Sfântu Gheorghe (; hu, Sepsiszentgyörgy or ''Szentgyörgy'' ; yi, סנט דזשארדזש; English
lit.: ''Saint George'') is the capital city of
Covasna County
Covasna County (, hu, Kovászna megye, ) is a county ( județ) of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Sfântu Gheorghe.
Demographics
In 2011, it had a population of 210,177, making it the second least populous of Romania ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
. Located in the central part of the country and in the historical region of
Transylvania
Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...
, it lies on the
Olt River in a valley between the
Baraolt Mountains and
Bodoc Mountains. The city administers two villages, Chilieni (''Kilyén'') and Coșeni (''Szotyor'').
History
Sfântu Gheorghe is one of the oldest cities in Transylvania, the settlement first having been documented in 1332. The city takes its name from
Saint George
Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldie ...
, the patron of the local church. Historically it was also known in
German as ''Sankt Georgen''. The "sepsi" prefix (''sebesi'' → ''sepsi'', meaning "of Sebes") refers to the area which the ancestors of the local Székely population had inhabited before settling to the area of the town. The previous area of their settlement was around the town of "Sebes" (now:
Sebeș) which later became populated mainly by
Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons (german: Siebenbürger Sachsen; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen''; ro, Sași ardeleni, sași transilvăneni/transilvani; hu, Erdélyi szászok) are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania ( ...
.
While part of the
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...
, the city was the economic and administrative center of the Hungarian county of
Háromszék, which spanned the present-day
Covasna County
Covasna County (, hu, Kovászna megye, ) is a county ( județ) of Romania, in eastern Transylvania, with the county seat at Sfântu Gheorghe.
Demographics
In 2011, it had a population of 210,177, making it the second least populous of Romania ...
and parts of
Brașov
Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County.
According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...
County. In the second half of the 19th century, Sepsiszentgyörgy witnessed the development of light industry, namely a textile and a cigarette factory was built. It became part of the
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...
following the
Treaty of Trianon
The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in Versailles on 4 June 1920. It forma ...
in 1920, after the end of World War I. After the
Second Vienna Award
The Second Vienna Award, also known as the Vienna Diktat, was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all o ...
in 1940 the city came under Hungarian control for four years. Near the end of that period, the
Sfântu Gheorghe ghetto briefly existed in the city. At the end of the Second World War the
Paris Peace Treaties reaffirmed the city and the entirety of Transylvania as a Romanian territory. Between 1952 and 1960 it was the southernmost town of the
Magyar Autonomous Region
The Magyar Autonomous Region (1952–1960) (Romanian: ''Regiunea Autonomă Maghiară'', Hungarian: ''Magyar Autonóm Tartomány'') and Mureș-Magyar Autonomous Region (1960–1968) were autonomous regions in the Romanian People's Republic (later ...
, and between 1960 and 1968 was part of the
Brașov
Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County.
According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...
Region, abolished in 1968 when Romania was reorganised based on counties rather than regions.
Sfântu Gheorghe is one of the centres for the
Székely people in the region known to them as
Székelyföld in
Hungarian – which means "Székely Land", and is home to the Székely National Museum. The city hosts two market fairs each year.
Demographics
The majority of the city's inhabitants are
Hungarians
Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...
. In the census of 2011, 41,233 (74%) of the city's 56,006 inhabitants classed themselves as
ethnic Hungarians, 11,807 (21%) as
Romanians
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Roman ...
, 398 (0.7%) as
Roma, and 2,562 as other ethnicities or no information. 74% had
Hungarian as first language, and 21%
Romanian.
Sights
*
Fortified Church
A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls, battlements, and embrasures. Others, such as the Ávila Cathedra ...
– constructed in the 14th century in
Gothic style
*
Beör Palace – constructed in the 19th century in
Neoclassical style
* State Archive, the former headquarters of the
Hussar battalions
* County library constructed in 1832 as the seat of the county council
* Theater used from 1854 to 1866 as the city hall
* The market
bazaar built in 1868, with a
clock tower built in 1893
*
Székely National Museum, founded 1875
Economy
The predominant industry in the city is the
textile
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
industry. The city holds underutilized production capabilities such as a downsized automobile transmission parts and gearboxes factory (IMASA SA) and a tobacco factory (
TIGARETE SA).
Services sector contains growing areas such as IT services with ROMARG SRL the leading domain registrar and web hosting provider in Romania having its headquarters here.
Sports
Football
The main sport in the city is football. The city has a men's football team called ''
ACS Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe'' (Sepsiszentgyörgyi OSK).
In the 2016–2017 season the team promoted from the 2nd Division and currently play in the Romanian 1st Division.
Basketball
The city has also a women's basketball team called ''ACS Sepsi SIC''. Sepsi-SIC has won the Romanian Championship in 2016, 2017 and 2018 season.
* In the 2007/2008 season the team has finished in the 2nd place in the regular season, and lost the final (2-3) against BC ICIM Arad, but they win the Romanian Cup.
* In the 2008/2009 season the team finished in the 3rd position after the regular season and they lost in the final (0-3) against MCM Târgoviste.
* In the 2008/2009 season ''LMK Sepsi BC'' played in the FIBA EuroCup Women. In the
EuroCup Women 2008–09, the team was drawn in Group B with Dynamo Kursk (Russia), Bnot Hasharon (Israel) and Challes-les-Eaux (France). They finished in the 3rd place with 3 wins and 3 losses. In the Sixteenth-Finals they meet Cras Basket Taranto (Italy) and they lost both games.
* LMK Sepsi BC participates in
EuroCup Women 2009–10 and was drawn in Group G with
Dynamo Moscow,
Hapoel Tel Aviv and
Dunav Econt Rousse. They finished in the 3rd place with 2 wins and 4 defeats. In the Sixteenth-Finals they met
Mann Filter Zaragoza and they lost both games.
* In the 2009/2010 season the team finished in the 2nd position after the regular season, but they lost in the semifinals of the play-off against BC ICIM Univ. Vasile Goldis Arad (1-2). They finished in the 3rd place beating CSM Satu Mare (2-0) and they won the bronze medals in the Romanian Championship and in the Romanian Cup too.
* In the 2010/2011 season the team finished in the 3rd position after the regular season, they lost in the semifinals of the play-off against BC ICIM Univ. Vasile Goldis Arad (1–2). They finished in the 3rd place beating BCM Danzio Timișoara (2–0) and they won the bronze medals in the Romanian Championship and in the Romanian Cup too.
In the 2015–2016 season the club wins the Romanian Cup and for the first time was the Romanian Championship beating in the Final CSU Alba Iulia (3–0).
Futsal
The city also has a futsal team which plays in the Romanian First Division. The name of the team is ''Futsal Club Sfântu Gheorghe'' (''Sepsiszentgyörgyi Futsal Club'').
Culture
The Hungarian artist
Jenő Gyárfás was born there and was a lifelong resident. His former studio is now an art gallery and exhibition hall.
The "Gyárfás Jenő" Art Gallery in Sfântu Gheorghe
@ Muzeul Național Secuiesc
Education
* Puskás Tivadar High School
* Székely Mikó High School
* Mikes Kelemen High School
* Mihai Viteazul National College
* Plugor Sandor Art High School
* Váradi József School
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sfantu Gheorghe
Populated places in Covasna County
Localities in Transylvania
Cities in Romania
Capitals of Romanian counties