Hunedoara County

Name

In Hungarian, it is known as Hunyad megye, in German as Kreis Hunedoara, and in Slovak as Hunedoara.

Demographics

In 2011, the county had a population of 396,253 and the population density was 56.1/km².

Hunedoara's Jiu River Valley is traditionally a coal-mining region, and its high level of industrialisation drew many people from other regions of Romania in the period before the fall of the communist regime.

Geography

This county has a total area of 7,063 km².

Mainly, the relief is made up of mountains, divided by the Mureș River valley which crosses the county from East to West. To the North side there are the Apuseni Mountains and to the South side there are mountains from the Southern Carpathians group, Parâng Mountains group and Retezat-Godeanu Mountains group: Orastie and Surianu Mountains (South-East), Retezat Mountains (South), Poiana Ruscai Mountains (South-West).

Except from the Mureș River with its tributaries Strei, Râul Mare and Cerna which forms wide valleys, in the North side Crișul Alb River also forms a valley in the Apuseni Mountains - Zarand region. In the South side along the Jiu River with its two branches Jiul de Vest and Jiul de Est, there is a large depression, and an accessible route towards Southern Romania - Oltenia..

Neighbours

Economy

Hunedoara County was one of the most industrialised areas during the communist period, and was very negatively affected when the industry collapsed after the fall of the communist regime.

The industry in the Hunedoara county is linked with the mining activity in the region. In the mountains, from ancient times, metals and coal have been exploited. Nowadays, there is one large industrial complex at Hunedoara owned by Mittal Steel. Also energy related enterprises are located in the county - one of the biggest thermoelectric plant is located at Mintia.

The Jiu Valley, located in the south of the country, has been a major mining area throughout the second half of the 19th century and the 20th century, but many mines were closed down in the years following the collapse of the communist regime.

The city of Hunedoara has also suffered significantly from the 1990s onwards - under communism it contained the largest steel works in Romania (until Galați took the lead), but activity gradually diminished after the fall of communism due to the loss of the market. This was a blow to the overall prosperity of the town, which is now recovering through new investments.

Agricultural activities also take place in Hunedoara county, which include livestock raising, and fruit and cereal cultivation. The county also has touristic potential, especially through the Dacian Fortresses of the Orăștie Mountains and the Corvin Castle.

The predominant industries in the county are:

In the 1990s, a large amount of mines were closed down, leaving Hunedoara county with the highest unemployment rate in Romania, of 9.6%, in comparison to the national average of 5.5%.

Tourism

Retezat National Park and other picturesque regions makes it one of the most beautiful counties in Romania. Also there can be found Dacian and Roman complexes in the Orăştie Mountains.

The main tourist attractions in the county are:

Politics

The Hunedoara County Council, elected at the 2016 local government elections, is made up of 33 counselors, with the following party composition:

Administrative divisions

Hunedoara County has 7 municipalities, 7 towns and 55 communes. Although Hunedoara County is the most urbanized county in Romania (75% of the population is urban - in 2011) it does not contain any city of more than 100.000 people. Also, following the de-industrialization after the communism fall, the major urban centres in the county, particularly Hunedoara and Petroșani, suffered significant population decline.