Romania is situated in Southeastern Europe extending approximately 480 km North to South and 640 km east to West. Soviet occupation following World War II led to the formation of a communist “peoples republic” in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of President Nicolae CEAUSESCU became increasingly draconian through the 1980s. He was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept from power. Much economic restructuring remains to be carried out before Romania can achieve its hope of joining the EU.
Romania is bordered to the North and East by Moldavia and Ukraine, to the Southeast by the Black Sea, to the South by Bulgaria, to the Southwest by Yugoslavia and to the West by Hungary. The country has an area of 237,750 sq. km and a population of over 23,000,000, composed of Romanians, Hungarians and small minorities of Germans, Slovaks, Turks, Russians, Bulgarians, Croats, Tartars… The official language is Romanian, of Latin origin. Some Hungarian and German are spoken in Transylvania and in the border areas, while mainly English and some French are spoken by those connected with the tourist industry.
The country is divided into three geographical areas. Transylvania and Moldavia compose the Northern half of the country, which is divided down the middle by the North-South strip of the Carpathian Mountains. South of the East-West line of the Carpathians lies Tara Romaneasca with Romania’s capital: Bucharest. The Carpathians Mountains are located in the center of the country, bordered on both sides by hills and plateaux; finally you discover the great plains of the outer rim. Forests cover over a quarter of the country and the fauna is one of the richest in Europe.
The capital of Romania is the city of Bucharest . It is divided into six administrative districts, with a population of 2,066,723 and it lies in the south-eastern part of the country, in the Romanian Plain (altitude 85 m). Bucharest is a living city with monumental buildings, with outstanding architectural values, big and interesting museums, theatres, opera house, exhibition halls, memorial houses, universities, central public and administrative offices. The Palace of Parliament, for instance, is the second building in the world in point of size, after the Pentagon. The capital is also the largest industrial center of Romania, with numerous factories and plants of all kinds (iron-and-steel, engineering, fine mechanics, tanning yards, food industry).
Bucharest dates back to the 14th century and is recorded in writing for the first time in 1459 as residence of prince Vlad the Impaler. Capital of Wallachia in the 17th-19th centuries and then of Romania since 1862, Bucharest is the most important political, economic, cultural and scientific center of the country. It is crossed by the river Dâmbovita and is bordered by picturesque lakes on the valley of Colentina. Bucharest is a city featuring a rich vegetation, wide parks, which has inspired the name of “garden-city”.
Lists of City in Romania
1. Bucharest City
According to a Romanian legend Bucharest was founded by a shepherd named “Bucur”, whose name means “joy”. His flute playing reportedly dazzled the locals and his hearty wine from nearby vineyards endeared him to the local traders, who gave his name to the place. The region where Bucharest is now located was once covered by the Vlasiei forest, which, after it was cleared, gave way to a fertile flatland.That once bucolic and lovely place is now the capital city and industrial and commercial centre of Romania. Bucharest is located in the southeast of the country, on the Dâmbovita river. The city has a population of 2,082,000 inhabitants, together with the metropolitan area comprising approximately 2.3 million people. Along a small tributary of Dâmbovita, named Colentina, several lakes stretch across the city, the most important being Lake Floreasca, Lake Tei and Lake Colentina. In addition, in the center of the capital there is a small artificial lake – Lake Cismigiu.
The city has grown rapidly, doubling its size since World War II. The earliest city lay on rising ground on the left bank of the Dimbovita. This rural town was replaced beginning in the 1860 by an elegant capital with French-inspired architecture that caused it to be known as the Paris of the Balkans. The Communist planners extended the wide boulevards begin in the 19th century. They also laid out squares and erected massive buildings-many of them markedly Soviet in style–including the Communist party headquarters and the giant building which housed the government printing and publishing works.
Among the post-World War II buildings are many huge, utilitarian apartment blocks of no particular aesthetic distinction. Communist rule interrupted Bucharest’s cosmopolitan days. Many years after the overthrown of the communist regime, the “House of the People” — the world’s second largest building after the US Pentagon — reminds Romanians of the communist years. Only Romanian materials and products were used — local marble, cherry and walnut paneling, crystal chandeliers, specially commissioned hand-woven tapestries, carpets and draperies — to build what supposed to be the headquarters of Romania’s last communist leader. Now renamed the Palace of Parliament, this magnificent building of 1,000 rooms reflects the work of the country’s best architects and artisans. A number of historic churches and synagogues were razed by order of Romania’s authoritarian president Nicolae Ceausescu to make way for these building projects.
2. Lasi City
Lasi is a city (and a county) in north-eastern region of Moldavia in Romania. During World War I, Lasi was the capital of Romania for two years, following the German occupation of Bucharest on 6 December 1916. The status of “capital of Romania” was returned to Bucharest after its liberation in November 1918. Because of its impressive buildings, Lasi ranks as the second cultural town of Romania : the “Trei lerarhi” (The Three Hierarchs) Church where the bones of rulers Vasile Lupu, Dimitrie Cantemir and Alexandru loan Cuza are preserved, the National Theatre, The Foundation Library, University. The Culture Palace is the landmark of Lasi, and the bells of its central tower ring every hour the Union Dance. The Princely St. Nicolae Church was built by Stefan del Mare in 1492.
The city lies on the Bahlui River, a tributary of the Prut River. The surrounding country is one of uplands and woods, among which rise the monasteries of Cetatuia, Frumoasa, and Galata with its mineral springs, and the dendrology park of Repedea. Iasi itself stands pleasantly amid vineyards and gardens, partly on two hills, partly in the hollow between. Iasi was for centuries the capital of the Principality of Moldavia, until 1859 when the Principalities of Moldavia and Walachia merged to form Romania. Lasi is an outstanding educational centre, and preserves some beautiful pieces of architecture. Many buildings in the old city centre, however, were demolished during Communist times, with unsightly Soviet-style blocks of flats built in their stead.
3. Timisoara City
Timisoara is a city in the Banat region of western Romania. With a population of 305,977 in 2004 (329,554 in 2000), it is the capital of Timis County. The city’s name has a lot of variants. One of the most known is the German version: Temesvar. The name derives from the Timis River, known in Roman Antiquity as river Tibisis or Tibiscus. In 1019 Timisoara (as Dibiscos / Bisiskos / Tibiskos / Tibiskon / Timbisko / etc.) was mentioned for the first time in written documents by the Byzantine Emperor Basil II, although not all historians agree with this identification. The city is believed to have been annexed into the Kingdom of Hungary in 1010. The city consists of an inner town, which formerly was fortified, and four suburbs that are separated from the inner town by parks. Timisoara is a commercial centre and one of the largest cities in Romania. The principal industries include oil refining and the manufacture of machinery, textiles, electrical appliances, and chemicals. Buildings of interest include an 18th-century castle, a museum, town hall, county hall, and a Greek Orthodox cathedral. A Gothic column in the main square of the city was erected in 1851 by Francis Joseph I, emperor of Austria, to commemorate the resistance of Timisoara during a 107-day siege by the Hungarian revolutionary army in 1849. The city has a significant Hungarian population.
Timisoara is a multicultural city with influential minorities, primarily Germans, Magyars, and Serbs, as well as Italians, Palestinians, and Greeks. It was the birthplace of Johnny Weissmuller (an Olympic swimmer, best known for his role as Tarzan). Gustave Eiffel, the creator of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, built Timisoara’s foot bridge over the Bega. The first tobacco mill in today’s Romania was set up in Timisoara. The city was also the first town in the Austro-Hungarian Empire to have public lighting using suet candles and lamps with oil and grease. Timisoara was the first town to have an ambulance station in the Kingdom of Hungary and later the Kingdom of Romania.
In December 1989 a major revolt against the rule of Ceausescu broke out here in Timisoara. This revolt spread all over the country and eventually led to the collapse of the ruling regime and the execution of Ceausescu and his wife Elena. Ceausescu’s son was accused of being involved in all kinds of criminal “against the interests of the people” activities. But the revolt was not without heavy losses in terms of human lives; 1104 people died in December 1989. Before December 22nd 162 people died, 73 in Timisoara, 48 in Bucharest and 41 somewhere else in Romania. 3352 people were wounded. Some of the first victims were sent to Bucharest and cremated. The military had 260 dead, and 545 wounded. The “Securitatea” 65 dead and 73 wounded.
4. Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca the seat of Cluj County in Transylvania is one of the most important academic, cultural and industrial centres in Romania. The district is drained by the Borsa, Somesul Mic, Somesu Rece, and Somesu Cald tributaries of the Somes River. Cluj-Napoca is the district capital. Machinery, metal products, chemicals, textile and footwear industries are well represented in the city; building materials and glass are manufactured in Turda; iron is mined at Capusu Mic; coal mines operate at Ticu, Tamasa, Surduc, and Cristoltel; and salt is quarried at Ocna Dejului.
The city stands on the site of an ancient Dacian settlement, Napoca, which the Romans made a municipium. Although it was founded as a military base, Napoca grew rapidly as civilians settled nearby. Hadrian raised Napoca to the status of a municipium, naming it Municipium Aelium Hadrianum Napoca. The locality was later raised to the status of a colonia, probably during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Napoca became a provincial capital of Provincia Porolissensis and the seat of a procurator. However, during the Migrations Period Napoca was overrun and destroyed. In the Middle Ages the name of the city was Culus, as attested in documents of 1173, but by the beginning of the 15th century it was known as Cluj. The name Cluj – Clus as named by the local people speaking a middle age and popular Latin language, comes from the Latin c l u s u m, or closed, due to the fact that the place is surrounded by protective and beautiful hills. Later, the city has also been known by its German name, Klausenburg, and its Hungarian name, Kolozsvár.
When Austria-Hungary was created in 1867, Cluj and Transylvania were reintegrated into the Kingdom of Hungary. During this time Cluj was the second-largest city in the kingdom behind Budapest, and was the seat of Kolozs County. After the First World War Cluj became part of the Kingdom of Romania, along with the rest of Transylvania. In 1940 Cluj was awarded to Hungary through the Vienna Award, but Hungarian forces in the city were defeated by the Romanian and Soviet armies in October 1944. Cluj was restored to Romania by the Treaty of Paris in 1947. Hungarians remained the majority of the population until the 1950s. According to the 1966 Census from the 185,663 inhabitants of the city, 56% were Romanians and 41% Hungarians. In 1974, the city was renamed from Cluj to Cluj-Napoca. The twelve year mayorship of Gheorghe Funar was marked by rising anti-Hungarian sentiment, and a number of public art projects were undertaken by the city with the aim of obscuring its Hungarian heritage.
5. Constanta
Constanta is situated on the Black Sea and is the capital of Constanta County in Romania. Nearby the city are several mineral springs, and the sea-bathing also attracts many visitors in summer. The chief local industries are tanning and the manufacture of petroleum drums. In 2500 years ago, as part of Greek colonization in Pontus Euxinus (Black Sea), a settlement (where now Constanta is situated) was founded under the name “Tomis”. Tomis sees great prosperity due to the commercial exchange proceeded between Greek colonists and the native Gaeto-Dacians. During the 6th and even at the beginning of the 7th century, Tomis was violently attacked by the Slavs and the Avars. In the 9th century the region is reorganized by the Byzantine Empire Constanta is the Constantiana which was founded in honour of Constantia, sister of Constantine the Great (274-337). The earliest known usage of this name was “Constantia” in 950. It lies at the seaward end of the Great Wall of Trajan, and has evidently been surrounded by fortifications of its own. In spite of damage done by railway contractors there are considerable remains of ancient masonry walls, pillars, etc. An impressive public building, thought to have originally been a port building, has been excavated, and contains the substantial remains of one of the longest mosaic pavements in the world.
Of the Roman town of Tomis there are only a part of the wall of the town and the Butchers Tower (the VI-th century). In an open-air exhibition in the Victory Park there are some columns and amphora’s too. Other ruins are in Histria, along the seashore, and in Adamclisi.The Ottoman domination is marked in Constanta by the Mahmud II’s Mosque and the Genovese lighthouse from the XIII-th century is still working nearby the pleasure port. It is pleasant to walk along the seashore or to spend the time at the Casino built in Rococo style. Just in front of the Casino there is the Aquarium which exhibits flora and fauna of the Black Sea. In Constanta there are also a Dolphinarium with daily shows and a Planetarium.
The harbour, protected by breakwaters, with a lighthouse at the entrance, is well defended from the North winds, but those from the South, South-East, and South-West prove sometimes highly dangerous. The Black Sea squadron of the Romanian fleet is stationed here. Mamaia is a beach resort immediately to the north. A large canal connects the Black Sea, at Constanta to the Danube River.
6. Brasov City
Brasov is the capital of the Brasov county in Romania. The population of Brasov is 283,901, according to the 2002 census. The city was named Orasul Stalin, after Joseph Stalin, from 1951 to 1961.Brasov is located in the central part of the country, at about 166 km from Bucharest and surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains. It is part of the Transylvania region. Also known by the German name of Kronstadt, the city of Brasov is one of the largest and most cherished cities of the country. Surrounded on three sides by mountains, it was a perfect place for a medieval settlement. The old city, founded by the Teutonic Knights in 1211, is one of the best preserved. Lately it was thoroughly restored. Johannes Honterus (1498-1549), who led the Protestant Reformation in the area, established the first printing press in Transylvania here. The first book in Romanian language was also printed in Brasov, by the deacon Coresi, in the 16th century.
At its origin, Brasov was the center of a powerful Saxon colony trading in cloth, weapons, metalwork, and wax throughout much of Walachia and Moldavia. Heavily fortified in the 15th century to withstand the attacks of the Ottomans, the city survived with little damage. Among the historic buildings is the city hall, erected in 1420, and the 190-foot watchtower, also called Trumpeter’s Tower. Beside its economical power, Brasov has always been a major cultural center. Brasov’s natural tourist potential is closely connected with its geographical situation between mountains. The nearby Eastern and Southern Carpathians are able to satisfy the tastes and desires of all tourists who like either winter sports or summer sports. Three important resorts (Poiana Brasov, Predeal, Sinaia) offer tourists a wide range of winter and summer sports like skiing, snowboarding, driving snowmobiles, swimming, climbing, tennis and roller skating.
Visitors can walk down the streets that surround the old Town hall, all the way to the city walls up to one of the original city gates, Poarta Schei with its four towers. The Art Museum has some valuable Romanian paintings, while the History Museum awaits the visitor in a medieval setting inside the old fortress. The biggest attraction in town is the Gothic Protestant Church built between 1385 and 1477. It is known by the name of “Black Church” because of its smoke-blackened walls after a fire in 1689. The establishment was recently restored, and tourists can now fully enjoy listening to organ concerts or admire the enchanting oriental rug collection. Being always an important tourist centre, the city of Brasov has some fine hotels and restaurants, of which the most known are “Aro Hotel” and the “Cetate” restaurant, famous for the authentic Romanian cuisine and medieval interior.
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