Bacău County


Bacău County is a county of Romania, in Western Moldavia, with its capital city at Bacău. It has one commune, Ghimeș-Făget, in Transylvania.
WWW csjbacau.ro

Geography

This county has a total area of.
In the western part of the county there are mountains from the Eastern Carpathian group. Here, along the valleys of the Oituz River and Trotuș River, there are two important links between Moldavia and Transylvania. On the East side, the heights decrease and the lowest point can be found on the Siret River valley which crosses the county from North to South down the middle. On the East side there is the Moldavian Plateau crossed by many small rivers.

Flora and fauna

Bears, wolves, foxes, wild boars, and squirrels inhabit Bacău County's mountains, particularly in its rural Slănic-Moldova region; the remnants of the local deer are preserved in Mănăstirea Cașin.

Neighbours

Economy

The county of Bacău was one of the most industrialized regions in the communist period and it remained Moldavia's most important industrial center ever since. There are two large oil refineries at Onești and Dărmănești. Following the collapse of the communist regime, Bacău continued to be the region's most important GDP supplier, but the county became more famous for the controversial figures involved in the local economy than for its performance.
The predominant industries in the county are:
In Bacău County there are important reserves of oil and salt. Coal is also exploited.

Tourism

The main tourist destinations in the county are:

Demographics

YearCounty populationPopulation densityRomaniansRomani peopleHungarians
1948414,996
1956507,937
1966598,321
1977667,791
1992737,512
2002706,623 113 / km297.5%1.7%0.7%
2011616,168 93 / km296.1%1.7%0.68%
2021601,387 91 / km2---

Some estimates put the total number of Csángós at around 70,000 in 1987.

Politics

The Bacău County Council, renewed at the 2024 local elections, consists of 36 councilors, with the following party composition:

People

Administrative divisions

Bacău County has 3 municipalities, 5 towns, and 85 communes

Politics

Bacău became famous after electing Ilie Ilașcu of the Greater Romania Party as their Senator, while he was held in prison in Transnistria.

Historical county

Between the world wars, Bacău County had a different territorial extent. The county was located in the east central part of Greater Romania, in the center of Moldavia. Its territory included the central part of the current Bacău County. It bordered on the west with the counties of Trei Scaune and Ciuc, in the north with Neamț and Roman counties, in the east with the counties of Tutova and Tecuci, and in the south with Putna County.

Administration

The county was originally divided into five districts :
  1. Plasa Bistrița
  2. Plasa Muntele, headquartered in Moinești
  3. Plasa Oituz, headquartered in Oituz
  4. Plasa Siret, headquartered in Siret
  5. Plasa Tazlău, headquartered in Tazlău
Subsequently, two more districts were established:

  1. Plasa Răcăciuni, headquartered in Răcăciuni
  2. Plasa Traian, headquartered in Traian

Population

According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 260,781, comprising 88.6% Romanians, 5.3% Jews, 3.3% Hungarians, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, 75.8% were Eastern Orthodox, 18.1% Roman Catholics, 5.5% Jewish, as well as other minorities.

Urban population

In 1930, the county's urban population was 50,342, of which 70.1% were Romanians, 23.9% were Jews, 2.2% were Hungarians, as well as other minorities. From a religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 64.9% Eastern Orthodox, 24.4% Jewish, 9.3% Roman Catholic, as well as other minorities.