Timişoara

Timișoara
—  City  —
Victory Square
Coat of arms
Timișoara Location of Timişoara
Coordinates:
Country	Romania
County	Timiş County
Status	County Capital
Government
- Mayor	Gheorghe Ciuhandu (CDNPP)
Area
- City	129.2 km2 (49.9 sq mi)
- Metro	1,070.4 km2 (413.3 sq mi)
Elevation	89 m (292 ft)
Population (est. 2009)[1]
- City	312,113
- Density	2,415.7/km2 (6,256.7/sq mi)
- Metro	359,132
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
- Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Website	primariatm.ro

Timișoara (Romanian pronunciation: [timiˈʃo̯ara]  ( listen); German: Temeschburg, also Temeswar or Temeschwar, Hungarian: Temesvár, Serbian: Темишвар, Temišvar), is a city in the Banat region of western Romania. It is the capital of Timiş County.

One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 312,113 inhabitants (the third most populous city in Romania), Timişoara is the main economic and cultural center in Banat, in the western part of the country.

Contents 1 History 2 Demographics 3 Economy 4 Transport 5 Geography 5.1 Climate 5.2 Neighborhoods 6 Culture 6.1 Cultural sites 6.2 Performing arts 7 Education 7.1 High Schools 7.2 Universities 8 Sport 8.1 Football 8.2 Basketball 8.3 Handball 8.4 Rugby 9 International relations 9.1 Twin towns — Sister cities 9.2 Consulates in Timişoara 10 Natives 11 Gallery 12 See also 13 References/Notes 14 External links

History

Timişoara was first mentioned as a place in either 1212 or 1266. The territory later to be known as Banat was conquered and annexed by the Kingdom of Hungary in 1030. Timişoara grew considerably during the reign of Charles I, who, upon his visit here in 1307, ordered the construction of a royal palace. Timişoara's importance also grew thanks to its strategic location, which facilitated control over the Banat plain. John Hunyadi established a permanent military encampment here, and moved here together with his family. In 1552, Ahmed Pasha conquered the city with a 160,000-strong Ottoman army and transforms it into a capital. The local military commander, Stefan Losonczy, was captured and beheaded on July 27, 1552 after resisting the Ottoman invasion with just over 2,300 men.

Timişoara remained under Ottoman rule for nearly 160 years, controlled directly by the Sultan and enjoying a special status, similar to other cities in the region such as Budapest and Belgrade. During this period, Timişoara underwent a process of Islamization, until Prince Eugene of Savoy conquered it in 1716. Subsequently, the city came under Austrian rule, and it remained so until the early 20th century except Ottoman occupation between 1788-1789 during Ottoman-Habsburg war. During this time, Timişoara evolved from a strategic fortress to an economic and industrial center: numerous factories were built, electric illumination and public transport were introduced, and railroad connections were established. The city was defortified, and several major road arteries were built to connect the suburbs with the city center, paving the way for further expansion of the city limits.

It was the first mainland European city to be lit by electric street lamps in 1884.^[2] It was also the second European and the first city in what is now Romania with horse drawn trams in 1867. Gustave Eiffel, the creator of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, built one of Timişoara's footbridges over the Bega.

On October 31, 1918, local military and political elites establish the "Banat National Council", together with representatives of the region's main ethnic groups: Hungarians, Romanians, Serbs and Germans. In the aftermath of World War I, the Banat region was divided between the Kingdom of Romania and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and Timişoara came under Romanian administration after Serbian occupation between 1918-1919. In 1920, King Ferdinand I awarded Timişoara the status of a University Center, and the interwar years saw continuous economic and cultural development. A number of anti-fascist and anti-revisionist demonstrations also took place during this time.

During World War II, Timişoara suffered damage from both Allied and Axis bombing raids, especially during the second half of 1944. On August 23, 1944, Romania, which until then was a member of the Axis, declared war on Nazi Germany and joined the Allies. Surprised, the local Wehrmacht garrison surrendered without a fight, and German and Hungarian troops attempted to take the city by force throughout September, without success.

After the war, the People's Republic of Romania was proclaimed, and Timişoara underwent sovietization and later, systematization. The city's population tripled between 1948 and 1992. In December 1989, Timişoara witnessed a series of mass street protests by Romanians, Hungarians and Serbs, in what was to become the Romanian Revolution of 1989.

Demographics

According to the last Romanian census, from 2002, there were 317,660 people living within the city of Timişoara, making it the fourth most populous city in Romania.

For 2009,^[1] Timişoara has an estimated population of 312,113, the third largest in Romania after Bucharest and Iaşi. 14.2% of the population are under 15 years of age, 4.0% are over 75. The Timişoara metropolitan area has a population of 365,545.

The ethnic makeup, as of 2009, is as follows: 85.52% Romanian, 7.5% Hungarian, 2.25% German, 4.73% other. The Ukrainian community is currently growing, partly due to the presence of Ukrainian language educational facilities. In recent years, local investment by Italian companies has spurred the creation of an Italian community,^[3] even leading to calls for an Italian Cultural Center.^[4]

Since 1990, Timişoara saw a slight population decline owing to migration and a drop in birthrates. Notably, the Hungarian and German communities experienced significant decline, with the latter being reduced by half between 1992 and 2002.^[5]

Economy

Timişoara has been an important economic center since the 18th century when the Habsburg administration was installed. Due to Austrian colonization, ethnic and religious diversity and innovative laws, the economy began to develop. The technicians and craftsmen that settled in the city established guilds and helped develop the city's economy. Notably, in 1717 Temesvar became host to the region's first beer factory.

During the Industrial Revolution numerous modern innovations were introduced. It was the first city in the monarchy with street illumination, and the first city on mainland Europe illuminated by electric light. The Tisza (Bega) river was also channelled during this time. It was the first navigable canal on current Romanian territory. This way, Timişoara had contact with Europe, and even with the rest of the world through the Black Sea, leading to the local development of commercialism.^[6][7][8]

In the 19th century the railway system of the Hungarian Kingdom reached Temesvar. Timişoara was the first city in the country with international routes economic boom as the amount of foreign investment, especially in high-tech sectors, has risen.^[9] In terms of living standards, Timişoara ranks fourth nationwide.^[10] In an article in late 2005, French magazine L'Expansion called Timişoara Romania's economic showcase,^[11] and referred to the increased number of foreign investments as a "second revolution".

Apart from domestic local investment, there has been significant foreign investment from the European Union, particularly from Germany and Italy. Continental AG has produced tires here for several years. The Linde Group produces technical gases, and a part of the wiring moulds for BMW and Audi vehicles are produced by the company Dräxlmaier Group locally. Also, Swiss company FM Logistic, already present in Timiş County for Nestle, P&G and in Bucharest for Cora, L'Oréal, Sanofi Aventis and Yves Rocher, and for companies like PROFI Rom Foods, BIC, Kraft Foods or SCA Packaging - offering them domestic transport services and international transport services for Bricostore, Arctic, Danone, Unilever or Contitech, the growth of FM Logistic in Romania and in Dudeşti through its 1st own warehouse in Romania (Dudeştii Noi gives FM the opportunity). Nestlé produces waffles here.

There are then the "fast food" and takeaway (take-out) restaurants including the multinationals such as; KFC, McDonalds, Pizza Hut and coffeehouse chain Starbucks.

The US company Flextronics maintains a workplace in the west of the city for the production of mobile telephony and government inspection department devices. The American company Procter & Gamble manufactures washing and cleaning agents in Timişoara. Smithfield Foods - the world's largest pork processor and hog producer - has two subsidiaries in Timişoara and Timiş County: Smithfield Ferme and Smithfield Prod.

As most of Romania, Timişoara experienced economic slowdown in 2009, due to the global economic downturn.^[12]

Transport

Timişoara's public transport network consists of 10 tram lines, 8 trolleybus lines and 20 bus lines, of which 5 are metropolitan lines and 6 are express lines. It is operated by Regia Autonomă de Transport Timişoara (RATT) [1], an autonomous corporation of the City Hall. The city is served by Romania's third busiest airport, Traian Vuia International Airport, which is the hub of the Romania's second-largest airline, Carpatair. The city is connected to a series of major European and domestic destinations. Timişoara is a major railway centre and is connected to all other major Romanian cities, as well as local destinations, through the national CFR network.

Geography

Climate

Climate data for Timisoara
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	17.4 (63.3)	20.5 (68.9)	28.2 (82.8)	32.0 (89.6)	34.5 (94.1)	38.4 (101.1)	39.6 (103.3)	41.0 (105.8)	39.7 (103.5)	33.8 (92.8)	27.1 (80.8)	20.2 (68.4)	41.0 (105.8)
Average high °C (°F)	2 (36)	5 (41)	11 (52)	18 (64)	23 (73)	26 (79)	28 (82)	28 (82)	25 (77)	18 (64)	11 (52)	4 (39)	17 (63)
Daily mean °C (°F)	-1 (30)	1 (34)	5 (41)	11 (52)	16 (61)	19 (66)	21 (70)	21 (70)	18 (64)	12 (54)	6 (43)	1 (34)	11 (52)
Average low °C (°F)	-5 (23)	-3 (27)	0 (32)	5 (41)	10 (50)	13 (55)	15 (59)	14 (57)	11 (52)	6 (43)	2 (36)	-1 (30)	5 (41)
Record low °C (°F)	-35.3 (-31.5)	-29.2 (-20.6)	-20.0 (-4)	-5.2 (22.6)	-5.0 (23)	2.2 (36)	5.9 (42.6)	5.0 (41)	-1.9 (28.6)	-6.8 (19.8)	-15.4 (4.3)	-24.8 (-12.6)	-35.3 (-31.5)
Precipitation mm (inches)	47 (1.85)	44 (1.73)	46 (1.81)	56 (2.2)	71 (2.8)	91 (3.58)	67 (2.64)	53 (2.09)	51 (2.01)	46 (1.81)	57 (2.24)	59 (2.32)	688 (27.09)
% Humidity	91	87	81	80	77	79	74	75	76	85	92	89	82
Avg. precipitation days	12	10	8	7	12	15	11	10	10	9	11	11	145
Avg. rainy days	2	3	5	7	10	14	11	10	10	8	6	4	90
Avg. snowy days	10	7	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	5	7	33
Sunshine hours	62	85	155	180	210	240	280	279	210	155	85	60	2,001

• Highest Recorded Temperature: 41.0°C(105.8°F)
• Lowest Recorded Temperature: -35.3°C(-31.5°F)
• Warmest Month: July
• Coolest Month: January
• Highest Precipitation: June:91.0mm(3.189 inches)
• Lowest Precipitation: February:44.5mm(1.437 inches)

The climate which defines Timişoara city is the temperate continental moderate climate which characterizes the Southern-Eastern part of The Pannonian Basin. The temperate continental climate has some submediteranean characteristics as well of the Adriatic climate.

Climatic general features consist of various and irregular weather conditions. The dominating temperate air masses during spring and summer are of oceanic origin and come with great precipitations. Frequently, even during winter period, the Atlantic humid air masses bring rainy and snowy weather, rarely cold weather.

From September until February frequent continental polar air masses coming from East invade the area. In spite of all that, the Banat climate is also influenced by the presence of cyclones and warm air masses which come from the Adriatic Sea and The Mediterranean Sea. Their characteristic feature is that of complete snow thaw during the winter period and stifling heat during the summer period. The average annual temperature is of 10,6'C while the hottest month of the year is July (21,1'C). Thus the average thermic amplitude of 22,7'C is lower than that of the Romanian Plain which testifies the beneficial influence of oceanic air masses. Practically there are 143 days per year from May 7 to September 26 with favourable temperatures - over 15'C that is - for the optimum culture development. The active temperature meaning 2761'C provides optimal conditions for the maturation of culture plants including that of some of Mediterranean provenience. Being predominantly under the influence of Northwestern maritime air masses, the precipitations that occur in Timişoara are far more numerous than those from the Romanian Plain. The average 584 mm (22.99 in) annual amount is reached due to the rich May, June and July precipitations (34,4% of the total yearly amount) as well as to the November and December precipitations when it is registered a secondary maximum reflecting the submediteranean climatic influences. The quantity of precipitations that occur in the propitious agricultural season is of about 80% which is highly benefic for the development of autochthonous culture plants. On the other hand precipitations have also an irregular way of manifestation either too severe or too moderate. The climate of Timişoara is a bit different than that of the Western part of the country due to air mass movements coming from North West and West and to its position on wide-open field not very far from the Carpathian mountains or from the main Valley Corridors which separate them (the Timiş-Cerna Corridor, the Muresul valley and so on). Local air circulation canalizations and unstable equilibriums between baric centres impose a great variability of wind frequency on main directions. The most frequent winds are the Northwestern (13%) and the Western winds (9,8%) due to the influence of the Azorelor anticyclon with maximum extension during summer. In Avril and May the Southern winds have a great frequency as well (8,4%). Other wind directions have low frequency. As for intensity, there are winds with a 10 degree intensity (Beaufort Ladder) thus the cyclonial storms are always coming from West or Southernwest (1929, 1942, 1960, 1969, 1994). The distribution of the dominant winds affects somehow the air freshness of Timişoara due to the pollution caused by industrial units located in the Western and Southern parts of the city. Pollutants' stagnation is encouraged by the hearth morphology, sinklike, as well as by the great frequency of atmospheric calm (45,9%).

Neighborhoods

Cetate Freidorf Zona Odobescu Fratelia Mehala I, II Ronaţ Fabric Elisabetin Iosefin Calea Girocului Circumvalaţiunii I, II, III, IV Dacia Matei Basarab Mircea cel Batran Bucovina Soarelui Tipografilor Calea Şagului Dâmboviţa Complex Steaua Torontalului Bucovina

Calea Aradului Aradului vest Calea Lipovei Blaşcovici Ion Ionescu de la Brad Olimpia Stadion Complex studenţesc Ciarda Roşie Crisan Plopi Ghiroda Padurea Verde Kuncz Braytim Lunei Chişoda Plăvăţ Banat I Noua Timişoară Badea Cârţan Traian Modern Fabric

.

Culture

Cultural sites

The city center largely consists of buildings from the Austro-Hungarian era. The old city consists of several historic areas. These are: Cetate (Belváros in Hungarian, Innere Stadt in German), Iosefin (Józsefváros, Josephstadt), Elisabetin (Erzsébetváros, Elisabethstadt), Fabric (Gyárváros, Fabrikstadt). Numerous bars, clubs and restaurants have opened in the old Baroque square (Unirii Square).

Landmarks include:

• Timişoara Orthodox Cathedral
• St. George's Cathedral (The Dome)
• Millennium Church
• Huniade Castle

Performing arts

• Banatul Philharmonic of Timişoara (Filarmonica Banatul Timoșoara)
• Romanian Opera House (Opera Romana Timişoara)^[13]
• National Theatre (Teatrul Naţional)
• German State Theatre (Teatrul German de Stat)
• Hungarian State Theatre (Teatrul Maghiar de Stat)
• Puppet Theatre (Teatrul pentru copii si tineret "Merlin")
• Festivalul Plai, a world music and jazz festival

Education

High Schools

• Colegiul National Bănăţean^[14]
• C.D. Loga High School^[15]
• Grigore Moisil High School^[16]
• Nikolaus Lenau High School^[17]
• Bartók Béla High School^[18]
• Dositej Obradović High School
• Jean Louis Calderon High School
• Colegiul Naţional Ana Aslan High School
• Ion Vidu High School
• William Shakespeare High School
• Carmen Sylva High School
• Vlad Ţepeș High School

Universities

• West University^[19]
• Polytechnic University^[20]
• "Victor Babeş" University of Medicine and Pharmacy^[21]
• Banat's University of Agricultural Sciences^[22]
• Dimitrie Cantemir University^[23]
• Tibiscus University^[24]

Sport

Football

• FC Politehnica Timişoara - historic 2 cups before its relocation to Bucureşti
• FC Timişoara
• UM Timişoara
• CFR Timişoara
• Chinezul Timişoara - historic 6 titles
• Ripensia Timişoara - historic 4 titles

Basketball

• Elba Timişoara

Handball

• CS Universitatea Politehnica Municipal Timişoara

Rugby

• RCM Universitatea de Vest Timişoara

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Timişoara has 15 twin towns and sister cities, as listed below:

Bega, New South Wales, Australia Shenzhen, China Mulhouse, France Rueil-Malmaison, France Gera, Germany Karlsruhe, Germany Szeged, Hungary Faenza, Italy

Palermo, Italy Sassari, Italy Treviso, Italy Cancún, Mexico Novi Sad, Serbia Zrenjanin, Serbia Nottingham, United Kingdom

Consulates in Timişoara

Nine countries have consulates in Timişoara:

Consulate General of Austria Consulate General of France Consulate General of Germany Consulate General of Hungary Consulate General of India Consulate General of Italy Consulate General of the Netherlands Consulate General of Serbia Consulate General of Sweden

Natives

• Iolanda Balaş: former athlete, 2 times Olympic champion in the women's high jump, considered one of the greatest high jumpers ever;
• Mircea Baniciu: musician who is playing with the famous bands Transsylvania Phoenix and Pasărea Colibri;
• Ana Blandiana: poet, essayist, and political figure;
• Horia Colibăşanu: the first Romanian mountain climber to reach the summit of K2, Manaslu, Dhaulagiri and Annapurna;
• Cosmin Contra: footballer, voted 2 times in 1999 and 2001 the best right defender in the UEFA Team of the Year;
• Mircea Baniciu: music composer, best known as the leader of Rock band Phoenix, for which he is vocalist and guitar player, with more than 40 years of activity;
• Hanno Höfer: German-Romanian movie director, producer and musician;
• Ioan Holender: Romanian born Austrian director of Vienna State Opera;
• Hugo Jan Huss: orchestra conductor and music director;
• Ion Ivanovici: military band leader and composer, best remembered today for his waltz Waves of the Danube;
• George Lusztig: Romanian American mathematician and Abdun Nur Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), also a Norbert Wiener Professor with the Department of Mathematics from 1999 to 2009;
• Zoltán Meskó: a Romanian-born American football punter for the New England Patriots of the NFL;
• Dan Nicolae Potra: retired artistic gymnast who was Romania's first male gymnast to win the European all around title (2002);
• Andrei Silard: engineer and author, correspondent member of the Romanian Academy;
• Gabriel Torje: football player, the captain of Romania Under-21 NT;
• Cornel Trăilescu: opera composer and conductor;
• Dorin Tudoran: poet, essayist, journalist, and dissident;
• Andrei Ujica: screenwriter and director;
• Timotei Ursu: film director, television director, writer and journalist;
• Johnny Weissmuller: Romanian born American swimmer and actor of German descent, famous for winning 5 Olympic gold medals for the United States and for portraying Tarzan in films.

Gallery

Timisoara the 1st town of Europe and 2nd in the world after New York City with streets illuminated by electric lights	Victory Square	Mid-day	Evening rush hour
Orthodox Cathedral	St. George's Cathedral (The Dome)	Millennium Church	Huniade Castle
West University	"Victor Babeş" University of Medicine and Pharmacy	Polytechnic University	Polytechnic University's sports ground
City bus in Timişoara, route 33	Tram in Timişoara	Iulius Mall Timişoara	Bega canal
Spring in Timisoara	Winter in Timisoara	Hotel Continental, the tallest hotel in the city

See also

• Timişoara metropolitan area
• History of Timişoara

References/Notes

External links

• Pensiuni Timişoara
• People from Timişoara
• An introduction to Timişoara by Prof. Harry W. Morgan
• Timişoara's home page, the oldest Romanian page on the net
• City of Timişoara Homepage
• Timişoara Tourism
• Tourist Bureau of Romania
• Timişoara - Little Vienna
• Updated map of Timişoara
• Timişoara's interactive map and many photos from Timişoara city
• Satellite image from Google Maps
• "Traian Vuia" Int'l Airport (in Romanian, English)
• Pictures from old Timişoara

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