Oituz
Oituz | |
|---|---|
Catholic church in Oituz | |
Location in Bacău County | |
Oituz Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates: 46°12′N 26°37′E / 46.200°N 26.617°E | |
| Country | Romania |
| County | Bacău |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2024) | Claudiu Petrișor[2] (PNL) |
Area | 202.23 km2 (78.08 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 279 m (915 ft) |
| Population (2021-12-01)[1] | 8,701 |
| • Density | 43.03/km2 (111.4/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 607365 |
| Area code | +(40) 234 |
| Vehicle reg. | BC |
| Website | primariaoituz |
Oituz (formerly Grozești; Hungarian: Gorzafalva) is a commune in Bacău County, Western Moldavia, Romania. It is composed of six villages: Călcâi (Zöldlonka), Ferestrău-Oituz (Fűrészfalva), Hârja (Herzsa), Marginea, Oituz, and Poiana Sărată (Sósmező).
Oituz was the site of three battles during the First World War: the First, Second, and the Third Battle of Oituz.
According to Iorgu Iordan, the commune's name is of Turkic origin; otuz or oltuz means "thirty" in some Turkic languages.[3][4][5]
Poiana Sărată village is part of Transylvania;[6] in Austria-Hungary, it belonged to Háromszék County, and after a reorganization to Trei Scaune County in Romania until 1950.
Demographics
At the 2002 census, Oituz had a population of 9,687, of which 99.8% were ethnic Romanians and 0.2% Hungarians; 49.2% were Romanian Orthodox, 48.9% Roman Catholic, and 1.8% Seventh-day Adventist. At the 2011 census, the population had decreased to 8,152; of those, 96.74% were Romanians. At the 2021 census, Oituz had 8,701 inhabitants, of which 93.41% were Romanians.[7]
Villages
Hârja
Hârja village lies along the Oituz Valley, on the national road DN11 connecting Onești to Brașov, over a stretch of approximately 3 kilometers.[8] It was established around the middle of the 17th century by shepherd families migrating from Rucăr and Dragoslavele (Muscel), Soveja (Vrancea), and Poiana Sibiului (Sibiu County). They settled in the area due to its extensive pastures and rich hayfields suitable for sheep farming.[9]
The first nucleus of the settlement developed on the left bank of the Oituz River, later expanding into two smaller hamlets — Flocăești and Jăvrenii — situated on the right bank. In the 20th century, it served as the seat of a commune that included Poiana Sărată and Oituz. After the 1968 territorial reorganization, the administrative center was established at Oituz village.[8] During World War I, Hârja was a key point on the Oituz front. Between 30 September and 13 October 1916, the Battle of Hârja took place there, a tactical engagement that helped stop the advance of the Central Powers through the Oituz Pass.
Natives
- Eugen Cristescu (1895–1950), head of Siguranța Statului and of the Secret Intelligence Service, convicted in 1946 as a war criminal
- Aurora Gruescu (1914–2005), world's first female forestry engineer and first Romanian person in the Guinness Book
- Ghiță Popp (1883–1967), journalist and politician
References
- ^ "2021 Romanian census". National Institute of Statistics. 1 December 2021.
- ^ "Results of the 2020 local elections". Central Electoral Bureau. Archived from the original on 9 October 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
- ^ Iorgu Iordan; Toponimia romînească, Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, București, 1963, p. 280
- ^ Vasile Frățilă, Studii de toponimie și dialectologie, p.39. Editura Excelsior Art, 2002, ISBN 9735920603
- ^ (in Romanian) Diana Boc-Sînmărghițan, "Toponimia văilor Bistra și Sebeș. Glosar (I)" Archived 2013-10-07 at the Wayback Machine, p.16, in Analele Universității de Vest din Timișoara, Seria Științe Filologice, XLV, 2007
- ^ Memoriile Secțiilor Științifice, Romanian Academy, series IV, vol. XXVII, p.171.
- ^ "Populația rezidentă după grupa de vârstă, pe județe și municipii, orașe, comune, la 1 decembrie 2021" (in Romanian). INSSE. 31 May 2023.
- ^ a b "History of Oituz Commune". primariaoituz.ro. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
- ^ Hugianu, Ciprian (2016). Poiana Sărată – A Romanian Village in the Carpathians. Sfântu Gheorghe: Eurocarpatica. p. 45.
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Oituz viewed from Piatra Șoimului
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Orthodox church in Poiana Sărată
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Orthodox church in Hârja
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Inauguration of the Oituz World War I memorial, 19 September 1931