Onești

Onești, formerly known as Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, is a city in Bacău County, Romania, with a population of 34,005 inhabitants as of 2021. It is situated in the historical region of Moldavia.

Administratively, the villages of Slobozia and Borzești form part of Onești.

History

The locality was documentary attested as a village on 14 December 1458. In 1952, the communist authorities decided to build a large petrochemical industrial platform (Borzești Petrochemical Plant) and a new related city in the area of Onești and Borzești villages. Borzești, according to legend, was the birthplace of Stephen III of Moldavia. It is the site of the Borzești Church, which was built on his orders in 1493–1494.[2]

At the death of the Communist leader Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej in March 1965, Onești was renamed Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, but the name was changed back in 1990[3] shortly after the Romanian Revolution.

Above the borough Malu, on the right-hand side of the river Cașin, were discovered archaeological fragments from a settlement dating from the Neolithic Age.[4]

Demographics

At the 2011 census, Onești had 39,172 inhabitants, of which 90.29% were Romanians, 1.39% Roma, 0.53% Hungarians, and 0.13% Greeks.

According to the 2021 census, the population of the municipality of Onești amounts to 34,005 inhabitants, a decrease compared to the previous census in 2011, when 39,172 inhabitants were recorded. The majority of the residents are Romanian (79.75%), while for 19.77%, their ethnic affiliation is unknown. From a confessional point of view, the majority of inhabitants are Orthodox (69.43%), with a Roman Catholic minority (7.87%), and for 20.69%, their confessional affiliation is unknown.

Economy

Borzești is a neighborhood in the southeast of Onești, under separate administration until 1968.[5] The Borzești Petrochemical Plant is located there.[6][7]

Geography

Onești is located in the Tazlău-Cașin Depression of the Eastern Carpathians at an average altitude of 210 m.[8] It lies at the confluence of the rivers Trotuș, Cașin, Oituz, and Tazlău, some 60 km southwest of the county capital, Bacău. The city is crossed by the European road E574 and by the national roads DN11A and DN12A that connect it to Bucharest, to the northern part of the country, and to Transylvania. Rail connections are made through the Căile Ferate Române network, and the proposed A13 Brașov–Bacău Motorway will link the city to the rest of Romania's highway network as a second connection to the country's major cities.

Culture

Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of the city, whose inhabitants are predominantly Romanian Orthodox. St. Nicholas Day, 6 December, is the municipal day of Onești.[12]

Popular tourist attractions are Perchiu Hill and the Hero Cross from atop the aforementioned hill, the Municipal History Museum, a steel monument dedicated to the Romanian national poet Mihai Eminescu, and the city park.[13]

Administration and politics

The municipality of Onești is administered by a mayor and a local council composed of 19 councilors. The mayor, Adrian Jilcu, from the Social Democratic Party, has been in office since 1 November 2024. Following the 2024 local elections, the local council has the following composition by political party:

Neighborhoods

• Sat Catolic
• Buhoci
• Borzești
• Slobozia
• TCR
• Mal
• Dallas
• Belci
• Cuciur
• ANL
• Poiana Nouă
• Termo
• Cvartal

Mayors

• Emil Lemnaru (PSD), 1996-2012
• Victor-Laurențiu Neghină (PSD), 2012–2015
• Alexandru Cristea (UNPR), 2015–2016
• Nicolae Gnatiuc (PSD), 2016–2020
• Victor-Laurențiu Neghină (PMP), 2020–2024
• Adrian Jilcu (PSD), 2024-2028

Notable people

• Antonio Andrușceac (born 1967), politician
• Mihail Aslan (1857–1936), general in World War I
• Gabriel Bruchental (born 1965), footballer
• Diana Chelaru (born 1993), gymnast
• Nadia Comăneci (born 1961), gymnast
• Daniel Dines (born 1972), entrepreneur
• Teodora Enache (born 1967), jazz singer
• Georgeta Gabor (born 1962), gymnast
• Loredana Groza (born 1970), singer
• Ștefania Jipa (born 2000), handball player
• Gheorghe Maftei (born 1955), weightlifter
• Laura Moise (born 1976), judoka
• Daniel Munteanu (born 1978), football player and manager
• Alexandru Nazare (born 1980), politician
• Ana Maria Pavăl (born 1983), wrestler
• Adrian Rotaru (born 1994), handballer
• Eduard Tismănaru (born 1987), footballer
• Dumitrița Turner (born 1964), artistic gymnast
• Silvia Zarzu (born 1998), artistic gymnast

Twin towns and sister cities

• 🇮🇹 Pistoia, Italy
• 🇲🇩 Strășeni, Moldova (2015)[14]
• 🇳🇴 Skien, Norway
• 🇫🇷 Eysines, France

See also

• CSM Borzești
• FCM Dinamo Onești

External links