Bihor County

Bihor County
Județul Bihor
County

Coat of arms

Location of Bihor County in Romania
Country  Romania
Historic region Crișana
Capital city (Reședință de județ) Oradea
Government
 • Type County Board
 • President of the County Board Cornel Popa (PNL)
 • Prefect2 Claudiu Pop
Area
 • Total 7,544 km2 (2,913 sq mi)
Area rank 6th in Romania
Population (2011 census[1])
 • Total 575,398
 • Rank 11th in Romania
 • Density 76/km2 (200/sq mi)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Postal Code 41wxyz3
Area code(s) +40 x594
Car Plates BH5
GDP US$ 5.82 billion (2008)
GDP/capita US$ 9,708 (2008)
GDP/capita at purchasing power parity US$ 17,152 (2009)
Website County Board
County Prefecture
1The developing regions of Romania have no administrative role. They were formed to attract funds from the European Union
2 as of 2007, the Prefect is not a politician, but a civil servant. He (or she) is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and is banned from any political activity in the first six months after the resignation (or firing) from the civil service
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

Bihor (Romanian pronunciation: [biˈhor]) is a county (județ) of Romania on the border with Hungary, in Crișana, with capital city at Oradea. Together with Hajdú-Bihar County in Hungary it constitutes the Biharia Euroregion.

Name

In Hungarian, it is known as Bihar megye ([ˈbihɒr]), in Slovak as Bihor, and in German as Kreis Bihar.

Demographics

In 2002, Bihor had a population of 600,246 and the population density was 79.56/km². 48.6% of its population lives in urban areas, lower than the Romanian average.[2][3]

In October 31, 2011, Bihor had a population of 549,752 and the population density was 72/km2 (186/sq mi).<[4]

By religion

99.4% of the county's population are Christian[5] and of these:

Year County population[6]
1948 536,323
1956 Increase 574,488
1966 Increase 586,460
1977 Increase 633,094
1992 Increase 634,093
2002 Decrease 600,246
2011 Decrease 575,398

Geography

This county has a total area of 7,544 km2 (2,913 sq mi). In the East side of the County there are the Apuseni Mountains with heights up to 1,800 m (5,906 ft). The heights decrease westwards, passing through the hills an ending in the Romanian Western Plain – the eastern side of the Pannonian plain.

The county is mainly the Criș hydrographic basine with the rivers Crișul Repede, Crișul Negru and Barcău the main rivers.

Neighbours

Economy

Bihor is one of the wealthiest counties in Romania, with a GDP per capita well above the national average. Recently, the economy has been driven by a number of construction projects. Bihor has the lowest unemployment rate in Romania and among the lowest in Europe, with only 2.4% unemployment, compared to Romania's average of 5.1%.

The predominant industries in the county are:

In the west side of the county there are mines for extracting coal and bauxite. Also crude oil is being extracted

Tourism

The main tourist attractions in the county are:

Administrative divisions

Bihor County has 4 municipalities, 6 towns and 91 communes.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bihor County.
  1. ↑ "Population at 20 October 2011" (in Romanian). INSSE. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 9 July 2013.
  2. ↑ Romanian 2002 Census
  3. ↑ National Institute of Statistics, "Populaţia după etnie"
  4. ↑ Recensamantul Populatiei si Locuintelor 2011: Populația stabilă după etnie – județe, municipii, orașe, comune
  5. ↑ Romania and Bihor County Census, 2002, (Hungarian)
  6. ↑ National Institute of Statistics, "Populația la recensămintele din anii 1948, 1956, 1966, 1977, 1992, 2002 și 2011"

Coordinates: 47°04′20″N 21°55′16″E / 47.0722°N 21.9211°E