Girish Mahajan (Editor)

Maramureș County

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Country
  
Romania

Historical region
  
Maramureș

Area rank
  
15th

Development region
  
Nord-Vest

Capital
  
Baia Mare

Telephone code
  
(+40) 262 or (+40) 362

Maramureș County

Maramureș ([maraˈmureʃ]) is a county (județ) of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.

Contents

Map of Maramure%C8%99 County, Romania

Name

In Hungarian, it is known as Máramaros megye, in Ukrainian as Мараморо́щина, and in German as Kreis Marmarosch.

History

Maramureș County as an administrative division within Romania was formed following the union of Transylvania with Romania. During World War II, it was ceded to Hungary, and after the war returned to Romania (see History of Maramureș).

  • The 10th century frontier county of Borsova was founded by Stephen I of Hungary. Since then Máramaros served as the north-eastern border of the Hungarian Kingdom until 1920, the Trianon Peace Treaty.
  • 11th century historical Maramureș counties separation from Borsova (Rom. Borșa)
  • 1241 Tartar invasion decimated about half of the local population
  • 14th century Duke (knyaz) Bogdan of Maramureș said to be founder of Moldova
  • In the Middle Ages, the historical region of Maramureș was known for its salt mines and later for its lumber
  • In 1920 after the Treaty of Trianon, the northern part of the county became part of newly formed Czechoslovakia. The southern part (including Sighetu Marmației) became part of Romania.
  • For more information regarding the history see Máramaros, referring the historical Hungarian name of the county.

    • Demographics

    In 2011, the county had a population of 461,290 and a population density of 73.17 inhabitants per square kilometre (189.5/sq mi).

  • Romanians - 82.38% (or 380,018)
  • Hungarians - 7.53% (or 34,781)
  • Ukrainians - 6.77% (or 31,234)
  • Romani - 2.73% (or 12,638)
  • Germans - 0.27% (or 1,243), and others.

    • In 1910, 18.4% of the county were Jewish.

    Geography

    Maramureș County is situated in the northern part of Romania, and has a border with Ukraine. This county has a total area of 6,304 square kilometres (2,434 sq mi), of which 43% is covered by the Rodna Mountains, with its tallest peak, Pietrosul, at 2,303 metres (7,556 ft) altitude. Together with Gutâi and Țibleș mountain ranges, the Rodna mountains are part of the Eastern Carpathians. The rest of the county are hills, plateaus, and valleys. The county is crossed by Tisa River and its main tributaries: Iza, Vișeu, and Mara rivers.

    Neighbours

  • Suceava County to the East.
  • Satu Mare County to the West.
  • Ukraine to the North - Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast and Zakarpattia Oblast.
  • Sălaj County, Cluj County and Bistrița-Năsăud County to the South.

    • Economy

    Maramureș is known for its pastoral and agricultural traditions, largely unscathed by the industrialisation campaign that had been carried on during Romania's communist period. Ploughing, planting, harvesting, and hay making and handling are mostly done through manual labour. The county is also home to a strong mining industry of extraction of metals other than iron. The industrial plants built around Baia Mare during the communist period heavily polluted the area in the past, but recently, due to the decline of the city's industrial activity, the area is less polluted.

    Tourism

    The region is known for its beautiful rural scenery, local small woodwork and craftwork industry as well as for its churches and original rural architecture. There are not many paved roads in rural areas, and most of them are usually accessible.

    The county's main tourist attractions:

  • The cities of Baia Mare and Sighetu Marmației.
  • The villages on the Iza, Mara, and Vișeu Valleys.
  • The Wooden churches of Maramureș
  • The Wooden churches of Lăpuș
  • The Wooden churches of Chioar
  • The Merry Cemetery of Săpânța
  • The Rodna Mountains.
  • The landscape of Cavnic.

    • Politics

    The Maramureș County Council, elected at the 2016 local government elections, is made up of 35 counselors, with the following party composition:

    Administrative divisions

    Maramureș County has 2 municipalities, 11 towns and 63 communes.

  • Municipalities
  • Baia Mare - county seat; population: 114,925 (as of 2011)
  • Sighetu Marmației

    • People

    Natives of the county include:

  • Augustin Buzura
  • Ștefan Hrușcă
  • Paula Seling

    • References

    Maramureș County Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA