Baia Mare

Baia Mare (meaning Big Mine, pronunciation in Romanian: /'ba.ja 'ma.re/; name in Hungarian: Nagybánya, German: Frauenbach and seldom Neustadt) is an important city in northern Romania and the seat of Maramureş County. It is located in the northern part of the county, on the middle course of the Sasar River, at an average altitude of 228 metres, surrounded by the Igniş and Gutâi mountains. The city has an area of 233 km² and also contains the following settlements: Blidari, Firiza, Valea Neagră and Valea Borcutului. In terms of area, Baia Mare, including the previously mentioned settlements and the forests within the city limits, is one of the largest cities in Romania, being a few square miles larger than the country's capital, Bucharest. However, it is ranked 17th in terms of population.

Due to the concentration of economic activities found in the city and their importance, Baia Mare ranks third in northwest Romania, after Cluj Napoca and Oradea.

1 Population
2 Geography
3 Politics
4 History
5 Economy
6 Sister Cities
7 Gallery
8 Structures
9 External links
10 Notes/References

[edit] Population

The municipality of Baia Mare has a total population of 149,735, the majority being Romanians. The city is also home to a sizeable Hungarian community. The ethnic composition of the city is as follows:

Romanian: 114,213 (82.81%)
Hungarian: 20,467 (14.84%)
Roma: 2,092 (1.51%)
German: 507 (0.36%)
Ukrainian: (0.25%)

and 642 others, including Ukrainians due to the city's proximity to Romania's border with Ukraine.

[edit] Geography

The city is situated in the vicinity of the Gutâi and Igniş Mountains. Altitudes reach 1400 meters in some peaks. The area is famous for its outstanding landscapes and the mountains are easily accessible from the city, famous routes being: Igniş (1307 meters), Mogoşa (1246 meters), Gutâi (1443 meters), Piatra Omului, Dealul Crucii etc. Some of these mountains provide skiing slopes, most notably the one at Mogoşa, which is the most difficult slope in Northern Romania^{[citation needed]}. The city is situated in the Baia Mare valley and is encircled on all sides by hills and mountains, which makes the climate in the city milder than the rest of the surrounding area. Proof of this is that the outskirts of Baia Mare are the only areas where you can find chestnut trees that usually need Mediterranean climate to grow. This is the northern most reach of the chestnut tree. However, abrupt temperature changes take place and, during the winters, the temperatures may occasionally drop below -20. The summers are mild, cooler than in the rest of the country. The city of Baia Mare is the most populated of all Northern Romanian cities (Satu Mare, Suceava and Botoşani), with a population of approximately 149,735. It also has high a level of culture and education, being home to many theatres, schools, museums and art galleries. Not far from the city there are a few very important natural reservations, among which: Creasta Cocoşului, Cheile Tătărului, Lacul Albastru etc. Because of its privileged location in the Eastern Carpathian mountains it is considered one of the most picturesque cities in Romania.

[edit] Politics

The Baia Mare Municipal Council, elected in the 2004 local government elections, is made up of 23 councillors, with the following party composition:

	Party	Seats	Current Council
	National Liberal Party	9
	Social Democratic Party	5
	Democratic Party	4
	Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania	3
	Greater Romania Party	2

[edit] History

During the Bronze Age, the region around Baia Mare was the realm of the Thracians, from whom the Geto-Dacians later descended. It was also part of the large Dacian state formed by Burebista. The first mention of the settlement is from 1142, when King Géza II of Hungary settled it with Transylvanian Saxons. The name of the settlement was Frauenbach in German (Asszonypataka in Hungarian, Rivulus Dominarum in Latin), meaning “River of the Ladies” or “Women's Brook”. The richest documentation, however, is found in the act of privilege issued by Louis I of Hungary in 1347.

In 1411 the Hungarian king exchanged the city for Belgrade with Djuradj Branković, prince of Serbia (from 1411 to 1521 Belgrade was a Hungarian border castle). A document from that year speaks of the Mint in Baia Mare, one of the oldest and most famous in Transylvania.

In 1446 the mines and domain of Baia Mare become the property of the Hunyadi family as a token of gratitude for the bravery shown by John Hunyadi in his battles against the invading Turks. John Hunyadi commissioned the Saint Stephen cathedral whose Stephen Tower remains a landmark of the city to this date.

In 1469 King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary bestowed upon the city the right to develop its defense system by erecting fortified walls and keeps, strengthened by deep moats and large palisades to keep out the invaders. Baia Mare thus became an impressive fortress.

In 1567 it was annexed by John Szigmond, prince of Transylvania. The city was in Szatmár County of the Kingdom of Hungary.

In 1600, as a sign of gratitude for having cancelled several of the city's debts, the tenant of the local mines, Felician Herbstein, ordered a coin to be minted in gold, displaying the effigy of Michael the Brave, voivod of Wallachia. Collectors agree that this is an effigy of the prince of great numismatic value.

Between the years 1605 and 1606, 1621 and 1629, and 1645 and 1648, the city and the surrounding county was part of the Principality of Transylvania. From the 16th century the settlement was officially called Nagybánya.

In 1703, the legendary outlaw Pintea Viteazul was witness, alongside Francis II Rákóczi, to the freeing of the city from the hands of the Austrian Habsburgs during a kurucs war. The year 1889 saw the printing of the first newspaper in the Romanian language - "Gutinul" - a weekly paper dealing in social, literary and economic matters. In 1910 the town had 12,877 inhabitants: 9,992 (77.6%) Hungarians, 2,677 (20.8%) Romanians, 175 (1.4%) Germans.^[2] In the same time, the municipal area of the town had 30,584 inhabitants, including 83.73% Romanians, and 15.13% Hungarians. [1]

From 1919/1920 (Treaty of Trianon) to 1940 (Second Vienna Award), Baia Mare was part of the Kingdom of Romania, and during 1940-1944 part of Hungary. The Treaty of Paris after the Second World War returned the city to Romania. From 1952 to 1960 Baia Mare was in the Baia Mare Region, from 1960 to 1968 in the Maramureş Region, and since 1968 has been in Maramureş County.

On 30 January 2000 a dam encircling a tailings pond at a facility operated by Aurul S.A. company broke. The result was a spill of 100,000 cubic meters of liquid and suspended waste containing 50 to 100 tonnes of cyanide^[3].