Baia Sprie
Encyclopedia
Baia Sprie (ˌbaja ˈspri.e; ) is a town in the Maramureş County
, northern Romania
. The Hungarian version of the town's name means "Upper Mine".
The town administers three villages: Chiuzbaia, Satu Nou de Sus and Tăuţii de Sus. Neighbouring communities are the city of Baia Mare
and the villages of Groşi, Dumbrăviţa, Şiseşti and Deseşti. Of the town's total population, about 11,500 live in the town of Baia Sprie, with a Romanian
majority and a Hungarian minority of about 28%.
The town was one of the most important mining centers in north-western Romania, exploitation of gold and silver being mentioned in documents written around 1411, the time when the Saxons
colonized the region. However, recent administrative changes and restructuring of the Romanian mining industry brought this activity to an almost complete halt.
. King Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
, as part of treat with Serbian ruler Despotus Stefan Lazarević
, gave him Baia Sprie as a gift, at 1411., until Depotus' death in 1426. A year after, lord of Baia Sprie became Stefan's successor Despotus Đurađ Branković of Serbia
. In 1567, it was annexed by Prince János Zsigmond, prince of Transylvania. In 1605 - 1606, 1621 - 1629 and 1645 - 1648 the town and the county were part of the Principality of Transylvania
.
In the 1910 census, the following languages were spoken in the township: Hungarian language
93.8%, Romanian language
5.2% and others 1.0%. At the same census the following religions were represented: Roman Catholic 52.1%, Greek Catholic 28.1%, Calvinist 13.3%, Judaism
6.1% and others 0.5%.
From the 1919 to 1940 the town was part of the Kingdom of Romania
. Between 1940 and 1944 it was part of Hungary
and since 1944 the town has been in Romania. The township belonged alternately to the Baia Mare Region (in 1952 1960), Maramureş Region (1960 1968) and, as of 1968, Maramureş County
.
The main religious groups were 11,344 Romanian Orthodox, 2,739 Roman Catholic, 886 Calvinist and 636 Greek Catholic.
Maramures County
Maramureș is a county of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.- History :* 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...
, northern Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. The Hungarian version of the town's name means "Upper Mine".
The town administers three villages: Chiuzbaia, Satu Nou de Sus and Tăuţii de Sus. Neighbouring communities are the city of Baia Mare
Baia Mare
Baia Mare is a municipality in northwestern Romania and the capital of Maramureş County. The city is situated about 600 kilometres from Bucharest, the capital of Romania, 70 kilometres from the border with Hungary and 50 kilometres from the border with Ukraine...
and the villages of Groşi, Dumbrăviţa, Şiseşti and Deseşti. Of the town's total population, about 11,500 live in the town of Baia Sprie, with a Romanian
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
majority and a Hungarian minority of about 28%.
The town was one of the most important mining centers in north-western Romania, exploitation of gold and silver being mentioned in documents written around 1411, the time when the Saxons
Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania from the 12th century onwards.The colonization of Transylvania by Germans was begun by King Géza II of Hungary . For decades, the main task of the German settlers was to defend the southeastern border of the...
colonized the region. However, recent administrative changes and restructuring of the Romanian mining industry brought this activity to an almost complete halt.
History
The first written mention of the settlement dates back to 1329 as "Civitas in medio monte". The town was in Szatmár County, in the Kingdom of HungaryKingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
. King Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
, as part of treat with Serbian ruler Despotus Stefan Lazarević
Stefan Lazarevic
Stefan Lazarević known also as Stevan the Tall was a Serbian Despot, ruler of the Serbian Despotate between 1389 and 1427. He was the son and heir to Prince Lazar, who died at the Battle of Kosovo against the Turks in 1389, and Princess Milica from the subordinate branch of the Nemanjić dynasty...
, gave him Baia Sprie as a gift, at 1411., until Depotus' death in 1426. A year after, lord of Baia Sprie became Stefan's successor Despotus Đurađ Branković of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. In 1567, it was annexed by Prince János Zsigmond, prince of Transylvania. In 1605 - 1606, 1621 - 1629 and 1645 - 1648 the town and the county were part of the Principality of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
.
In the 1910 census, the following languages were spoken in the township: Hungarian language
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
93.8%, Romanian language
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
5.2% and others 1.0%. At the same census the following religions were represented: Roman Catholic 52.1%, Greek Catholic 28.1%, Calvinist 13.3%, Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
6.1% and others 0.5%.
From the 1919 to 1940 the town was part of the Kingdom of Romania
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania was the Romanian state based on a form of parliamentary monarchy between 13 March 1881 and 30 December 1947, specified by the first three Constitutions of Romania...
. Between 1940 and 1944 it was part of Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
and since 1944 the town has been in Romania. The township belonged alternately to the Baia Mare Region (in 1952 1960), Maramureş Region (1960 1968) and, as of 1968, Maramureş County
Maramures County
Maramureș is a county of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.- History :* 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...
.
Population
The total population of the township was 16,609 in 2002, of which the main ethnic groups were 12,469 Romanians (75%), 3,441 Hungarians (21%) and 576 Roma (3.5%).The main religious groups were 11,344 Romanian Orthodox, 2,739 Roman Catholic, 886 Calvinist and 636 Greek Catholic.
External links
- Photos of the town and its surroundings in the dedicated FlickrFlickrFlickr is an image hosting and video hosting website, web services suite, and online community that was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and acquired by Yahoo! in 2005. In addition to being a popular website for users to share and embed personal photographs, the service is widely used by bloggers to...
group