Cenei (; ; ; ) is a commune in

Timiș County Timiș () is a county (''județ'') of western Romania on the border with Hungary and Serbia, in the historical regions of Romania, historical region of Banat, with the county seat at Timișoara. It is the westernmost and the largest county in Ro ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It is composed of two villages, Bobda and Cenei (commune seat). It also included Checea until 2004, when it was split off to form a separate commune.

History

Cenei is one of the oldest settlements in

Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...

, first recorded in 1221 as a property of the archdiocese of Ittebe, today in

Serbian Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lies in western Romania (the counties of Timiș, Caraș ...

. By 1330 it belonged to the Sărad Fortress. Cenei was the site of a battle between the Turkish and Austrian troops on 20 August 1696. As of 1720, the natives were mostly

Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...

and

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

. Through the efforts of the Vuketići family, Cenei was colonized with

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

between 1801 and 1820. German settlers arrived here only after 1848, much later than other nearby settlements. The Hungarian population did not settle here in waves of colonists, but gradually, over a long period of time. Today's village was formed by merging Ceneiu Sârbesc ("Serbian Cenei"; ) and Ceneiu Croat ("Croatian Cenei"; ) in 1902.

Demographics

Cenei had a population of 2,670 inhabitants at the 2011 census, down 7% from the 2002 census. Most inhabitants are

(67.23%), larger minorities being represented by

(16.1%),

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

(8.8%) and

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

(1.46%). For 5.36% of the population, ethnicity is unknown. By religion, most inhabitants are Orthodox (62.17%), but there are also minorities of

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the populat ...

(15.43%),

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

s (11.09%) and

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

s (3.41%). For 5.36% of the population, religious affiliation is unknown.

Notes

References

{{Authority control Communes in Timiș County Localities in Romanian Banat