Hungarian heritage in Transylvania

[Szegedist]

Etymology
Lets start with the etymology. Where does the name “Transylvania” come from?
According to Romanians, it sounds Latin, so it is of Romanian origins, but the truth could not be different.

Hungary was founded as a Catholic Kingdom, with Latin as it's official language, so Hungarian chronicles in the Middle Ages were written in Latin.

The region of Transylvania was first refereed to as “ultra silvam”, which is Latin for “beyond the woods”, in a medieval Hungarian chronicle (written in Latin), 1075.

The term Partes Transsylvanæ ("parts beyond the forest") dates from the same century (used in Legenda Sancti Gerhardi, and subsequently, as Transsilvania by Medieval Latin documents compiled in the Kingdom of Hungary).

It is here, where the modern name Transylvania comes from.

Another name for Transylvania is Erdély, which comes from Erdő-elve, meaning “in front of the woods”.
The Romanian name for Transylvania (Ardeal) is a phonetic copy of Erdély, and has no meaning whatsoever in the Romanian language.

There is a contradiction between Erdő-elve (on front of the woods) and ultra silvam(beyond the woods)

This is because Erdély comes from the Conquest Era, so the incoming Hungarians saw Transylvania to be in front of the woods (the woods in the Partium/Részek), while “Ultra Silvam” comes after the Kingdom was founded, and to the chronicles, Transylvania now lay beyond the woods.

Romanians have no name of their own for Transylvania.
Transylvania is of Latin origins, first used by Hungarians
Erdély/Ardeal is of Hungarian origins, first used by Hungarians
Siebenbürgen/Sedmigradsko/Sedmihradsko/etc is of German origins, comes from the Saxon Settlers.

[Szegedist]

Examples of Hungarian cities in Transylvania

Nagyvárad- today so called “Oradea”
Nagyvarad dates back to a small 10th century castle, while its bishopric was founded during the 11th century by King Ladislaus I of Hungary. The first documented mention of its name was in 1113 under the Latin name Varadinum ("vár" means fortress in Hungarian).

The 14th century was one of the most prosperous periods in the city's life. Statues of St. Stephen, Emeric and Ladislaus (before 1372) and theequestrian sculptureofSt. Ladislaus(1390) were erected in Oradea. St. Ladislaus' fabled statue was the first proto-renaissance public square equestrian in Europe. Bishop Andreas Báthori (1329–1345) rebuilt the cathedral inGothicstyle. From thatepochdates also the Hermes, now preserved at Györ, which contains the skull of King Ladislaus, and which is a masterpiece of the Hungarian goldsmith's art

In the second half of the 19th century literary nicknames for the town included "Hungarian Compostela", "Felix civitas", "Paris on the River Pece", "the City of Tomorrow", "Athens on theKörös", and "the City of Yesterday". These nicknames are not widely used today, although "Paris on the River Pece" is still utilized sometimes.

[Szegedist]

Marosvásárhely, or so called " Targu Mures"
The city was first documented in 1332 in the papal registry under the name Novum Forum Siculorum, and as Sekulvasarhel (Székelyvásárhely) in 1349. On the place of its Castle Church, the Dominican's church stood until the Mongol invasion, when it was destroyed. In its place, the Franciscans built a new Gothic church in 1260, which was completed in 1446. Since 1439 the town was the scene of the session of parliament (diet) 36 times.

In 1405, the King of Hungary Sigismund of Luxembourg granted the city the right to organize fairs. In 1470 King Matthias Corvinus granted the first judicial privilege to the city, and in 1482 declared the city a royal settlement.

[Szegedist]

Temesvár- today so called "Timisoara"

Temesvár was first mentioned as a place in either 1212 or 1266. The territory later to be known as Banat was conquered and annexed by the Kingdom of Hungary in 1030. Temesvár grew considerably during the reign of Károly I, who, upon his visit here in 1307, ordered the construction of a royal palace. Temesvár importance also grew due to its strategic location, which facilitated control over the Banat plain. John Hunyadi established a permanent military encampment here, and moved here together with his family. In 1552, a 16,000 Ottoman army conquered the city and transformed it into a capital city in the region. The local military commander, Stefan Losonczy, was captured and beheaded on July 27, 1552 after resisting the Ottoman invasion with just over 2,300 men.

[Szegedist]

Nagybánya- today so called "Baia Mare"

Nagybánya is first mentioned in written documents released by Károly I of Hungary in 1328 under the name of Rivulus Dominarum (English: Ladies' River). In 1347 the town was identified in documents by Louis I of Hungary as an important medieval town with a prosperous mining industry. Its rules of organisation were characteristic of the "free towns" of that time. In 1411 the town and its surrounding areas, including the mines, were transferred into the property of the Hunyadi family by Sigismund, King of Hungary (later also Holy Roman Emperor), who recognised Janos Hunyadi's contribution to stop the Turkish invasion of Europe.

The town entered in a period of prosperity, during which the St. Stephen Cathedral was built. Today the cathedral tower is one of the best-known of the town's historic landmarks (see Stephen's Tower). The first school, named Schola Rivulina, was opened in Nagybánya in 1547 by the Reformed Church following the Protestant Reformation.

[Windischer]

Nagybánya- today so called "Baia Mare"

both mean the same - the great mine. especially baňa, such a nice slavic term for mine

that chimney... LOL

[blogen]

Oh, the Romanians are great chimneybuilders!

near Zalatna:

[Szegedist]

Chimneys and Communist panel houses are the only things built by Vlachs in Transylvania.

And Verchar, that is not a Chimney, but an ancient Dacian Roman victory column...


Also, there is no "Baia Mare", its rightful name is Nagybánya!

[blogen]

Chimneys and Communist panel houses are the only things built by Vlachs in Transylvania.

You forget the newly built reinforced concrete Balkan churches everywhere!

ps. Ok, this is demagogue. There are beautiful and real Romanian small wooden churches too (many of them are in terrible condition).

[Windischer]

with slavic writings in some of those churches one can wonder how romanian they are but nevermind, whoever uses them (and cares for them), to them they belong.