Galaţi County

Galaţi
—  County (Judeţ)  —

Coat of arms
Country  Romania
Development region1 Sud-Est
Historic region Moldavia
Capital city (Reşedinţă de judeţ) Galaţi
Government
 • Type County Board
 • President of the County Board Eugen Chebac
 • Prefect2 Cosmin Păun
Area
 • Total 4,466 km2 (1,724.3 sq mi)
Area rank 34th in Romania
Population (2002)
 • Total 619,556
 • Rank 11th in Romania
 • Density 139/km2 (360/sq mi)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Postal Code 80wxyz3
Area code(s) +40 x364
Car Plates GL5
GDP US$ 4.73 billion (2008)
GDP/capita US$ 7,628 (2008)
Website County Board
County Prefecture
1The developing regions of Romania have no administrative role. They were formed just to attract funds from the European Union
2 as of 2007, the Prefect is not a politician, but a public functionary. He (or she) is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and is banned to have any political activity in the first six months after the resignation (or exclusion) from the public functionary corps
3w, x, y, and z are digits that indicate the city, the street, part of the street, or even the building of the address
4x is a digit indicating the operator: 2 for the former national operator, Romtelecom, and 3 for the other ground telephone networks
5used on both the plates of the vehicles that operate only in the county limits (like utility vehicles, ATVs, etc.), and the ones used outside the county

Galaţi (Romanian pronunciation: [ɡaˈlat͡sʲ]) is a county (judeţ) of Romania, in Moldavia region, with the capital city at Galaţi.

Contents

History

Historically Galaţi is part of Moldavia. In 1858, it was represented by Alexandru Ioan Cuza at the ad hoc Divan at Iaşi, in the wake of the Crimean War. Prior to 1938 what is now eastern Galaţi was the separate county of Covurlui (Judeţul Covurlui). From 1938 to 1945 Galaţi was part of Ţinutul Dunării (Megacounty Dunării).

Demographics

In 2002, it had a population of 619,556 and the population density was 139/km2.

Year County population[2]
1948 341,797
1956 396,138
1966 474,279
1977 581,561
1992 641,011
2002 619,556

Geography

This county has a total area of 4,466 km2.

The county lies on a low plain, between the Prut River in the East, the Siret River in the West and South-West. They both flow into the Danube which forms the border with Tulcea County in the South-East.

Neighbours

Economy

Due to the relief, the majority of the population in the rural areas work in agriculture. Fishing is another profitable occupation along the Danube and the Siret River. Galaţi is Romania's second harbour after Constanţa, the navigable channel on the Danube allowing the passage of large ships. In Galaţi there exist the biggest metallurgical complex in Romania – the Mittal-Sidex Complex. Also the second biggest shipyard can be found also at Galaţi allowing ships up to 55,000 tdw to be built.

The predominant industries in the county are:

The county of Galaţi is also an important transport hub.

Tourism

The main tourist destinantions are:

2010 Romanian floods

During July 2010, the River Siret threatened to break through the dykes protecting the town of Şendreni, as locals and emergency services reinforced the dykes with sandbags trucks full of earth to prevent the river breaking out and flooding the town.[3]

Administrative divisions

Galaţi County has 2 municipalities, 2 towns and 61 communes

See also

References

  1. ^ National Institute of Statistics, "Populaţia după etnie"
  2. ^ National Institute of Statistics, "Populaţia la recensămintele din anii 1948, 1956, 1966, 1977, 1992 şi 2002"
  3. ^ [1]

External links