Not to be confused with the comedy horror filmTransylmania.
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In popular culture, Transylvania is commonly associated withvampires because of the influence ofBram Stoker's 1897 novelDracula and the many subsequent books and films that the story has inspired.[29][30] ManyTransylvanian Saxons were furious withVlad the Impaler for strengthening the borders ofWallachia, which interfered with their control of trade routes, and his extreme sadism and barbarity, which by a collection of credible historical accounts of diverse origins, most of which were non-Saxon, dealt with his enemies (including Saxons, largeBoyars and Ottoman soldiers) by impaling. The victims were often arranged in grotesque displays intended to terrorize various groups, including the Saxons. In retaliation, the Saxons distributed poems of cruelty and other propaganda characterising the sadistic Vlad III Dracula as a drinker of blood.[31]
The earliest known reference to Transylvania appears in aMedieval Latin document of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1078 asultra silvam, meaning "beyond the forest" (ultra meaning "beyond" or "on the far side of" and theaccusative case ofsylva (sylvam) "woods, forest"). Transylvania, with an alternative Latin prepositional prefix, means "on the other side of the woods". The Medieval Latin formUltrasylvania, laterTransylvania, was a direct translation from theHungarian formErdő-elve, laterErdély, which has been adopted phonetically into Romanian asArdeal.[32][33] That also was used as an alternative name inGermanüberwald ("beyond the forest") (13th–14th centuries) andUkrainianЗалісся (Zalissia).
The German nameSiebenbürgen means "seven castles", after the seven (ethnic German)Transylvanian Saxons' cities in the region. This is also the origin of the region's name in many other languages, such as theCroatianSedmogradska, theBulgarianСедмиградско (Sedmigradsko),PolishSiedmiogród,Yiddishזיבנבערגן (Zibnbergn), andUkrainianСемигород (Semyhorod).
The Hungarian formErdély was first mentioned in the 12th-centuryGesta Hungarorum asErdeuleu (in modern scriptErdeüleü) orErdő-elve. The worderdő means forest in Hungarian, and the wordelve denotes a region in connection with this, similarly to the Hungarian name forMuntenia (Havas-elve, or land lying ahead of the snow-capped mountains).Erdel,Erdil,Erdelistan are derived from HungarianErdély.
An occurrence of the formArdeliu in aChurch Slavonic document written by a Romanian chancellery is attested in 1432. The RomanianArdeal is derived from the HungarianErdély.[34][35][36]
TheRoman Empire made heavy efforts to seize the territory fromKing Decebalus, resulting in the formation ofRoman Dacia in 106, afterTrajan'scostly and bloody wars. During Roman rule, the territory, depleted of its indigenous population, was repopulated with Latin colonists and its rich resource stock was systematically exploited. However, the growing threat ofEast Germanic andCarpic invasions made EmperorAurelian withdraw his legions and evacuate the citizens south of theLower Danube in 275, when the province became occupied by theGoths.[38] In 376, a powerful nomadic people, theHuns, defeated and shattered the Goths, and settled in the area. After the death of HunKing Attila, their empire disintegrated and theGepids conquered the region in 455, underKing Ardaric.[39] For two centuries, the Gepids controlled Transylvania. TheOstrogoths systematically pushed the Gepids out ofPannonia.King Elemund, on the other hand, successfully fought battles against the Eastern Roman Empire.[40] They were defeated by theLombards andAvars in 567.[40] In the following years, the Avars took full control over Transylvania, heavily settling the area withSlavic tribes who accepted their suzerainty. The expansion of theFrankish Empire, however, imposed a growing threat on them and their khaganate was crushed in theAvar Wars.[41][42] The Avars and Slavs, although substantially depleted in number, continued to inhabit theCarpathian Basin.[43] TheFirst Bulgarian Empire expanded intoSouthern Transylvania in the 9th century.[44] Smaller Slavic polities were also present, nevertheless they could hardly keep their independence.[45]
In the late 9th century, Transylvania was reached and conquered by theHungarian conquerors. There is an ongoing scholarly debate over the demographics in Transylvania at the time. According to the theory of Daco-Roman continuity,Romanians continuously lived on the territory. Opponents of that hypothesis point to the lack of written, archaeological and linguistic evidence to support it.[46] Hungarian medieval chronicles claimed that theSzékely people descended from theHuns, who remained in Transylvania, and later, in combination with the returningHungarians,conquered theCarpathian Basin.[47][48][49][50] According to theGesta Hungarorum, the Vlach (Blacorum, Blacus) leaderGelou ruled part of Transylvania before theHungarians arrived. Historians debate whether he was a historical person or an imaginary figure. Thegyulas from theseven chieftains of the Hungarians governed Transylvania in the 10th century.King Stephen I of Hungary asserted his claim to rule all lands dominated by Hungarian lords. He personally led his army against his maternal uncleGyula III and Transylvania became part of theKingdom of Hungary in 1002.[51] Place names derived from theHungarian tribes evidence that major Hungarian groups settled in Transylvania from the 950s.[52][53] In the 12th and 13th centuries, Southeast and Northeast Transylvania was settled by Saxon colonists. In Romanian historiography,Romanians constituted an important part of Transylvania's population even on the eve of theMongol Invasions.[54][55] Hungarian historiography claims that the Vlach population entered Transylvania from theBalkans only in the 12th century,[56] and the devastating invasion of Mongols had also as consequence the large-scale immigration by Romanians, however the immigration of Romanians did not happen all at once, the process of settlement stretched over several centuries.[57] After theBattle of Kosovo and Ottoman arrival at the Hungarian border, thousands ofVlach andSerbian refugees came to Transylvania.
TheHabsburgs acquired the territory shortly after theBattle of Vienna in 1683. In 1687, the rulers of Transylvania recognized the suzerainty of the Habsburg emperorLeopold I, and the region was officially attached to the Habsburg Empire. The Habsburgs acknowledged the Principality of Transylvania as one of theLands of the Crown of Saint Stephen,[61] but the territory of the principality was administratively separated[62][63] from Habsburg Hungary,[64][65][66] and subjected to the direct rule of the emperor's governors.[67] In 1699 the Ottomans legally acknowledged their loss of Transylvania in theTreaty of Karlowitz; however, someanti-Habsburg elements within the principality submitted to the emperor only in the 1711Peace of Szatmár, when Habsburg control over Principality of Transylvania was consolidated. TheGrand Principality of Transylvania was reintroduced 54 years later in 1765.
TheHungarian revolution against the Habsburgs started in 1848, and grew into a war for the total independence of theKingdom of Hungary from theHabsburg dynasty.Julius Jacob von Haynau, the leader of the Austrian army, was appointed plenipotentiary to restore order in Hungary after the conflict. He ordered the execution ofThe 13 Hungarian Martyrs ofArad, and Prime MinisterBatthyány was executed the same day inPest. After a series of serious Austrian defeats in 1849, theempire came close to the brink of collapse. Thus, the new young emperorFranz Joseph I had to call for Russian help under the Holy Alliance. Czar Nicholas I answered, and sent an army of 200,000 men with 80,000 auxiliary forces. Finally, the joint army of Russian and Austrian forces defeated the Hungarian forces. After the restoration of Habsburg power, Hungary was placed under martial law. Following the Hungarian Army's surrender at Világos (nowȘiria, Romania) in 1849, their revolutionary banners were taken to Russia by the Tsarist troops and were kept there both under the Tsarist and Communist systems (in 1940 the Soviet Union offered the banners to the Horthy government).
1700s maps of the Kingdom of Hungary and Transylvania
The region was the site of an importantbattle during World War I, which caused the replacement of the German Chief of Staff, temporarily ceased German offensives on all the other fronts and created a unified Central Powers command under the German Kaiser. Following defeat inWorld War I, Austria-Hungary disintegrated. Elected representatives of theethnic Romanians from Transylvania, Banat, Crișana and Maramureș backed by themobilization of Romanian troops, proclaimedUnion with Romania on 1 December 1918. TheProclamation of Union of Alba Iulia was adopted by the Deputies of the Romanians from Transylvania and supported one month later by the vote of the Deputies of the Saxons from Transylvania.
Thenational holiday ofRomania, theGreat Union Day (also calledUnification Day,[71]) occurring on December 1, celebrates this event. The holiday was established after theRomanian Revolution, and marks the unification not only of Transylvania but also of the provinces ofBanat,Bessarabia andBukovina with theRomanian Kingdom. These other provinces had all joined with the Kingdom of Romania a few months earlier. In 1920, theTreaty of Trianon established new borders and much of the proclaimed territories became part of Romania. Hungary protested against the new state borders, as they did not follow the real ethnic boundaries, for over 1.3 or 1.6 million Hungarian people, representing 25.5 or 31.6% of the Transylvanian population (depending on statistics used),[72][73] were living on the Romanian side of the border, mainly in theSzékely Land of Eastern Transylvania, and along the newly created border.
Territorial evolution of Romania in the 20th century, excluding changes duringWorld War II
In August 1940, with the arbitration of Germany and Italy under theSecond Vienna Award, Hungary gainedNorthern Transylvania (including parts ofCrișana andMaramureș), and over 40% of the territory lost in 1920. This award did not solve the nationality problem, as over 1.15–1.3 million Romanians (or 48% to more than 50% of the population of the ceded territory) remained in Northern Transylvania while 0.36–0.8 million Hungarians (or 11% to more than 20% of the population) continued to reside inSouthern Transylvania.[74] Following theNazi invasion of Hungary in March 1944, Northern Transylvania came under German control. Over the next 3 months, the region'sJewish population was systematically concentrated inghettos before being deported to theAuschwitz death camp, where the vast majority were murdered. The Second Vienna Award was voided on 12 September 1944 by theAllied Commission through the Armistice Agreement with Romania (Article 19), and the 1947Treaty of Paris reaffirmed the borders between Romania and Hungary as originally defined in the Treaty of Trianon, 27 years earlier, thus confirming the return of Northern Transylvania to Romania.[68]
Turda Gorges seen from the west end, inCluj countyGeogel, Romanian Orthodox wooden churchGeographical map of Romania
TheTransylvanian Plateau, 300 to 500 metres (980–1,640 feet) high, is drained by theMureș,Someș,Criș, andOlt rivers, as well as other tributaries of theDanube. This core of historical Transylvania roughly corresponds with nine counties of modern Romania. The plateau is almost entirely surrounded by theEastern,Southern andRomanian Western branches of theCarpathian Mountains. The area includes theTransylvanian Plain. Other areas to the west and north are widely considered part of Transylvania; in common reference, the Western border of Transylvania has come to be identified with the present Romanian-Hungarian border, settled in the 1920 Treaty of Trianon, although geographically the two are not identical.
The area of the historical Voivodeship is 55,146 km2 (21,292 sq mi).[75][76]
The regions granted to Romania in 1920 covered 23 counties including nearly 102,200 km2 (39,460 sq mi) (102,787–103,093 km2 in Hungarian sources and 102,282 km2 in contemporary Romanian documents). Nowadays, several administrative reorganisations make the territory cover 16counties (Romanian:județ), with an area of 100,290 km2 (38,722 sq mi), in central and northwest Romania.
Transylvania contains both largely urban counties, such as Brașov and Hunedoara counties, as well as largely rural ones, such as Bistrița-Năsăud and Sălaj counties.[77]
Since 1998, Romania has been divided into eightdevelopment regions, acting as divisions that coordinate and implement socio-economic development at regional level. Six counties (Alba, Brașov, Covasna, Harghita, Mureș and Sibiu) form theCentru development region, another six (Bihor, Bistrița-Năsăud, Cluj, Maramureș, Satu Mare, Sălaj) form theNord-Vest development region, while four (Arad, Caraș-Severin, Hunedoara, Timiș) form theVest development region.
Cities and towns
Largest cities of Transylvania, Banat, Crișana and Maramureș historical regions in Romania
Cluj-Napoca, commonly known as Cluj, is the second most populous city in Romania (as of the 2021 census), after the national capitalBucharest, and is the seat ofCluj County. From 1790 to 1848 and from 1861 to 1867, it was the official capital of theGrand Principality of Transylvania.Brașov is an important tourist destination, being the largest city in a mountain resorts area, and a central location, suitable for exploring Romania, with the distances to several tourist destinations (including theBlack Sea resorts, the monasteries in northernMoldavia, and the wooden churches ofMaramureș) being similar.
Official censuses with information on Transylvania's population have been conducted since the 18th century. On 1 May 1784 the EmperorJoseph II called for the first official census of theHabsburg Empire, including Transylvania. The data was published in 1787, and this census showed only the overall population (1,440,986 inhabitants).[79]Fényes Elek, a 19th-century Hungarian statistician, estimated in 1842 that in the population of Transylvania for the years 1830–1840 the majority were 62.3%Romanians and 23.3%Hungarians.[80]
In the last quarter of the 19th century, the Hungarian population of Transylvania increased from 24.9% in 1869 to 31.6%, as indicated in the 1910 Hungarian census (the majority of theJewish population reported Hungarian as their primary language, so they were also counted as ethnically Hungarian in the 1910 census). At the same time, the percentage of the Romanian population decreased from 59.0% to 53.8% and the percentage of the German population decreased from 11.9% to 10.7%, for a total population of 5,262,495.Magyarization policies greatly contributed to this shift.[81]
The percentage of the Romanian majority has significantly increased since the declaration of the union of Transylvania with Romania after World War I in 1918. The proportion of Hungarians in Transylvania was in steep decline as more of the region's inhabitants moved into urban areas, where the pressure to assimilate and Romanianize was greater.[73] The expropriation of the estates of Magyarmagnates, the distribution of the lands to the Romanian peasants, and the policy of culturalRomanianization that followed theTreaty of Trianon were major causes of friction between Hungary and Romania.[82] Other factors include the emigration of non-Romanian peoples, assimilation and internal migration within Romania (estimates show that between 1945 and 1977, some 630,000 people moved from theOld Kingdom to Transylvania, and 280,000 from Transylvania to the Old Kingdom, most notably toBucharest).[73]
Current population
According to the results of the2011 census, the total population of Transylvania was 6,789,250 inhabitants and the ethnic groups were: Romanians – 70.62%, Hungarians – 17.92%, Roma – 3.99%, Ukrainians – 0.63%, Germans (mostly Transylvanian Saxons and Banat Swabians, but also Zipsers, Sathmar Swabians, or Landlers) – 0.49%, other – 0.77%. Some 378,298 inhabitants (5.58%) have not declared their ethnicity.[83] The ethnic Hungarian population of Transylvania form a majority in the counties ofCovasna (73.6%) andHarghita (84.8%). The Hungarians are also numerous in the following counties: Mureș (37.8%), Satu Mare (34.5%), Bihor (25.2%), and Sălaj (23.2%).
Economy
The former salt mine ofSalina Turda, now repurposed as a tourist attractionRural landscape in Transylvania, including meadows and small hilly forests
Transylvania's GDP (nominal) is about $110 billion in 2023 according to Eurostat data and its GDP per capita measures about $17,057 in the same time period.[9] Transylvania's Human Development Index is ranked 0.829, which makes Transylvania the 2nd most developed region in Romania afterBucharest-Ilfov.[84]
There are large iron andsteel, chemical, andtextile industries. Stock raising,agriculture,wine production and fruit growing are important occupations. Agriculture is widespread in theTransylvanian Plateau, including growing cereals, vegetables, viticulture and breeding cattle, sheep, swine, and poultry.Timber is another valuable resource.
TheJiu Valley, located in the south ofHunedoara County, has been a majormining area throughout the second half of the 19th century and the 20th century, but many mines were closed down in the years following the collapse of the communist regime, forcing the region to diversify its economy.
During the Second World War, Transylvania (the Southern/Romanian half, as the region was divided during the war) was crucial to the Romanian defense industry. Transylvanian factories built until 1945 over 1,000 warplanes and over 1,000 artillery pieces of all types, amongothers.[87]
Culture
George Coșbuc, Romanian poet, translator, teacher, and journalist, best known for his verses describing, praising and eulogizing rural life
The culture of Transylvania is complex because of its varied history and longstanding multiculturalism, which has incorporated significant Hungarian (seeHungarians in Romania) and German (seeGermans of Romania) influences.[88]
Transylvania has a very rich and unique religious history. Since theProtestant Reformation, different Christian denominations have coexisted in this religious melting pot, includingRomanian Orthodox, otherEastern Orthodox,Latin Catholic andRomanian Greek Catholic,Lutheran,Reformed, andUnitarian branches.Christianity is the largest religion, but other faiths also are present, includingJews andMuslims. Under theHabsburgs, Transylvania served as a place for "religious undesirables". People who arrived in Transylvania included those that did not conform to theCatholic Church and were sent here forcibly, as well as many religious refugees. Transylvania has a long history of religious tolerance, ensured by its religious pluralism.
Transylvania has also been (and still is) a centre for Christian denominations other thanEastern Orthodoxy, the form of Christianity that most Romanians currently follow. As such, there are significant numbers of inhabitants of Transylvania that followLatin Catholicism andGreek Catholicism, andProtestantism. Even though before 1948, the population of Transylvania split between Eastern Orthodox, Greek Catholic and other forms of Christianity, during the Communist Period the Orthodox Church was much more favoured by the state which has led to Eastern Orthodoxy being the religion of the majority of Transylvanians.[90][91] However, among the Hungarian and German minorities only a small part are Eastern Orthodox. The main two religions of the Hungarian minority are Reformed (Calvinism) and Roman Catholicism;[92] among Germans the main religions are Roman Catholicism (slightly over half ofGermans in Romania), followed by Lutheranism and Eastern Orthodox.[93] There are alsoPentecostals andBaptists, particularly in Banat and Crișana.Babeș-Bolyai University, located inCluj-Napoca is the only university inEurope that has four faculties oftheology (Orthodox, Reformed, Roman Catholic, and Greek Catholic).[94]
Nowadays, there is a very small number of Muslims (Islam) and Jews (Judaism), but back in 1930, with 191,877 inhabitants, Jews represented 3.46% of Transylvania's population.[95]
Atheists, agnostics and unaffiliated account for 0.27% of Transylvania's population.
In 1596,Levinus Hulsius created a coat of arms for Transylvania, consisting of a shield with a rising eagle in the upper field and seven hills with towers on top in the lower field. He published it in his workChronologia, issued inNuremberg the same year.[103] The seal from 1597 ofSigismund Báthory,Prince of Transylvania, reproduced the new coat of arms with some slight changes: in the upper field the eagle was flanked by a sun and a moon and in the lower field the hills were replaced by simple towers. The coat of arms ofSigismund Báthory beside the coat of arms of theBáthory family, included the Transylvanian, Wallachia and Moldavian coat of arms, he used the titlePrince of Transylvania,Wallachia andMoldavia. A short-lived heraldic representation of Transylvania is found on the seal ofMichael the Brave. Besides the Wallachian eagle and theMoldavian aurochs, Transylvania is represented by two lions holding a sword standing on seven hills. HungarianTransylvanian princes used the symbols of theTransylvanian coat of arms usually with theHungarian coat of arms since the 16th century becauseTransylvanian princes maintained their claims to the throne of theKingdom of Hungary.
Following the publication ofEmily Gerard'sThe Land Beyond the Forest (1888),Bram Stoker wrote hisgothic horror novelDracula in 1897, using Transylvania as a setting. With its success, Transylvania became associated, in the English- and Spanish-speaking world, withvampires. Among the first actors to portrayDraculain film wasBela Lugosi, who was born in Lugos (nowLugoj), in present-day Romania. In 1992Francis Ford Coppola made a Hollywood movie about Dracula, based on the novel ofBram Stoker. The American animated movie franchiseHotel Transylvania also plays on the association of Transylvania with Dracula.
Transylvania has also been represented in fiction and literature as a land of mystery and magic. For example, inPaulo Coelho's novelThe Witch of Portobello, the main character, Sherine Khalil, is described as a Transylvanian orphan with aRomani mother, in an effort to add to the character's exotic mystique.[citation needed] The so-called Transylvanian trilogy of historical novels byMiklós Bánffy,The Writing on the Wall, is an extended treatment of the 19th- and early 20th-century social and political history of the country. The Principality of Transylvania is also a playable nation inEuropa Universalis IV.
^Engel, Pál (2001).Realm of St. Stephen: History of Medieval Hungary, 895–1526 (International Library of Historical Studies), p. 24, London: I.B. Taurus.ISBN1-86064-061-3
^Bóna, István (1994). "From Dacia to Transylvania: The Period of the Great Migrations (271–895); The Hungarian–Slav Period (895–1172)". In Köpeczi, Béla; Barta, Gábor; Bóna, István; Makkai, László; Szász, Zoltán; Borus, Judit (eds.).History of Transylvania. Akadémiai Kiadó. pp. 62–177.ISBN963-05-6703-2.
^Kristó, Gyula (2003).Early Transylvania (895-1324). Lucidus Kiadó.ISBN963-9465-12-7.
^Makkai, László (2001)."The Mongol Invasion and Its Consequences".History of Transylvania Volume I. From the Beginnings to 1606 - III. Transylvania in the Medieval Hungarian Kingdom (896–1526) - 3. From the Mongol Invasion to the Battle of Mohács. Columbia University Press, (The Hungarian original by Institute of History Of The Hungarian Academy of Sciences).ISBN0-88033-479-7.
^"Stephen I".Encyclopedia of World Biography.14:427–428. 2004 – via Gale Virtual Reference Library.
^Seton-Watson, Robert William (1933). "The Problem of Treaty Revision and the Hungarian Frontiers".International Affairs.12 (4):481–503.doi:10.2307/2603603.JSTOR2603603.
^Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995,Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945, pp. 29-30, 75, 149, 222-227 and 239-272
^"Cultura". 31 December 2007. Archived from the original on 31 December 2007. Retrieved8 May 2016.
^Earl A. Pope, "Protestantism in Romania", in Sabrina Petra Ramet (ed.),Protestantism and Politics in Eastern Europe and Russia: The Communist and Postcommunist Eras,Duke University Press, Durham, 1992, p.158-160.ISBN0-8223-1241-7
András Bereznay,Erdély történetének atlasza (Historical Atlas of Transylvania), with text and 102 map plates, the first ever historical atlas of Transylvania (Méry Ratio, 2011;ISBN978-80-89286-45-4)
Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Nägler, Thomas; Magyari, András (2018).The History of Transylvania, vol. I–III. Cluj-Napoca: Romanian Academy, Center for Transylvanian Studies – Romanian Cultural Institute.ISBN978-606-8694-78-8.
Köpeczi, Béla; Makkai, László; Mócsy, András; Szász, Zoltán (1994).History of Transylvania. Vol. I–III. Translated by Kovrig, Benett. New Jersey: Atlantic Research and Publications.ISBN963-05-6703-2.
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