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The Transylvanian Plateau (; ) is a
The Transylvanian Plateau (; ) is a plateau
In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...
in central 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 ...
.
Description
The plateau lies within and takes its name from the historical region ofTransylvania
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 ...
, and is almost entirely surrounded by the Eastern, Southern and Romanian Western branches of the Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe and Southeast Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinav ...
. The area includes the Transylvanian Plain
The Transylvanian Plain (; , ) is an ethnogeographical area in Transylvania, Romania, located between the Someșul Mare and the Someșul Mic rivers to the north and west and the Mureș River Mureș may refer to:
* Mureș County, Romania
* Mure ...
.
It is improperly called a plateau, for it does not possess extensive plains, but is formed of a network of valleys of various size, ravines and canyon
A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...
s, united together by numerous small mountain range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...
s, which attain a height of above the altitude of the valley.
The plateau has a continental climate
Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...
. Temperature varies a great deal in the course of a year, with warm summers contrasted by very cold winters. Vast forests cover parts of the plateau and the mountains. The mean elevation is .
Subdivisions
The Transylvanian Plateau is divided into three areas: * (''Podișul Someșan'' or ''Podișul Someșelor''); the northern part. *Transylvanian Plain
The Transylvanian Plain (; , ) is an ethnogeographical area in Transylvania, Romania, located between the Someșul Mare and the Someșul Mic rivers to the north and west and the Mureș River Mureș may refer to:
* Mureș County, Romania
* Mure ...
(''Câmpia Transilvaniei''); the central part.
* (''Podișul Târnavelor''); the southern part.
The Transylvanian Plain is also hilly (400–600 m), but because the area is almost completely cultivated it is called a plain.
The Transylvanian Basin
The Transylvanian Basin () includes the Transylvanian Plateau and the peripheral areas towards the Carpathian Mountains, which have a different character than the plateau. The basin is the main production site of Romania'smethane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...
. It also contains a salt dome
A salt dome is a type of structural dome formed when salt (or other evaporite minerals) intrudes into overlying rocks in a process known as diapirism. Salt domes can have unique surface and subsurface structures, and they can be discovered us ...
.
See also
*Romanian Carpathians
The Romanian Carpathians () are a section of the Carpathian Mountains, within the borders of modern Romania. The Carpathians are a "subsystem" of the Alps-Himalaya System and are further divided into "provinces" and "subprovinces".
This is an ...
References
External links
* {{Authority control Plateaus of Romania Physiographic provinces Southern Carpathians Basins of Europe