Curtea | |
|---|---|
 The old and new churches in Curtea | |
 Location in Timiș County | |
  Curtea Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates:45°49′44″N22°18′29″E / 45.829°N 22.308°E /45.829; 22.308 | |
| Country | Romania |
| County | Timiș |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–) | Marinel-Ovidiu Crăciunescu (PSD) |
Area | 44.38 km2 (17.14 sq mi) |
| Population (2021-12-01)[1] | 1,228 |
| • Density | 27.67/km2 (71.67/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 307135–307137 |
| Vehicle reg. | TM |
| Website | www |
Curtea (Hungarian:Kurtya;German:Kurtaa;Serbian:Куртје,romanized: Kurtje)[3] is acommune inTimiș County,Romania. It is composed of three villages: Coșava, Curtea (commune seat) and Homojdia.
Curtea is located in the northeast ofTimiș County, close to the border ofHunedoara County, 110 km (68 mi) fromTimișoara, 45 km (28 mi) fromLugoj and 12 km (7.5 mi) fromFăget, the nearest town. Curtea lies at the foothills ofPoiana Ruscă Mountains, at the confluence of Valea Izvorașului with Valea Stâlpului, which, in fact, form the upper course ofBega River.[4]
The first recorded mention of Curtea dates from 1597 (Kurthe), when it belonged toMarzsina District,Hunyad County.[5] Legend has it that Curtea was once the summer residence of Romanian dukeGlad, and Curtea took this name because Glad kept his entire court here (inRomaniancurte means "court").[4] A Turkish possession by 1658, Curtea was a place of refuge for Transylvaniannemes (small and medium nobles) in conflict with the Hungarian royal house.[6] InMarsigli's notes from 1690–1700 it was calledKortya and belonged toFacset District, and in the 1717 census it appears as inhabited, with 50 houses.[6] The first Romanian school was established here in 1776.[6] The wooden church, which can still be seen today, dates from 1794.[7]
Curtea had a population of 1,228 inhabitants at the 2021 census, up 2.93% from the 2011 census. Most inhabitants areRomanians (91.44%), with a minority ofRoma (2.28%). For 5.86% of the population, ethnicity is unknown.[8] By religion, most inhabitants areOrthodox (73.77%), but there are also minorities ofPentecostals (16.53%) andBaptists (1.54%). For 6.51% of the population, religious affiliation is unknown.[9]
| Census[10] | Ethnic composition | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Population | Romanians | Hungarians | Germans | Roma |
| 1880 | 2,109 | 2,048 | 23 | 36 | – |
| 1890 | 2,158 | 2,088 | 41 | 15 | – |
| 1900 | 2,266 | 2,117 | 41 | 33 | – |
| 1910 | 2,399 | 2,290 | 65 | 17 | – |
| 1920 | 2,275 | 2,232 | 37 | 1 | – |
| 1930 | 2,215 | 2,106 | 20 | 9 | 73 |
| 1941 | 2,071 | 1,996 | 12 | 16 | – |
| 1956 | 1,927 | 1,911 | 5 | 6 | – |
| 1966 | 1,731 | 1,684 | 8 | 1 | 29 |
| 1977 | 1,656 | 1,593 | 4 | – | 57 |
| 1992 | 1,459 | 1,429 | 3 | 2 | 23 |
| 2002 | 1,323 | 1,275 | 7 | 2 | 36 |
| 2011 | 1,193 | 1,122 | 9 | – | 25 |
| 2021 | 1,228 | 1,123 | – | – | 28 |
The commune of Curtea is administered by a mayor and a local council composed of 9 councilors. The mayor, Marinel-Ovidiu Crăciunescu, from theSocial Democratic Party, has been in office since 2020. As from the2024 local elections, the local council has the following composition by political parties:[11]
| Party | Seats | Composition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party | 6 | |||||||
| Save Romania Union–People's Movement Party–Force of the Right | 2 | |||||||
| Alliance for the Union of Romanians | 1 | |||||||
