Hunyad (today mainly Hunedoara) was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary, of the Eastern Hungarian Kingdom and of the Principality of Transylvania. Its territory is now in Romania in Transylvania. The capital of the county was Déva (present-day Deva).

Hunyad County
Comitatus Hunyadensis (Latin)
Hunyad vármegye (Hungarian)
Komitat Hunyad (German)
Comitatul Hunedoara (Romanian)
County of the Kingdom of Hungary
(1265–1526)
County of the Eastern Hungarian Kingdom
(1526–1570)
County of the Principality of Transylvania
(1570–1867)
County of the Kingdom of Hungary
(1867–1920)
Coat of arms of Hunyad
Coat of arms

CapitalDéva
Area
 • Coordinates45°53′N 22°54′E / 45.883°N 22.900°E / 45.883; 22.900
 
• 1910
7,809 km2 (3,015 sq mi)
Population 
• 1910
340,100
History 
• Established
1265
• Treaty of Trianon
4 June 1920
Today part ofRomania
Deva is the current name of the capital.

Geography

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Map of Hunyad County, 1891.

After 1876, Hunyad county shared borders with Romania and the Hungarian counties Krassó-Szörény, Arad, Torda-Aranyos, Alsó-Fehér and Szeben. Its area was 7,809 km2 around 1910.

Etymology

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The toponym Hunyad most likely comes from the Hungarian huny verb, meaning 'to close' or 'to die'. According to linguist Géza Kuun, the name may keep the memory of the Huns.[1]

History

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Hunyad county as an administrative unit in the early 16th century
 
Hunyad county in the Principality of Transylvania

The first known civilization living on the territory were the Scythian Agathyrsi and Sigynnae. Later the Dacians under their leader Burebista established solid control over the territory, but were conquered and massacred by the Roman Empire. Hunyad was part of Roman Dacia for a short time, but by the 3rd century it was occupied by the Goths, later by the Vandals and Gepids. The nomadic Avars conquered Transylvania in 567, and remained the ethnic majority even after the collapse of their khaganate. The Igech, Szerekes, Andos and Zeyk noble families are all of Avar origin, along with the name of the river Zsil.[2]

Hunyad county was formed in the Middle Ages. It was first attested in 1265 as Hungnod by the Papal Quitrent Register. In 1876, when the administrative structure of Transylvania was changed, its territory was modified to include about two thirds of the former Zaránd County (Brád/Brad and Körösbánya/Baia de Criș districts) and the Saxon seat of Broos/Orăștie. In 1920, by the Treaty of Trianon, the county became part of Romania. Most of its territory lies in the present Romanian county Hunedoara; a strip in the east is now part of Alba and a strip in the west is now part of Caraș-Severin County (the commune Băuţar).

Demographics

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Ethnic map of the county with data of the 1910 census (see the key in the description).
Population by mother tongue[a]
Census Total Romanian Hungarian German Other or unknown
1880[3] 248,464 217,414 (90.28%) 12,278 (5.10%) 6,968 (2.89%) 4,166 (1.73%)
1890[4] 267,895 238,486 (89.02%) 17,167 (6.41%) 8,047 (3.00%) 4,195 (1.57%)
1900[5] 303,838 257,013 (84.59%) 32,316 (10.64%) 9,189 (3.02%) 5,320 (1.75%)
1910[6] 340,135 271,675 (79.87%) 52,720 (15.50%) 8,101 (2.38%) 7,639 (2.25%)
Population by religion[b]
Census Total Eastern Orthodox Greek Catholic Roman Catholic Calvinist Jewish Lutheran Other or unknown
1880 248,464 177,725 (71.53%) 48,381 (19.47%) 11,883 (4.78%) 6,568 (2.64%) 1,996 (0.80%) 1,799 (0.72%) 112 (0.05%)
1890 267,895 190,018 (70.93%) 50,520 (18.86%) 15,121 (5.64%) 7,351 (2.74%) 2,470 (0.92%) 2,202 (0.82%) 213 (0.08%)
1900 303,838 204,350 (67.26%) 55,116 (18.14%) 24,993 (8.23%) 11,398 (3.75%) 4,056 (1.33%) 3,269 (1.08%) 656 (0.22%)
1910 340,135 217,425 (63.92%) 60,024 (17.65%) 34,668 (10.19%) 16,675 (4.90%) 5,679 (1.67%) 4,110 (1.21%) 1,554 (0.46%)

Subdivisions

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Administrative map of Hunyad County, 1910

In the early 20th century, the subdivisions of Hunyad County were:

Districts (járás)
District Capital
  Algyógy Algyógyalfalu (now Geoagiu)
  Brád Brád (now Brad)
  Déva Déva (now Deva)
  Hátszeg Hátszeg (now Hațeg)
  Kőrösbánya Kőrösbánya (now Baia de Criș)
  Marosillye Marosillye (now Ilia)
  Petrozsény Petrozsény (now Petroșani)
  Puj Puj (now Pui)
  Szászváros Szászváros (now Orăștie)
  Vajdahunyad Vajdahunyad (now Hunedoara)
Urban districts (rendezett tanácsú város)
Déva (now Deva)
Hátszeg (now Hațeg)
  Szászváros (now Orăștie)
Vajdahunyad (now Hunedoara)

Notes

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  1. ^ Only linguistic communities > 1% are displayed.
  2. ^ Only religious communities > 1% are displayed.

References

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  1. ^ Kuun, Géza; Torma, Zsófia; Téglás, Gábor (1902). "Hunyadvármegye története" [The history of Hunyad County]. Irodalmi Szemle (in Hungarian). I. Budapest: 353.
  2. ^ Kuun, Géza; Torma, Zsófia; Téglás, Gábor (1902). "Hunyadvármegye története" [The history of Hunyad County]. Irodalmi Szemle (in Hungarian). I. Budapest.
  3. ^ "Az 1881. év elején végrehajtott népszámlálás főbb eredményei megyék és községek szerint rendezve, II. kötet (1882)". library.hungaricana.hu. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  4. ^ "A Magyar Korona országainak helységnévtára (1892)". library.hungaricana.hu. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  5. ^ "A MAGYAR KORONA ORSZÁGAINAK 1900". library.hungaricana.hu. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  6. ^ "KlimoTheca :: Könyvtár". Kt.lib.pte.hu. Retrieved 29 September 2021.