Becicherecu Mic | |
|---|---|
 Serbian church in Becicherecu Mic | |
 Coat of arms | |
 Location in Timiș County | |
  Becicherecu Mic Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates:45°50′N21°3′E / 45.833°N 21.050°E /45.833; 21.050 | |
| Country | Romania |
| County | Timiș |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2012–) | Raimond-Ovidiu Rusu (PSD) |
Area | 46.65 km2 (18.01 sq mi) |
| Population (2021-12-01)[2] | 2,875 |
| • Density | 61.63/km2 (159.6/sq mi) |
| Time zone | EET/EEST (UTC+2/+3) |
| Postal code | 307040 |
| Vehicle reg. | TM |
| Website | www |
Becicherecu Mic (Hungarian:Kisbecskerek;German:Fischdorf orKleinbetschkerek;Serbian:Мали Бечкерек,romanized: Mali Bečkerek) is acommune inTimiș County,Romania. It is composed of a single village, Becicherecu Mic. It also includedDudeștii Noi until 2004, when it was split off to form a separate commune. Its name means "Small Becicherec", as opposed to the "Great Becicherec" (Becicherecu Mare in Romanian), located inSerbia and renamedZrenjanin in 1946.
Becicherecu Mic is located 17 km (11 mi) northwest ofTimișoara, on the national roadDN6 Timișoara–Sânnicolau Mare–Cenad. It is also connected to the Timișoara–Cenad railway, which passes to the south, with the Pescărețul Mic station.
It bordersDudeștii Noi to the east,Hodoni to the north,Săcălaz to the southeast,Beregsău Mare to the south,Iecea Mică andIecea Mare to the west andBiled to the northwest.[3]
Becicherecu Mic is mentioned as early as 1232 by the nameterra Potkerequ.[4] A hundred years later, in 1334, the parish ofPechkereky pays theVatican the "papal tithe", a grant from believers to support armed action against pagans.[3] During the Hungarian occupation, in 1462, the village is given to the Hagymásy family fromBeregsău.[3] During the Turkish occupation (1552–1716), the name of the settlement would have beenCrucea ("cross"), the hearth of the village being probably located on the Cross Hill.[3] After the reconquest ofBanat by theHabsburg Empire, in 1717, the imperial administration records the settlement with the namePeschered, in RomanianPescăreț ("pond with fish").[3] In 1723, inCounty Mercy'sKarte des Temeswarer Banates (see online), the settlement appears for the first time under the nameBecicherecu Mic. Its origin comes byrhotacism from the proper nounPechereky, the name of a landowner.[3] First German settlers arrive here in 1727.[5] In 1748, 24 Romanian families brought fromTransylvania were also colonized here.[5] Between 1920 and 1925, the village was namedȚichindeal, after scholarDimitrie Țichindeal [ro], born here in 1775.[5]
Becicherecu Mic had a population of 2,875 inhabitants at the 2021 census, up 0.77% from the 2011 census. Most inhabitants areRomanians (75.68%), larger minorities being represented byRoma (2.12%),Serbs (1.84%),Ukrainians (1.84%) andHungarians (1.18%). For 16% of the population, ethnicity is unknown.[6] The village was previously divided into four parts, although in recent decades the inhabitants have mixed: the "German bend" – towards the railway station, the "Serbian bend" – practically in the center of the village, the "Romanian bend" – around the Romanian church and the "Gypsy outskirts" or Chertiz, a group of specific houses, along with Serbs and Romanians.[3] At the end ofWorld War II many of theGerman inhabitants left the village because of Soviet occupation. The inhabitants traveled through Yugoslavia and Hungary for about seven weeks to get to Austria on 1 November 1944. The inhabitants were then assigned families to stay with.
By religion, most inhabitants areOrthodox (65.73%), but there are also minorities ofPentecostals (6.4%),Roman Catholics (4.03%),Serbian Orthodox (2.36%) andBaptists (1.6%). For 17.25% of the population, religious affiliation is unknown.[7]
| Census[8] | Ethnic composition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Population | Romanians | Hungarians | Germans | Roma | Ukrainians | Serbs |
| 1880 | 3,379 | 428 | 21 | 2,395 | – | – | 498 |
| 1890 | 3,687 | 403 | 25 | 2,651 | – | – | 562 |
| 1900 | 3,738 | 422 | 40 | 2,659 | – | – | 557 |
| 1910 | 3,666 | 421 | 95 | 2,531 | – | – | 546 |
| 1920 | 3,642 | 382 | 70 | 2,533 | – | – | – |
| 1930 | 3,318 | 431 | 35 | 2,294 | 83 | – | 461 |
| 1941 | 3,098 | 436 | 20 | 2,142 | – | – | – |
| 1956 | 2,564 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1966 | 2,693 | 1,544 | 12 | 734 | 69 | 68 | 250 |
| 1977 | 2,774 | 1,741 | 18 | 619 | 107 | 63 | 208 |
| 1992 | 2,316 | 1,913 | 26 | 94 | 98 | 53 | 125 |
| 2002 | 2,417 | 2,062 | 31 | 48 | 132 | 74 | 63 |
| 2011 | 2,853 | 2,382 | 43 | 33 | 80 | 40 | 51 |
| 2021 | 2,875 | 2,176 | 34 | 26 | 61 | 53 | 53 |
The commune of Becicherecu Mic is administered by a mayor and a local council composed of 13 councilors. The mayor, Raimond-Ovidiu Rusu, from theSocial Democratic Party, has been in office since 2012. As from the2024 local elections, the local council has the following composition by political parties:[9]
| Party | Seats | Composition | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party | 8 | |||||||||
| Save Romania Union | 2 | |||||||||
| Alliance for the Union of Romanians | 1 | |||||||||
| Social Liberal Humanist Party | 1 | |||||||||
| National Liberal Party | 1 | |||||||||
The economic activity is a consistent one, supported at local level by 223 firms active in fields such asagriculture,trade,production,software,construction andiron processing, among others.[3]
The agricultural area of the commune consists of 3,464 ha (8,560 acres) of arable land on which grains are grown:wheat,maize,barley,two-rowed barley,sunflower andrapeseed; 2 ha (4.9 acres) of orchards with fruit trees and pasture that covers an area of 418 ha (1,030 acres).[3]
