Sălciua (; ) is a commune located 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 ...

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 six villages: Dealu Caselor (''Hegyik''), Dumești, Sălciua de Jos (the commune center; ''Alsószolcsva''), Sălciua de Sus (''Felsőszolcsva''), Sub Piatră (''Búvópatak''), and Valea Largă (''Malompataka''). It has a population of 1,271 as of 2021.

Geography

The commune is located the ethnogeographical region of

Țara Moților Țara Moților (), also known as ''Țara de Piatră'' ("The Stone Land") is an ethnogeographical region of Romania in the Apuseni Mountains, on the upper basin of the Arieș and Crișul Alb River rivers. It covers parts of the Alba, Arad, Bi ...

, in the middle of the

Apuseni Mountains The Apuseni Mountains (, "Western Mountains"; , "Transylvanian Mountains") are a mountain range in Transylvania, Romania, which belongs to the Western Romanian Carpathians. The highest peak is the Bihor Peak at . The Apuseni Mountains have ab ...

. It is situated in the north of Alba County, from the county seat,

Alba Iulia Alba Iulia (; or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; ; ) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the river Mureș (river), Mureș in the historical region of Transylvania, it has a ...

, and from Baia de Arieș, the nearest town, close to 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 ...

joining

Câmpeni Câmpeni (German: ''Topesdorf''; Hungarian: ''Topánfalva'') is a town in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. The town administers 21 villages: Boncești, Borlești, Botești (''Botesbánya''), Certege (''Csertés''), Coasta Vâscului, Dănduț ...

Turda Turda (; , ; ; ) is a Municipiu, city in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in the southeastern part of the county, from the county seat, Cluj-Napoca, to which it is connected by the European route E81, and from nearby Câmpia ...

. Lying on the banks of the Arieș River and its tributary, the Sălciuța, in between the Trascău Mountains and , Sălciua has a specific mountain landscape developed on limestone and crystalline schists. The altitude of the surrounding mountains varies between . The big Arieș meadow offers favorable conditions for agriculture, the large crop fields leading to the area being named the " Bărăgan of the Apuseni Mountains". The great variety of karst topography, with its spectacular flora and fauna and climatic characteristics make it a big tourist attraction. The village also has historic wooden churches.

History

In 1925, a few Romanian families were relocated in

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 ...

, where they founded Sălciua Nouă village (the New Sălciua), now part of Pișchia 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 ...

Sights

* "Sfânta Cuvioasă Parascheva" wooden church (1798), in Sub Piatră village. * "Sfânta Treime" and "Sfântul Ilie" wooden churches (1782), in Valea Largă village. * Huda lui Păpară cave. * Poarta Zmeilor (Gate of Dragons) cave, in Sub Piatră village. * Vânătările Ponorului natural reservation, in Dumești village. * Scărița–Șesul Craiului natural reservation. * Detunatele" (the Roar) geological reservation.

Natives

Valeriu Tabără Valeriu Tabără (; 1 July 1949 – 29 April 2025) was a Romanian agronomist and politician. A member of the Romanian National Unity Party (PUNR) and later the Democratic Liberal Party (PD-L), he was a member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputie ...

(1949–2025), agronomist and politician

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salciua Communes in Alba County Localities in Transylvania