''Ulmus glabra'', the wych elm or Scots elm, has the widest range of the European elm species, from Ireland eastwards to the Ural Mountains, and from the Arctic Circle south to the mountains of the Peloponnese and Sicily, where the species reach ...
'', ''
Fraxinus excelsior ''Fraxinus excelsior'', known as the ash, or European ash or common ash to distinguish it from other types of ash, is a flowering plant species in the olive family Oleaceae. It is native throughout mainland Europe east to the Caucasus and Alb ...
'', ''
Acer campestre ''Acer campestre'', known as the field maple, is a flowering plant species in the family Sapindaceae. It is native plant, native to much of continental Europe, Britain, southwest Asia from Turkey to the Caucasus, and north Africa in the Atlas Mou ...
'', ''
Carpinus betulus Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the family Betulaceae. Its species occur across much of the temperateness, temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Common names The common English name ''hornbeam'' derives ...
'', etc. The
undergrowth In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but above ...
in the forest has as representatives: ''
Crataegus monogyna ''Crataegus monogyna'', known as common hawthorn, whitethorn, one-seed hawthorn, or single-seeded hawthorn, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It grows to about tall, producing plant sexuality, hermaphrodite flowers i ...
'', ''
Corylus avellana ''Corylus avellana'', the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch tree, birch family Betulaceae. The shrubs usually grow tall. The nut is round, in contrast to the longer Corylus maxima, filbert nut. Common hazel is native to E ...
'', ''
Prunus spinosa ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is an Old World species of flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is locally naturalized in parts of the New World. The fruits are used to make sloe gin in Britain and patxaran in B ...
'', ''
Cornus sanguinea ''Cornus sanguinea'', the common dogwood or bloody dogwood, is a species of dogwood native to most of Europe and western Asia, from England and central Scotland east to the Caspian Sea. It is widely grown as an ornamental plant. Description It ...
'', ''
Euonymus europaeus ''Euonymus europaeus'', the spindle, European spindle, or common spindle, is a species of flowering plant in the family Celastraceae, native to much of Europe, where it inhabits the edges of forest, hedges and gentle slopes, tending to thrive on ...
'', ''
Ligustrum vulgare ''Ligustrum vulgare'' (wild privet, also sometimes known as common privet or European privet) is a species of ''Ligustrum'' native to central and southern Europe, north Africa and southwestern Asia, from Ireland and southwestern Sweden south to M ...
'', hanging plants (''
Hedera helix ''Hedera helix'', the common ivy, European ivy, King's Choice ivy, or just ivy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Araliaceae. It is native to most of Europe and parts of western Asia. Ivy is a clinging evergreen vine that grows on t ...
'', ''
Clematis vitalba ''Clematis vitalba'' (also known as old man's beard and traveller's joy) is a shrub of the family Ranunculaceae. Description ''Clematis vitalba'' is a climbing shrub with branched, grooved Plant stem, stems, deciduous leaves, and scented green ...
''), etc.
Gramineae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated i ...
predominate in the grassy layer: ''
Poa pratensis ''Poa pratensis'', commonly known as Kentucky bluegrass (or blue grass), smooth meadow-grass, or common meadow-grass, is a perennial species of grass native to practically all of Europe, North Asia and the mountains of Algeria, Morocco, and Tuni ...
'', ''
Festuca pratensis ''Lolium pratense'', meadow fescue is a perennial species of grass, which is often used as an ornamental in gardens, and is also an important forage crop. It grows in meadows, roadsides, old pastures, and riversides on moist, rich soils, especia ...
'', ''
Dactylis glomerata ''Dactylis glomerata'' is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, known as cock's-foot,Interactive Flora of NW Europ''Dactylis glomerata'' (Cock's-foot)/ref> also colloquially as orchard grass, or cat grass (due to its populari ...
'', etc. Along the Timiș and Timișul Mort there are remains of riverside coppices, but in the meadows there are species of ''
Salix alba ''Salix alba'', the white willow, is a species of willow native to Europe and western and Central Asia.Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland''. BSBI Handbook No. 4. .Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain an ...
'', '' Salix × fragilis'', rarely ''
Salix purpurea Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...
'', '' Rosa canina'' and ''
Robinia pseudoacacia ''Robinia pseudoacacia'', commonly known as black locust, is a medium-sized hardwood deciduous tree, belonging to the tribe Robinieae of the legume family Fabaceae. It is native to a few small areas of the United States, but it has been widely pl ...
''. The grassy vegetation in the meadow consists of forage plants: ''
Agrostis gigantea ''Agrostis gigantea'', known by its common names black bent and redtop, is a perennial grass of the ''Agrostis'' genus. It is native to Europe, but in the cooler areas of North America was widely used as a pasture grass until the 1940s. Although ...
'', '' Lolium perenne'', etc. High humidity develops mesophilic and hydrophilic species: ''
Juncus effusus ''Juncus effusus'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant species in the rush family Juncaceae, with the common names common rush or soft rush. In North America, the common name soft rush also refers to ''Juncus interior''. Distribution ''J ...
'', '' Carex acuta'', '' Cyperus fuscus'', etc. In ponds predominate: ''
Phragmites australis ''Phragmites australis'', known as the common reed, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae. It is a wetland grass that can grow up to tall and has a cosmopolitan distribution worldwide. Description ''Phragmites australis' ...
'', '' Typha angustifolia'', ''
Iris pseudacorus ''Iris pseudacorus'', the yellow flag, yellow iris, or water flag, is a species of flowering plant in the family Iridaceae. It is native to Europe, western Asia and northwest Africa. Its specific epithet ''pseudacorus'' means "false acorus", r ...
'', etc. In the meadows, isolated specimens of ''
Prunus spinosa ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is an Old World species of flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is locally naturalized in parts of the New World. The fruits are used to make sloe gin in Britain and patxaran in B ...
'' and '' Rosa canina'' can be found. The pastures in the meadow are of good quality, providing the green mass for the animals.


Fauna

Among the mammals, rodents predominate:
hamster Hamsters are rodents (order Rodentia) belonging to the subfamily Cricetinae, which contains 19 species classified in seven genera. They have become established as popular small pets. The best-known species of hamster is the golden or Syrian ...
,
mole rat Mole-rat or mole rat can refer to several groups of burrowing Old World rodents: * Bathyergidae, a family of about 20 hystricognath species in six genera from Africa also called blesmols. *''Heterocephalus glaber'', the naked mole-rat. * Spalacidae ...
,
hare Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores and live Solitary animal, solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are precociality, able to fend for themselves ...
,
otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, badgers, mink, and wolverines, among ...
,
ground squirrel Ground squirrels are rodents of the squirrel family (Sciuridae) that generally live on the ground or in burrows, rather than in trees like the tree squirrels. The term is most often used for the medium-sized ground squirrels, as the larger ones ar ...
, then
polecat Polecat is a common name for several mustelid species in the order Carnivora and subfamilies Ictonychinae and Mustelinae. Polecats do not form a single taxonomic rank (i.e. clade). The name is applied to several species with broad similarities t ...
,
fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...
,
badger Badgers are medium-sized short-legged omnivores in the superfamily Musteloidea. Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by their squat bodies and adaptions for fossorial activity rather than by the ...
and
wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...
(in Macedonia Forest). Among the raptors are:
buzzard Buzzard is the common name of several species of birds of prey. ''Buteo'' species * Archer's buzzard (''Buteo archeri'') * Augur buzzard (''Buteo augur'') * Broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus'') * Common buzzard (''Buteo buteo'') * Easte ...
,
northern goshawk The northern goshawk has been split into two species based on significant morphological and genetic differences: * Eurasian goshawk The Eurasian goshawk (; ''Astur gentilis'', formerly ''Accipiter gentilis'') is a species of medium-large bird of ...
, etc. There are many species of
galliformes Galliformes is an order (biology), order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkey (bird), turkeys, chickens, Old World quail, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems ...
,
passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped') which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their ...
s and
ciconiiformes Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons and ibise ...
. In the field can be found crawlers like
lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
s, and in the waters batrachians such as green frog and
moor frog The moor frog (''Rana arvalis'') is a slim, reddish-brown, semiaquatic amphibian native to Europe and Asia. Moor frogs are known for their ability to freeze solid and survive thawing. The frog makes use of various cryoprotectants i.e. Antifreeze ...
. In the dead arms of Timiș, on Timișul Mort and in Timiș there are fish:
carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...
, pike,
rudd ''Scardinius'' is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Leuciscidae, which includes the daces, Eurasian minnows and related species. The fishes in this genus are commonly called rudds. Locally, the name "rudd" without ...
, Prussian carp, etc.


History

Ciacova first appears in
written history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...
in 1220, when Count Bebich named a certain ''Chak'' in his will. The old name is of Hungarian origin and comes from the Csák family. The history of the locality is related to this family, which had extensive estates in the counties of Csanád, Arad, Temes and Zaránd. Some representatives of the family played an important role in the medieval history of Hungary, such as
Ugrin Csák Ugrin (III) from the kindred Csák (, , ; died in 1311) was a prominent Hungarian baron and Oligarch (Kingdom of Hungary), oligarch in the early 14th century. He was born into an ancient Hungarian clan. He actively participated in the various int ...
, who was metropolitan of
Esztergom Esztergom (; ; or ; , known by Names of European cities in different languages: E–H#E, alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the righ ...
and prefect of Csanád. The invasion of the Tatars shattered the links of the settlement with the Csák family, and after its destruction, King
Béla IV Béla may refer to: * Béla (crater), an elongated lunar crater * Béla (given name), a common Hungarian male given name See also * Bela (disambiguation) * Belá (disambiguation) * Bělá (disambiguation) Bělá may refer to: Places in the Cze ...
gave it to the Pechenegs and Cumans. In 1285, as a result of the Cuman revolution, Ciacova was liberated again and returned to Miklós Csák. It is very probable that the settlement was re-established at that time, because in the papal tithe records of 1332–1333, Ciacova already had the status of a rural commune. After 1389, when the battle of Kosovo Polje took place on 28 June, the Serbs were defeated by the Turks, and thousands of Serb families fled across the Danube and settled in southern Hungary and Banat; this is how the first Serbs appeared in Ciacova. They formed a separate settlement near the existing town, named ''Tót-Csák'' in Hungarian or ''Csakova'' in Serbian. ''Tót'' means "Slovak" in Hungarian, but ''Tótorság'' means
Slavonia Slavonia (; ) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria County, Istria, one of the four Regions of Croatia, historical regions of Croatia. Located in the Pannonian Plain and taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with f ...
, as most settlers were Serbs from
Drava The Drava or Drave (, ; ; ; ; ), historically known as the Dravis or Dravus, is a river in southern Central Europe.
Sava The Sava, is a river in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reac ...
area. Between 1392–1395, a fortress was built here, surrounded by a network of canals, making it difficult to conquer. In 1395, brothers Miklós and György Csáky gave the fortress to King
Sigismund of Luxembourg Sigismund of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 – 9 December 1437) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until his death in 1437. He was elected King of Germany (King of the Romans) in 1410, and was also King of Bohemia from 1419, as well as prince-elec ...
in exchange for property in Transylvania. Miklós even became voivode of Transylvania, and his son Ulászló baptized
Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and ...
, the future king of Hungary. On 18 September 1551, Ciacova is conquered by the Turks. The defenders of the fortress were prepared to withstand a long siege, but, according to one hypothesis, the Serbs, who had long been at enmity with the Hungarian chatelaines, betrayed the secrets of the fortress to the Turks. It is true that in this way they prevented the destruction of the fortress and the locality. The Turks built a veritable Turkish quarter in the town, superimposed approximately today by the Fortress' Square, on the land abandoned after the retreat of the Hungarians, south of the fortress. The Ciacova Fortress had a minor strategic importance for the Turks, being located "25 days on horseback" from Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire. For this reason, the fortress was left to ruin. In 1698–1699 Hamin Pasha brings settlers from Transylvania to Banat, and therefore to Ciacova. Following the
Treaty of Karlowitz The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...
on 26 January 1699, under the command of Count Wolf of Oettingen, the Ciacova Fortress was destroyed, leaving only the '' culă'' (defense tower). The conquest of Banat by the Habsburgs brought a new direction for the development of the small market town. After 1722, the town was heavily colonized by Germans (Swabians) but also Austrians, Czechs, Slovaks, Luxembourgers, Croats, etc. The first Catholic church was built in 1733. But because Ciacova was repeatedly attacked by the Turks, many settlers left here. Colonization continued and in 1768 Ciacova adopted
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
as its official language. After 1787, 126 Slovak families were colonized, forming for a long time a large ethnic community and from which the present-day Slovak Street is preserved. At first Ciacova had been run by two separate town halls; in 1820 the German and Serbian town halls were reunited, and since 1823 Ciacova has had the status of a plain town (''oppidum''). In 1807, the Ciacova-based Religious Fund was established, which aimed to colonize Hungarians in the
Győr Győr ( , ; ; names of European cities in different languages: E-H#G, names in other languages) is the main city of northwest Hungary, the capital of Győr-Moson-Sopron County and Western Transdanubia, Western Transdanubia region, and – halfwa ...
,
Moson Moson (German: Wieselburg, Slovak: Mošon) was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary, situated mostly on the right (south) side of the Danube river. Its territory is now divided between Austria and Hungary, except a sma ...
and
Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also #Etymology, other alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat ...
areas. But the Hungarians did not become as numerous as the Romanians and Germans. The latter left the town en masse until 1992. Throughout its history, Ciacova has been a seat of district, ''
plasă ''Plasă'' (, plural ''plăși'' ) was a territorial division unit of Romania, ranking below county ('' județ'') and above commune. It was headed by a '' Pretor'', appointed by the county Prefect. The institution headed by the Pretor was call ...
'', ''
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 ...
'' and plain town. According to ''Law no. 83/2004'', starting with April 2004, Ciacova received the status of town.


Demographics

Ciacova had a population of 5,348 inhabitants at the 2011 census, up 0.9% 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, ...
(79.77%), 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 ...
(6.23%),
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 ...
(4.28%),
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 ...
(1.65%) and
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...
(1.23%). For 6.23% of the population, ethnicity is unknown. By religion, most inhabitants are Orthodox (76.8%), but there are also minorities of
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 (9.78%) 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 (4.97%). For 6.21% of the population, religious affiliation is unknown.


Economy

The economy has the characteristics of a small industrial-agricultural plain town. The light, textile and food industries are present here. Milling, fruit growing and animal husbandry are also developed.


Twin towns

Ciacova is twinned with: * Masi Torello * Saint-Pardoux-la-Rivière


Notable people

*
Dositej Obradović Dositej Obradović ( sr-Cyrl, Доситеј Обрадовић, ; 17 February 1739 – 7 April 1811) was a Serbian writer, biographer, diarist, philosopher, pedagogue, educational reformer, linguist and the first minister of education of Se ...
(1742–1811), writer * Dimitrije Tirol, (1793–1857), writer, grammarian, geographer and painter * Branko Tanazević (1876–1945), architect * Zeno Coste (1907–1985), singer * Spiridon Jovanović * Stefan Popović (bishop) (c. 1775-1849) * Emilijan Čarnić (1914-1995) * Milan Petrović (professor) (1879-1952) * (1913–2008), politician


References

{{Authority control Populated places in Timiș County Localities in Romanian Banat Towns in Romania Place names of Slavic origin in Romania