Alțâna
Alțâna (German: Alzen; Hungarian: Alcina) is a commune in the north of Sibiu County, Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. It is composed of three villages: Alțâna, Benești (Bägendorf; Bendorf) and Ghijasa de Sus (Obergesäß; Felsőgezés).
Alțâna | |
|---|---|
 Location in Sibiu County | |
  Alțâna Location in Romania | |
| Coordinates: 45°55′41″N 24°27′44″E | |
| Country |  Romania |
| County | Sibiu |
| Established | 1291 (first official record) |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Ioan Bucșă[1] (PSD) |
| Area | 83.32 km2 (32.17 sq mi) |
| Population (2011)[2] | 1,562 |
| • Density | 19/km2 (49/sq mi) |
| Time zone | EET/EEST (UTC+2/+3) |
| Postal code | 557005 |
| Vehicle reg. | SB |
| Website | primariaaltina |
Alțâna was one of the most important villages of the Transylvanian Saxon seat of Nocrich.
History
In 1910 the Agnita to Sibiu railway line was completed with at station at Alțâna and Benești; however, the line was closed in 2001. An active restoration group has since been formed aiming to restore the entire line to working condition.[3]
Name
The legend says that the first German villagers were led by ten "greavi". These ten men counseled in the matter of how should they name the settlement and each of them wanted to use their name. In the end, they decided to name it Alzen, which means "all ten".
Natives
- Adolf Gottschling (1841-1918), a professor at the Brukenthal College in Sibiu and one of the pioneers of meteorology in Transylvania
References
- "Results of the 2016 local elections". Central Electoral Bureau. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- "Populaţia stabilă pe judeţe, municipii, oraşe şi localităti componenete la RPL_2011" (in Romanian). National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- "Sibiu Agnita Railway Group". Retrieved 2 December 2015.