Gorj County

Gorj County (Romanian pronunciation: [ɡorʒ] (listen)) is a county (judeţ) of Romania, in Oltenia, with its capital city at Târgu Jiu.

Gorj County

Județul Gorj
County
Coat of arms
Coordinates: 45.04°N 23.3°E / 45.04; 23.3
Country Romania
Development region1Sud-Vest
Historic regionOltenia
Capital city (Reşedinţă de judeţ)Târgu Jiu
Government
 • TypeCounty Board
 • President of the County BoardCosmin-Mihai Popescu
 • Prefect2Ciprian Adrian Florescu
Area
 • Total5,602 km2 (2,163 sq mi)
Area rank21st in Romania
Population
 (2011)
 • Total334,238
 • Rank28th in Romania
 • Density69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal Code
21wxyz3
Area code(s)+40 x534
Car PlatesGJ5
GDPUS$ 2.824 billion (2015)
GDP/capitaUS$ 8,450 (2015)
WebsiteCounty Board
County Prefecture
1 The development regions of Romania have no administrative role and were formed in order to manage funds from the European Union
2 as of 2007, the Prefect is not a politician, but a public functionary. He (or she) is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and is banned from having any political activity in the first six months after his resignation (or exclusion) from the public functionaries' corps.
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

Demographics

In 2011, it had a population of 334,238 and its population density was 59.66/km2.

Year County population[2]
1948 280,524
1956 293,031
1966 298,382
1977 348,521
1992 400,100
2002 387,308
2011 334,238

Geography

This county has a total area of 5,602 km2.

The North side of the county consists of various mountains from the Southern Carpathians group. In the West there are the Vulcanului Mountains, and in the East there are the Parâng Mountains and the Negoveanu Mountains. The two groups are split by the Jiu River.

To the South, the heights decrease through the hills to a high plain at the Western end of the Romanian Plain.

The main river, which collects all the smaller rivers, is the Jiu River.

Neighbours

Economy

The predominant industries in the county are:

  • Mining equipment industry.
  • Food and beverages industry.
  • Textile industry.
  • Mechanical components industry.
  • Glass industry.
  • Wood industry.

In the North of the county coal is extracted, near Motru and Rovinari. There are two big thermo electrical power plants at Rovinari and Turceni, and some hydro-electrical power plants. The county is the biggest electricity producer in Romania with 36% af the country's electricity.

Due to the decrease in mining activity, the county has one of the highest unemployment levels in the country.

Tourism
Wooden church in Slăvuţa, Gorj county

The main tourist destinations are:

Politics

The Gorj County Council, elected at the 2016 local government elections, is made up of 33 counselors, with the following party composition:[3]

    Party Seats Current County Council
  Social Democratic Party 16                                
  National Liberal Party 9                                
  Alliance of Liberals and Democrats 3                                
  People's Movement Party 3                                
  Romanian Social Party 2                                

Administrative divisions
The Endless Column, by Constantin Brâncuși, in Târgu Jiu
Gilort river in Târgu Cărbunești

Gorj County has 2 municipalities, 7 towns and 61 communes

  • Municipalities
    • Motru- population: 18,142 (as of 2011)
    • Târgu Jiu – capital city; population: 78,553 (as of 2011)

Historical county
Județul Gorj
County (Județ)
The Gorj county Prefecture building of the interwar period.
Coat of arms
Country Romania
Historic regionOltenia
Capital city (Reședință de județ)Târgu Jiu
Area
 • Total4,579 km2 (1,768 sq mi)
Population
 (1930)
 • Total206,339
 • Density45/km2 (120/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

Historically, the county was located in the southwestern part of Greater Romania, in the northern part of the historical region of Oltenia. Its capital was Târgu Jiu. The interwar county territory comprised a large part of the current Gorj County.

It was bordered to the west by Mehedinți County, to the north by the counties of Hunedoara and Sibiu, to the east by Vâlcea County, and to the south by Dolj County.

Administration
Map of Gorj County as constituted in 1938.

The county was originally divided into four administrative districts (plăṣi):[4]

  1. Plasa Gilort, headquartered at Gilort
  2. Plasa Jiu, headquartered at Jiu
  3. Plasa Novaci, headquartered at Novaci
  4. Plasa Vulcana, headquartered at Vulcana

Subsequently, two more districts were established:

  1. Plasa Amaradia, headquartered at Amaradia
  2. Plasa Ocolu, headquartered at Ocolul

Population

According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 206,339 inhabitants, ethnically divided as follows: 97.9% Romanians, 1.7% Romanies, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the population was 99.6% Eastern Orthodox, as well as other minorities.

Urban population

In 1930, the county's urban population was 13,030 inhabitants, comprising 90.0% Romanians, 4.6% Romanies, 1.1% Germans, 0.9% Hungarians, 0.8% Jews, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population was composed of 95.8% Eastern Orthodox, 2.2% Roman Catholic, 0.8% Jewish, as well as other minorities.

Industry

In the county capital of Târgu Jiu, there was a factory producing roof tiles as of 1931.[5]

References
  1. National Institute of Statistics, "Populaţia după etnie" Archived 16 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  2. National Institute of Statistics, "Populaţia la recensămintele din anii 1948, 1956, 1966, 1977, 1992 şi 2002" Archived 22 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Mandate de CJ pe judete si competitori" (in Romanian). Biroul Electoral Central. 10 June 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  4. Portretul României Interbelice - Județul Gorj
  5. H. T. Montague Bell, Near East, Limited, 1931, The Near East Year Book and Who's who: A Survey of the Affairs, Political, Economic and Social, of Yugoslavia, Roumania, Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey, p. 559
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