Lupeni (;

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Schylwolfsbach'', Hungarian: ''Lupény'') is a mining

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in the

Jiu Valley The Jiu Valley ( , ) is a region in southwestern Transylvania, Romania, in Hunedoara county, situated in a valley of the Jiu River between the Retezat Mountains and the Parâng Mountains. The region was heavily industrialised and the main activity ...

Hunedoara County Hunedoara County () is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Deva, Romania, Deva. The county is part of the Danube–Criș–Mureș–Tisa Euroregion. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian, it is known as , ...

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 ...

, in the historical region of

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

. It is one of the oldest and largest cities in the Jiu Valley. It is located on the banks of the Western Jiu River within the Jiu Valley, at a height varying between (in the east) and . The distance from Lupeni to Petroșani is on the DN66A road, and to

Deva Deva may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Deva, List of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition monsters, an ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' 2nd edition monster * Deva, in the 2023 Indian film ''Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefir ...

(the capital of Hunedoara County) it is . The name is derived from the

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

"''lup''", meaning "wolf". Throughout the second part of the 19th century and most of the 20th century, the city's economy was based on

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

, but since the 1990s the economy has become more diverse, after many mines were closed.

History

The first records of people inhabiting this area date back to prehistorical times, as evidenced by the discoveries made at the Straja-Lupeni hill

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

, where old pottery objects were found. The city of Lupeni was first attested in 1770. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, the

was sparsely populated, with the inhabitants living in small villages, and

shepherd A shepherd is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations; it exists in many parts of the globe, and it is an important part of Pastoralism, pastoralist animal husbandry. ...

ing being the main activity. Lupeni was formed as a result of the intense migration of people coming from Valea Streiului and Țara Hațegului, who were attracted by the rich pastures and hayfields of the area. The residents of the village of Valea Lupului (Wolf Valley) are those who are believed to have founded Lupeni. After 1840, mining exploration and exploitation started to develop in the area, and major economic and social changes took place. Foreign workers, primarily

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

, Slovak, and Hungarian miners, as well as Romanian miners from the Apuseni Mountains and Baia Mare, were brought to work in the Jiu Valley. The mining activity began south of Lupeni. Lupeni soon become a major coal producer with a mono-industrial development, with about 80% of the population living from mining and other related activities. The city become very prosperous and experienced continuous population growth. However, the industrial development of the area was severely affected by the economic crisis of the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

, which eventually led to the Lupeni Strike of 1929. Lupeni was declared a city in 1941, at which time it had 12,000 inhabitants. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, over 600 Poles were repatriated from Lupeni to Kędzierzyn, Poland. During the communist regime, the mines were nationalized by the communist government. In 1977, Lupeni was the site of the

Jiu Valley miners' strike of 1977 The Jiu Valley miners' strike of 1977 was the largest protest movement against the Communist Romania, Communist regime in Romania before its Romanian Revolution of 1989, final days.Deletant, p. 243 It took place 1–3 August 1977 and was centered i ...

. After the

Romanian Revolution The Romanian revolution () was a period of violent Civil disorder, civil unrest in Socialist Republic of Romania, Romania during December 1989 as a part of the revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several countries around the world, primarily ...

of 1989, in the 1990s, mining operations entered a restructuring process that had a very strong social and economic impact on the city. A large number of mines were closed, and this also affected other related activities, such as suppliers of materials, equipment and services, and agents that operated in the trade and services areas. Nevertheless, in recent years, new areas of economic development emerged, such as tourism, forestry industry, bakery industry, and commerce. The city's remaining active mine is the

Lupeni Coal Mine Lupeni Coal Mine is an underground mining exploitation, one of the largest in Romania located in Lupeni, one of six cities in the Jiu Valley region of Hunedoara County. The legal entity managing the Lupeni mine is the National Hard Coal Company w ...

managed by the Petroșani-based

National Hard Coal Company The National Hard Coal Company () was set up as a commercial society by the Government of Romania in 1998. The main headquarters of the company is placed in Petroșani, the principal city in the coal mining region of Hunedoara County's Jiu Valley ...

Population

At the 2021 census, Lupeni had a population of 18,699. At the census from 2011, the population of the city was 23,390, with breakdown as follows.

By nationality

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, ...

: 19,465 (88.53%) *

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 ...

: 1,581 (7.19%) * Roma (Gypsy): 735 (3.34%) *

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 ...

: 71 (0.32%)

By religion

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

: 24,815 *

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 ...

: 1,921 *Reformed: 1,562 *

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 ...

: 688 *Greek Catholic: 501 *Baptist 200-300 *Other: 1,155

Natives

* (born 1975), cleric and politician * (born 1967), politician * Lucian Burchel (born 1964), footballer * Carol Creiniceanu (1939–2012), footballer * (1926–2004), communist politician *

Gigi Militaru Gigi Militaru (born 8 February 1986, in Lupeni, Transylvania) is a Romanian rugby union footballer. He plays the position of Prop and is currently playing for RC Timişoara in the Romanian Rugby Championship. He formed as a player at Ştiinţa ...

(born 1986), rugby player * George Alexandru Pălămariu (born 1991), rower *

Vasile Patilineț Vasile Patilineț (December 21, 1923 – October 9, 1986) was a Romanian communist activist, politician and diplomat. A worker and native of the industrial Jiu Valley, he joined the Romanian Communist Party in 1945 and steadily rose through it ...

(1923–1986), communist activist, politician, and diplomat *

Tatiana Stepa Tatiana Stepa (April 21, 1963 – August 7, 2009) was a Romanian folk singer. Born in Lupeni, she attended the High School for Architecture in Bucharest and made her debut in 1982 with Cenaclul Flacăra at the Făgăraș stadium. Stepa died at ...

(1963–2009), folk singer * (1914–1984), communist politician * Laurențiu Tudor (born 1997), footballer

Notes

External links

Jiu Valley Portal
- the regional portal host of the Lupeni city website
Science Highschool of Lupeni
{{Authority control Populated places in Hunedoara County Jiu Valley Cities in Romania Mining communities in Romania Monotowns in Romania Localities in Transylvania