1The developing regions of Romania have no administrative role. They were formed to attract funds from theEuropean Union[citation needed] 2 as of 2007, the Prefect is not a politician, but a civil servant. He (or she) is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and is banned from any political activity in the first six months after the resignation (or firing) from the civil service 3w, x, y, and z are digits that indicate the city, the street, part of the street, or even the building of the address 4x is a digit indicating the operator: 2 for the former national operator,Romtelecom, and 3 for the other ground telephone networks 5used on both the plates of the vehicles that operate only in the county limits (like utility vehicles,ATVs, etc.), and the ones used outside the county
Bihor County (Romanian pronunciation:[biˈhor]ⓘ,Hungarian:Bihar megye) is a county (județ) in westernRomania. With a total area of 7,544 km2 (2,913 sq mi), Bihor is Romania's 6th largest county geographically and the main county in thehistorical region ofCrișana. Its capital city isOradea (Nagyvárad).
The origin of the name Bihor is uncertain, except that it likely takes its name from an ancient fortress in the current commune ofBiharia. It possibly came fromvihor, the Serbian and Ukrainian word for "whirlwind" (вихор), or Slavicbiela hora, meaning "white mountain".[citation needed] Another theory is that Biharea is ofDaco-Thracian etymology (bi meaning "two" andharati "take" or "lead"), possibly meaning two possessions of land in the Duchy ofMenumorut (Ménmarót). Another theory is that the name comes frombour, the Romanian term foraurochs (from the Latin wordbubalus). The animal once inhabited the lands of northwestern Romania. Under this controversial theory, the name changed frombuar tobuhar and toBihar andBihor.[3]
The coat of arms of Bihor County was adopted in 1998, and is a quarterly shield featuring a castle (for the Castle of Bihar), five wheat stalks with a ribbon,a grape and a scroll with the text ofDeșteaptă-te, române!, covered with a fess featuring three fish. It was subject to redesign in 2013 after it was discovered by a local teacher that the text on the scroll was erroneously written in Greek, rather than Cyrillic (the original alphabet used to write the poem's text) or the Latin alphabet. The county has no significant history with Greece.[4]
This county has a total area of 7,544 km2 (2,913 sq mi). In the eastern side of the county there are theApuseni Mountains, with the highest peak being theCucurbăta Mare (also known as the Bihor Peak), at 1,849 m (6,066 ft). The heights decrease westwards, passing through the hills an ending in theRomanian Western Plain – the eastern side of thePannonian plain.
The county is mainly theCriș hydrographic basin with the riversCrișul Repede (Sebes Körös),Crișul Negru (Fekete Körös), andBarcău the main rivers.
In 1938,KingCarol II promulgated a newConstitution, and subsequently he had the administrative division of the Romanian territory changed. Tenținuturi (approximate translation: "lands") were created (by merging the counties) to be ruled byrezidenți regali (approximate translation: "Royal Residents") – appointed directly by the king – instead of theprefects. Bihor County became part ofȚinutul Crișuri.[citation needed]
In August 1940, under the auspices ofNazi Germany, which imposed theSecond Vienna Award,Hungary retook the territory ofNorthern Transylvania (which included part of the county) from Romania. In October 1944, Romanian forces with Soviet assistance recaptured the ceded territory and reintegrated it into Romania. Romanian jurisdiction over the entire county per the Treaty of Trianon was reaffirmed in theParis Peace Treaties, 1947. In September 1950, the county wasdisestablished by the communist government of Romania and was replaced by theBihor Region, whose territory comprised an area similar to the old county. Bihor County was re-established in February 1968, when Romania restored the county administrative system.[citation needed]
Bihor is one of the wealthiest counties in Romania, with a GDP per capita well above the national average. Recently, the economy has been driven by a number of construction projects. Bihor has the lowest unemployment rate in Romania and among the lowest in Europe, with only 2.4% unemployment, compared to Romania's average of 5.1%.
The predominant industries in the county are:
Textile industry.
Food and beverages industry.
Mechanical components industry.
Metallurgy.
In the west side of the county there are mines for extracting coal andbauxite.Crude oil is also extracted.
According to the2021 census, the county had a population of 551,297 and thepopulation density was73.1/km2 (189.3/sq mi).[5] 51.1% of its population lives in urban areas, lower than the Romanian average.[6]
The Bihor County Council is led by Mircea Mălan, who has held office since March 2025, afterIlie Bolojan became actingPresident of Romania. Renewed at the2024 local elections, the Bihor County Council consists of 34 counsellors, with the following party composition:[9]
According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 510,318, ethnically divided among Romanians (61.6%), Hungarians (30.0%), Jews (4.3%), Czechs and Slovaks (2.2%), as well as other minorities. By language the county was divided among Romanian (61.4%), Hungarian (33.8%), Czech (2.0%), Yiddish (1.5%), as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the population consisted of Eastern Orthodox (49.8%), Reformed (21.0%), Greek Catholics (10.7%), Roman Catholics (10.4%), Jews (5.4%), Baptists (2.2%), as well as other minorities.[11]
The county's urban population consisted of 102,277 inhabitants, 54.8% Hungarians, 26.4% Romanians, 15.4% Jews, 1% Germans, as well as other minorities. As a mother tongue in the urban population, Hungarian (67.9%) predominated, followed by Romanian (24.9%), Yiddish (4.3%), German (1.2%), as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 31.5% Reformed, 20.6% Jewish, 19.3% Roman Catholic, 17.5% Eastern Orthodox, 9.1% Greek Catholic, 1.1% Lutheran, as well as other minorities.[11]
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