Cavnic

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Cavnic

County

Maramureş County

Status

Town

Mayor

Nicolae Bindiu, National Liberal Party, since 2004

Population (2002)

5,205

Geographical coordinates

47°39′39″N, 23°52′40″E

Cavnic (Hungarian: Kapnikbánya, German: Kapnik) is a mining town situated in the valley of the same name, 26 km east of Baia Mare, in Maramureş County, northern Romania. The town covers 47.17 km², at altitudes ranging from 500 to 1050 meters above sea level.

1 History
2 Famous people
3 References
4 Externallinks

[edit] History

Cavnic was first documented in 1336, as Capnic. It was named after the river, which got its name from a Slavic word, kopaonik, which refers to digging. Mining activity in the area dates back to the Roman age.

The town was destroyed by the Ottomans in 1460 and by the Tatars in 1717.

In the 1910 Census of the Kingdom of Hungary, Kapnikbánya (as it was then called) was in Szatmár county, Nagybánya district. It then had a population of 3517, out of which 1864 were Hungarians, 49 were Germans and 1604 were Romanians. 1497 identified as Catholic, 1890 as Greek Catholic, and 89 as Jewish.

The town's mines tended to close and reopen, often not remaining operational for any great length of time. In the 1970s, however, Cavnic underwent a great deal of development. Two ski slopes were built at Icoana, and the town gained motels, boardinghouses and a hotel to take advantage of its touristic potential.

In 2002 it had 5205 residents, of whom 4205 were Romanians, 911 Hungarians, 54 Roma, 18 Germans and 17 others.