Salonta Nagyszalonta, Szalonta | |
|---|---|
 Ciunt Tower (Csonka Torony) and Arany Palace (Arany Palota) | |
 Coat of arms | |
 Location within Bihor County | |
  Salonta Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates:46°48′N21°39′E / 46.800°N 21.650°E /46.800; 21.650 | |
| Country | Romania |
| County | Bihor |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2024) | László Török[2] (UDMR) |
Area | 170.04 km2 (65.65 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 90 m (300 ft) |
| Population (2021-12-01)[1] | 15,792 |
| • Density | 92.872/km2 (240.54/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 415500 |
| Area code | (+40) 02 59 |
| Vehicle reg. | BH |
| Website | salonta |
Salonta (Romanian pronunciation:[saˈlonta];Hungarian:Nagyszalonta, colloquiallySzalonta,Hungarian pronunciation:[ˈnɒɟsɒlontɒ];German:Großsalontha) is acity inBihor County, in the geographical region ofCrișana, north-westernRomania, near theHungarian border.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 10,403 | — |
| 1890 | 12,650 | +21.6% |
| 1900 | 14,107 | +11.5% |
| 1910 | 15,514 | +10.0% |
| 1930 | 15,297 | −1.4% |
| 1941 | 15,251 | −0.3% |
| 1948 | 14,447 | −5.3% |
| 1956 | 16,276 | +12.7% |
| 1966 | 17,754 | +9.1% |
| 1977 | 19,746 | +11.2% |
| 1992 | 20,660 | +4.6% |
| 2002 | 20,006 | −3.2% |
| 2011 | 17,042 | −14.8% |
| 2021 | 15,792 | −7.3% |
| Source: Census data | ||
According to the2021 census, Salonta has a population of 15,792.[3] At thecensus from 2011, the city had a population of 17,042, made up ofHungarians (58.1%),Romanians (38.83%),Romani (2.4%),Slovaks (0.4%), and others (0.5%).[4] In terms of religion, at the 2002 census, 51.12% wereReformed (Calvinist), 36.46%Romanian Orthodox, 6.56%Roman Catholic and 5.86% was split betweenBaptists,Romanian Greek-Catholic,Pentecostals, and other faiths.[5]
The city, a part of theKingdom of Hungary, was first documented in 1214 under the name ofZolonta and in 1332 a Papal document used the nameZalanta. The Hungarian spellingSzalonta was used since 1587.
Etymologically, the name is probably related with those of other Romanian localities (slavic names) like Slatina, Zlatna, or Slănic, whose Romanian meaning is "Sărata" ("Saline"). It can also be derived from Hungarianszalonna ("bacon"), a term having the same etymological meaning, and in regional context – the name of two contiguous villages are probably related with the types of stock growth in the area: Mădăras, from Hungarian "madar" ("bird"), and Tulca from Hungarian "tulok" ("bullock") – it may refer to the numerous pig growers in its perimeter.
Until the 16th century, it was only a small village of about 300 inhabitants and was on the land of the Toldi family. A bigger city was the fort of Culișer, which was however destroyed by theOttoman Turks in 1598. Culiser was never rebuilt and Salonta began to have a more important role in the region after 1606, when the prince ofTransylvania,Stephan Bocskai settled 300 soldiers here and appropriated land for them. They built their own farms, but had to keep their arms ready to repel an attack by the Turks. 3 June, the day in which the soldiers were settled, is nowadays declared "the day of the city". However, Ottoman Turks captured the town in 1660 and asSalanta, it became the sanjak center ofVarat vilayet until 1692.
The 19th century Hungarian poetJános Arany was born and lived in Salonta for most of his life.Lajos Zilahy, another noted Hungarian author, was also born in Salonta in 1891. Violist and musicologistEgon Kenton was born there the same year.
After the collapse ofAustria-Hungary at the end ofWorld War I, and the declaration of theUnion of Transylvania with Romania, theRomanian Army took control of Salonta in April 1919, during theHungarian–Romanian War. The city officially became part of the territory ceded to theKingdom of Romania in June 1920 under the terms of theTreaty of Trianon. During theinterwar period, it became the seat ofplasa Salonta, inBihor County. In August 1940, under the auspices ofNazi Germany, which imposed theSecond Vienna Award,Hungary retook the territory ofNorthern Transylvania (which included Salonta) from Romania. Towards the end ofWorld War II, however, the city was taken back from Hungarian andGerman troops by Romanian andSoviet forces in October 1944, during the initial stages of theBattle of Debrecen. The territory of Northern Transylvania remained under Soviet military administration until 9 March 1945, after which it became again part of Romania. TheParis Peace Treaties of 1947 reaffirmed the Trianon border. Following theadministrative reform of 1950, the town became the seat of SalontaRaion withinBihor Region (renamed Oradea Region in 1952 and Crișana Region in 1960). In 1968, the old territorial division intojudețe was reinstituted, and the city reverted to being part of Bihor County.
Salonta has a continental humid climate, with warm to hot summers and cold to very cold winters, but relatively little snow. The average annual precipitation is 578 mm3 (0.0353 cu in).[6] The average January temperature is −2.4 °C (27.7 °F) and in July it is 20.7 °C (69.3 °F) (averages for low and high). It is located in the plains west of theApuseniCarpathians at an elevation between 91 and 100 m (299 and 328 ft).
Salonta is famous nationwide for itsSalam de Salonta sausage products that have been produced since the 1970s. Most of the state-owned factories built during the communist period went into bankruptcy since 1989. During the 2000s however, there has been a considerable foreign direct investment in small factories and assembly plants – particularly in the clothing industry.
In 2008,Inteva Products LLC – a large multinational – started production at its Salonta facility, the only one the company has in Romania and one in only five throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Inteva produces cables and latches and other car parts at the Salonta facility.[7]
TheSalonta gas field (which started production in 2010) is located near the city.
The city of Salonta hosted the 2006 Romanian National Gliders Championship (Campionat naţional de aeromodelism) and its team,Metalul Salonta, has won the championship several times.[8]
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(June 2021) |
The Salonta Municipal Council, elected in the2012 local government elections, is made up of 17 councillors, with the following party composition:
| Party | Seats in 2012 | Current Council | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania | 13 | ||||||||||||||
| Social Liberal Union | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Basketball: C.S.S. "Teodor Neș" Salonta[9][10][11][12]
Tengo Salonta is Salonta'sfootball tennis team, a very successful club at national level and also the current Football Tennis Club World Cup champions, title won in 2017 after a 3–1 in the final againstCzech club fromKarlovy Vary, the host of the tournament.[13]
Football is also a sport with a long tradition in the town situated near the Hungarian border.Olimpia Salonta is the team of Salonta, being founded in 1911, the club played mostly atLiga III andLiga IV, with 31 seasons played in the third league of the Romanian football league system.
For 10 years, between 2003 and 2013, in Salonta existed another football club,Liberty Salonta, a club with a strong academy at national level that promoted many interesting players over time, even managing a promotion toLiga I in 2006, but the club sold its place toUTA Arad and never played at the highest level of the Romanian football.
Salonta istwinned with:
Csepel,HungaryHajdúböszörmény, HungaryNagykőrös, Hungary
Rimavská Sobota,SlovakiaSarkad, Hungary(since 2001)Túrkeve, Hungary(since 1994)Derecske, HungaryBékéscsaba, Hungary
._Fortepan_86679.jpg)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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