Bucharest

Bucharest (Romanian: București pronounced [bukuˈreʃtʲ] ( listen); names in other languages) is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at 44°25′57″N 26°06′14″ECoordinates: 44°25′57″N 26°06′14″E, and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River. Bucharest was first mentioned in documents as early as 1459. Since then it has gone through a variety of changes, becoming the state capital of Romania in 1862 and steadily consolidating its position as the centre of the Romanian mass media, culture and arts. Its eclectic architecture is a mix of historical (neo-classical), interbellum (Bauhaus and Art Deco), Communist-era and modern. In the period between the two World Wars, the city's elegant architecture and the sophistication of its elite earned Bucharest the nickname of "Little Paris" (Micul Paris). Although many buildings and districts in the historic centre were damaged or destroyed by war, earthquakes, and Nicolae Ceaușescu's program of systematization, many survived. In recent years, the city has been experiencing an economic and cultural boom. According to provisional data from 2011 census, 1,677,985 inhabitants live within the city limits, a decrease from the figure recorded at the 2002 census. The urban area extends beyond the limits of Bucharest proper and has a population of 1.93 million people. Adding the satellite towns around the urban area, the proposed metropolitan area of Bucharest would have a population of 2.2 million people. According to Eurostat, Bucharest has a Larger Urban Zone of 2,151,880 residents. According to unofficial data, the population is more than 3 million. Bucharest is the 10th largest city in the European Union by population within city limits. Economically, Bucharest is the most prosperous city in Romania and is one of the main industrial centres and transportation hubs of Eastern Europe. The city has a broad range of convention facilities, educational facilities, cultural venues, shopping arcades, and recreational areas. The city proper is administratively known as the Municipality of Bucharest (Municipiul București), and has the same administrative level as a county, being further subdivided into six sectors. Etymology The name of Bucureşti has an uncertain origin: tradition connects the founding of Bucharest with the name of Bucur who was either a prince, an outlaw, a fisherman, a shepherd, or a hunter, according to different legends. In Romanian the word stem bucur means 'joy', ("beautiful") and it is believed to be of Dacian origin. There were various other etymologies given by early scholars, including the one of Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi, who said that Bucharest is named after a certain "Ebu-Kariş", from the tribe of "Beni-Kureiş". In 1781, Franz Sulzer claimed that it's related to bucurie (joy), bucuros (joyful), a bucura (to become joyful), while an early 19th century book published in Vienna assumed its name is derived from "Bukovie", a beech forest. The official city name in full is the "Municipality of Bucharest" (Romanian: Municipiul București). A native or resident of Bucharest is called a "Bucharester" (Romanian: bucureștean). History Bucharest's history alternated periods of development and decline from the early settlements of the Antiquity and until its consolidation as capital of Romania late in the 19th century. First mentioned as the "Citadel of București" in 1459, it became a residence of the Wallachian prince Vlad III the Impaler. Bucharest rapidly grew to be the economic center of Romania. The Ottomans appointed Greek administrators to the town beginning in the 18th century. A revolt led by Tudor Vladimirescu in 1821 ended the rule of the Constantinople Greeks of the town. The Old Princely Court (Curtea Veche) was built by Mircea Ciobanul, and under subsequent rulers, Bucharest was established as the summer residence of the court, competing with Târgoviște for the status of capital after an increase in the importance of southern Muntenia brought about by the demands of the suzerain power, the Ottoman Empire. Bucharest became a permanent location for the Wallachian court after 1698 (starting with the reign of Constantin Brâncoveanu). Partly destroyed by natural disasters and rebuilt several times during the following 200 years, and hit by Caragea's plague in 1813–1814, the city was wrested from Ottoman control and occupied at several intervals by the Habsburg Monarchy (1716, 1737, 1789) and Imperial Russia (three times between 1768 and 1806). It was placed under Russian administration between 1828 and the Crimean War, with an interlude during the Bucharest-centred 1848 Wallachian revolution, and an Austrian garrison took possession after the Russian departure (remaining in the city until March 1857). Additionally, on 23 March 1847, a fire consumed about 2,000 buildings, destroying a third of the city. In 1862, after Wallachia and Moldavia were united to form the Principality of Romania, Bucharest became the new nation's capital; in 1881, it became the political centre of the newly-proclaimed Kingdom of Romania under Carol I. During the second half of the 19th century, due to its new status, the city's population increased dramatically, and a new period of urban development began. During this period, gas lighting, horse-drawn trams and limited electrification were introduced. The Dâmboviţa was also channelled in 1883, thus putting a stop to previously endemic floods. The extravagant architecture and cosmopolitan high culture of this period won Bucharest the nickname of "Little Paris" (Micul Paris), with Calea Victoriei as its Champs-Élysées. Between 6 December 1916 and November 1918, the city was occupied by German forces as a result of the Battle of Bucharest, with the legitimate capital temporarily moved to Iași. After World War I, Bucharest became the capital of Greater Romania. The interwar years saw continued development, with the city gaining an average of 30,000 new residents each year. Also, some of the city's main landmarks were built in this period, including Arcul de Triumf and Palatul Telefoanelor. However, the Great Depression took its toll on Bucharest's citizens, culminating in the Griviţa Strike of 1933. In January 1941, the city was the scene of the Legionnaires' rebellion and Bucharest pogrom. As the capital of an Axis country and a major transit point for Axis troops en route to the Eastern Front, Bucharest suffered heavy damage during World War II due to Allied bombings, and, on 23 August 1944, was the site of the royal coup which brought Romania into the Allied camp, suffering a short period of Luftwaffe bombings as well as a failed attempt by German troops to take the city by force. After the establishment of communism in Romania, the city continued growing. New districts were constructed, most of them dominated by tower blocks. During Nicolae Ceaușescu's leadership (1965–1989), much of the historic part of the city was demolished and replaced with Socialist realist development such as the Centrul Civic (the Civic Centre), including the Palace of the Parliament, where an entire historic quarter was razed to make way for Ceaușescu's megalomaniac constructions. On 4 March 1977, an earthquake centered in Vrancea, about 135 km (83.89 mi) away, claimed 1,500 lives and caused further damage to the historic centre. The Romanian Revolution of 1989 began with mass anti-Ceaușescu protests in Timișoara in December 1989 and continued in Bucharest, leading to the overthrow of the Communist regime. Dissatisfied with the post-revolutionary leadership of the National Salvation Front, student leagues and opposition groups organized large-scale protests continued in 1990 (the Golaniad), which were violently stopped by the miners of Valea Jiului (the Mineriad). Several other Mineriads followed, the results of which included a government change. After the year 2000, due to the advent of significant economic growth in Romania, the city has modernized and is currently undergoing a period of urban renewal. Various residential and commercial developments are underway, particularly in the northern districts, while Bucharest's historic centre is currently undergoing restoration. Treaties signed in Bucharest Treaty of 28 May 1812, at the end of the Russo-Turkish War Treaty of 3 March 1886, at the end of the Serbo-Bulgarian War Treaty of 10 August 1913, at the end of the Second Balkan War Treaty of 4 August 1916, the treaty of alliance between Romania and the Entente Treaty of 6 May 1918, the treaty between Romania and the Central Powers