Unirea Vințu de Sus | |
|---|---|
 Community center in Unirea | |
 Location of Unirea | |
  Unirea Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates:46°24′N23°49′E / 46.400°N 23.817°E /46.400; 23.817 | |
| Country | Romania |
| County | Alba |
| Subdivisions | Ciugudu de Jos, Ciugudu de Sus, Dumbrava, Inoc, Măhăceni, Unirea |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2024) | Gheorghe Alba[2] (PNL) |
Area | 99.99 km2 (38.61 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 272 m (892 ft) |
| Population (2021-12-01)[1] | 4,497 |
| • Density | 44.97/km2 (116.5/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 517785 |
| Area code | (+40) 0258 |
| Vehicle reg. | AB |
| Website | www |
Unirea, previouslyVințu de Sus (Hungarian:Felvinc,German:Oberwinz), is acommune located in the north-east ofAlba County,Transylvania,Romania. It is composed of six villages: Ciugudu de Jos (Alfüged), Ciugudu de Sus (Felfüged), Dumbrava (Dombró), Inoc (Inakfalva), Măhăceni (Aranyosmohács), and Unirea.
Unirea is located on theMureș River, in the north-east corner ofAlba County, approximately 50 km (31 mi) from the county capital,Alba Iulia, and 20 km (12 mi) from the town ofTurda, on theRomanian National RoadDN1. The commune is bordered byCluj County in the north and west, the town ofOcna Mureș in the east, and the commune ofMirăslău in the south.
The Unirea train station and the Unireahalt serve theCFRmain line 300, which connectsBucharest with theHungarian border nearOradea.
From the late 13th century until 1876 the centre of today's commune was the administrative centre of theAranyosszék region ofTransylvania. In 1876, when the administrative system of theKingdom of Hungary was reorganised, it became part ofTorda-Aranyos county.
After theUnion of Transylvania with Romania in 1918, the commune became part ofTurda County. Since 1968, when the latest administrative organisation in Romania was adopted, Unirea has been part of Alba County.
The first documentary evidence of the commune dates from 1219 under the namesVynch superior,terra Wynchy,Oronos Winch, andOranas Wincz.
The Romanian version of the name,Vințu de Sus, became official only after theUnion of Transylvania with Romania in 1918. Other early Romanian names wereVinț andFelvinț. In 1925, the official name was changed toUnirea referring to the unification of Vințu de Sus and Vereșmart.
The Hungarian version of the name,Felvinc was mentioned for the first time in a document from 1291 in the formFelvynch. As part of theKingdom of Hungary, the Hungarian version was consistently used throughout theMiddle Ages, with the mention that sometimes the formAranyosvinc andFelső-Vincz were also used. In the 18th and the 19th century, the official name was "Oppidum Felvincz" (from 1760) or "Felvincz mezőváros" (from 1713).[3]
The German version of the name,Oberwintz, dates to 1532.
All the three names are related to each other meaning Upper Vinc/Vințu/Wintz in English. The name refers to the medieval patron of the Catholic parish, Saint Vincentius because a 13th-century document calls the townSanctus Vincentius.[4]
The2011 census recorded that 4,574 people were living at the time in the commune, of whom 3,233 (70.7%)Romanians, 820 (17.9%)Roma, and 514 (11.2%)Hungarians.[5] At the2021 census, Unirea had a population of 4,497; of those, 69.91% were Romanians, 12.99% Roma, and 8.07% Hungarians.[6]
The historical population of the entire commune as recorded by the official censuses, and projected to the present-day administrative unit, was as follows:[5][7]
| Year | Total | Romanians | Hungarians | Roma |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 4,541 | 69.3% | 23.9% | 6.5% |
| 1880 | 4,636 | 63.0% | 30.2% | n/a |
| 1890 | 5,499 | 62.7% | 31.6% | n/a |
| 1900 | 5,553 | 64.3% | 29.7% | n/a |
| 1910 | 6,234 | 64.6% | 30.4% | n/a |
| 1920 | 5,887 | 71.6% | 27.9% | n/a |
| 1930 | 6,456 | 70.5% | 22.8% | 2.6% |
| 1941 | 6,981 | 78.3% | 19.4% | n/a |
| 1956 | 6,649 | 74.7% | 19.0% | 6.0% |
| 1966 | 6,991 | 80.9% | 17.3% | 1.7% |
| 1977 | 7,089 | 78.1% | 16.9% | 4.9% |
| 1992 | 5,723 | 74.1% | 14.2% | 11.6% |
| 2002 | 5,506 | 74.4% | 12.0% | 13.6% |
| 2011 | 4,574 | 70.7% | 11.2% | 17.9% |
| 2021 | 4,497 | 69.9% | 8% | 13% |
The historical population of Unirea village only (excluding the other 5 villages), as recorded by the official Censuses, was as follows:[7]
| Year | Total | Romanians | Hungarians |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 1,207 | 1% | 88% |
| 1880 | 1,609 | 8% | 78% |
| 1890 | 1,856 | 7% | 88% |
| 1900 | 1,840 | 6% | 82% |
| 1910 | 2,088 | 9% | 85% |
| 1920 | 1,892 | 14% | 85% |
| 1930 | 2,960 | 45% | 51% |
| 1941 | 3,280 | 58% | 41% |
| 1956 | 3,318 | n/a | n/a |
| 1966 | 3,993 | 67% | 30% |
| 1977 | 4,409 | 67% | 27% |
| 1992 | 3,924 | 65% | 21% |
| 2002 | 3,913 | 67% | 17% |
In 1925 the village of Vereșmart (largely Romanian), formerly considered as a separate village, was united with the village of Vințu de Sus (largely Hungarian), to form the village called Unirea. This resulted in an important increase in population, and a change in the ethnic composition of the village.
While the share of the Romanian majority in the territory of the present-day commune has remained almost constant since the mid-19th century (with a slight 5% increase), the two main minorities, the Hungarians and the Roma, have experienced opposite trends. While the percentage of the Hungarian minority almost halved in that time period, the percentage of the Roma minority more than doubled. This resulted in a swap between the Hungarian and the Roma communities as the second and the third most important ethnic groups in Unirea. Numerically, the Hungarian population increased from 1,084 in 1850 to a peak of 1,898 in 1910 and has been gradually declining ever since. The last census of the 20th century recorded 810 Hungarians, which means that their community declined by more than half in 80 years. The number of Roma people increased from 398 in 1930 to 556 (or 14% of the population) in 1992[7]
Unirea village, due to its status as centre of the commune, has been the only village that recorded a population increase since the mid-19th century. Thus, while the population of some of the other villages halved, the total population of Unirea village more than tripled.[7] Because almost all of the Hungarians in the commune (98% of them) were already living in the centre of the commune, this increase in total population, combined with the dwindling numbers of Hungarians, meant that the share of the Hungarian community decreased and the ethnic composition of the Unirea village changed in the 20th century to become more similar with the ethnic composition of the Unirea commune. The last census to record a Hungarian majority in Unirea village was the 1930 census and starting with the 1941 census, a Romanian majority has been recorded.
The village was traditionally the centre of theSzékelys of Aranyosszék, a subgroup of theSzékelys.
