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Sfântu Gheorghe (; or ''Szentgyörgy'' ; ; English lit.: ''Saint George'') is a city that serves as the seat of
Covasna County Covasna County (, , ) is a county (județ) of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Sfântu Gheorghe. Demographics In 2011, it had a population of 210,177, making it the second least populous of Romania's 41 counties and the ...
in
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 ...
. Located in the central part of the country, it lies on the
Olt River The Olt ( Romanian and Hungarian; ; or ', , ''Alytos'') is a river in Romania. It is long, and its basin area is . It is the longest river flowing exclusively through Romania. Its average discharge at the mouth is . It originates in the Hă ...
in a valley between the Baraolt Mountains and the . The town administers two villages, Chilieni (''Kilyén'') and Coșeni (''Szotyor'').


History

Sfântu Gheorghe is one of the oldest urban settlements in Transylvania, the town first having been documented in 1332. The town takes its name from
Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...
, the patron of the local church. Historically, it was also known in German as ''Sankt Georgen''. The "sepsi" prefix (''sebesi'' → ''sepsi'', meaning "of Sebes") refers to the area which the ancestors of the local Székely population had inhabited before settling to the area of the town. The previous area of their settlement was around the town of "Sebes" (now Sebeș, in
Alba County Alba County () is a county (județ) of Romania located in the historic region of Transylvania. Its capital is Alba Iulia, a city with a population of 63,536. Name "Alba", meaning "white" in Latin and Romanian, is derived from the name of the ...
) which later became populated mainly by
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 ...
(), being known as ''Mühlbach'' in German. While part of 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 ...
, the town was the economic and administrative center of the Hungarian county of Háromszék, which spanned the present-day
Covasna County Covasna County (, , ) is a county (județ) of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Sfântu Gheorghe. Demographics In 2011, it had a population of 210,177, making it the second least populous of Romania's 41 counties and the ...
and parts of
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 ...
. In the second half of the 19th century, Sepsiszentgyörgy witnessed the development of light industry, a textile and a cigarette factory being built. In the aftermath of
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 ...
, the
Union of Transylvania with Romania The union of Transylvania with Romania was declared on by the assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia. The Great Union Day (also called ''Unification Day''), celebrated on 1 December, is a Public holidays in Romani ...
was declared in December 1918. At the start of the Hungarian–Romanian War of 1918–1919, the town passed under Romanian administration. After the
Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (; ; ; ), often referred to in Hungary as the Peace Dictate of Trianon or Dictate of Trianon, was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace Conference. It was signed on the one side by Hungary ...
of 1920, it became part of the
Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania () was a constitutional monarchy that existed from with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King of Romania, King Carol I of Romania, Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian royal family), until 1947 wit ...
and the seat of
Trei Scaune County Trei Scaune County is one of the historical counties of the Kingdom of Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. The county seat was Sfântu Gheorghe. Geography The county covered and was located in the central part of Greater Romania, ...
. In 1940, the
Second Vienna Award The Second Vienna Award was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and the Kingdom of Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all of Maramureș and part of Cri ...
granted
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 ...
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 ...
. Near the end of that period, the Sfântu Gheorghe ghetto briefly existed in the town. In September 1944, 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 ...
, 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 ...
armies entered the town. The territory of Northern Transylvania remained under Soviet military administration until 9 March 1945, after which it became again part of Romania; the Paris Peace Treaties of 1947 reaffirmed the town and the entirety of Transylvania as a Romanian territory. Between 1952 and 1960, Sfântu Gheorghe was the southernmost town of the Magyar Autonomous Region, and between 1960 and 1968 it was part of the Brașov Region. In 1968, when Romania was reorganized based on counties rather than regions, the city became the seat of Covasna County. Sfântu Gheorghe is one of the centres for the Székely people in the region, known to them as Székelyföld in Hungarian – which means "Székely Land", and is home to the Székely National Museum. The town hosts two market fairs each year.


Demographics

At the 2021 census, the city had a population of 50,080; of those, 69.25% were
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 18.93%
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, ...
. At the 2011 census, 41,233 (74%) of the city's 56,006 inhabitants declared themselves as ethnic Hungarians, 11,807 (21%) as Romanians, 398 (0.7%) as Roma, and 2,562 as other ethnicities or no information; 74% had Hungarian as first language, and 21% Romanian.


Sights

* , constructed in the 14th century in Gothic style * , constructed in the 19th century in Neoclassical style * State Archive, the former headquarters of the
Hussar A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...
battalions * , constructed in 1832 as the seat of the county council * Theater used from 1854 to 1866 as the city hall * The market
bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...
, built in 1868, with a
clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure that house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another building ...
built in 1893 * , founded 1875


Economy

The predominant industry in the city is the
textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
industry. The city holds underutilized production capabilities such as a downsized automobile transmission parts and gearboxes factory (IMASA SA) and a tobacco factory (). Services sector contains growing areas such as IT services with ROMARG SRL the leading domain registrar and web hosting provider in Romania having its headquarters here.


Sports


Football

The main sport in the city is football. The city has a men's football team, called ''
Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe Asociația Club Sportiv Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe, commonly known as Sepsi OSK (), Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe (), or simply Sepsi, is a Romanian professional Association football, football Club (organization), club based in Sfântu Gheorghe, Covasna ...
'' (Sepsiszentgyörgyi OSK). In the 2016–2017 season the team was promoted from
Liga II The Liga 2, most commonly spelled as Liga II, is the second level of the Romanian football league system. The league changed its name from Divizia B just before the start of the 2006–07 Liga II, 2006–07 football season. It is currently Sponso ...
and currently plays in
Liga I Liga I (; ''First League''), also spelled as Liga 1 and officially known as SuperLiga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Romania and the highest level of the Romanian football league system. Contested by 1 ...
.


Basketball

Sfântu Gheorghe has also a women's basketball team, called '' ACS Sepsi SIC''. The club competes in Liga Națională (the Romanian First League). Sepsi SIC has won the Romanian Championship 7 times: in the 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023 seasons.


Futsal

The city also has a
futsal Futsal is a variant of association football played between two teams of five players each on a court smaller than a football pitch. Its rules are based on the Laws of the Game (association football), Laws of the Game of association football, and i ...
team which plays in the Romanian First Division. The name of the team is ''Futsal Club Sfântu Gheorghe'' (''Sepsiszentgyörgyi Futsal Club'').


Culture

The city has two theaters (the Andrei Mureșanu Theater and the Tamási Áron Theater), a county library (the ), and two museums (the and the ). The Hungarian artist Jenő Gyárfás was born there and was a lifelong resident. His former studio is now an art gallery and exhibition hall. The Orthodox Cathedral of “St. George the Great Martyr and St. Nicholas” was built from 1939 to 1983. In 1993 the Museum of Romanian Spirituality was established at the Cathedral. On 28 September 2024, a bust of Archpriest Aurel Nistor (1882-1974) was unveiled, by Moldovan sculptor Veaceslav Jiglițchi.


Education

* Puskás Tivadar High School * Székely Mikó High School * Mikes Kelemen High School * Mihai Viteazul National College * Plugor Sandor Art High School * Váradi József School


Natives

* Tibor Benkő (1905–1988), fencer and modern pentathlete * István Berde (born 1988), footballer * Gavrilă Birău (born 1945), footballer and football manager * Annamari Dancs, singer * Endre Elekes (born 1968), wrestler * Jenő Gyárfás (1857–1925), portrait painter, graphic artist, and writer * Attila Hadnagy (born 1980), footballer * Kriszta Incze (born 1996), freestyle wrestler *
Laura Codruța Kövesi Laura Codruța Kövesi (; ; born 15 May 1973) is the first European Public Prosecutor's Office, European Chief Prosecutor and the former chief prosecutor of Romania's National Anticorruption Directorate (), a position she held from 2013 until ...
(born 1973), prosecutor * Nandor Kuti (born 1997), basketball player * Edit Matei (born 1964), handballer * Szilárd Mitra (born 1987), footballer * Csongor Olteán (born 1984), javelin thrower * Gabriela Rotiș (born 1980), handballer * Valentin Suciu (born 1980), football manager * Marius Szőke (born 1993), handballer * Dan Tanasă (born 1981), politician * Maria Török-Duca (born 1959), handballer and handball manager * Lajos Veress (1889–1976), Hungarian military officer * Zsombor Veress (born 1999), footballer


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sfantu Gheorghe Populated places in Covasna County Localities in Transylvania Cities in Romania Capitals of Romanian counties