Neamț County

Neamț County (Romanian pronunciation: [ne̯amt͡s] ^ⓘ) is a county (județ) of Romania, in the historic region of Moldavia, with the county seat at Piatra Neamț. The county takes its name from the Neamț River.

Neamț County Județul Neamț
County
Coat of arms
Coordinates: 46.97°N 26.4°E / 46.97; 26.4
Country	Romania
Development region	Nord-Est
Capital	Piatra Neamț
Government
• President of the County Council	Vasilică-Daniel Harpa [ro] (PSD)
• Prefect	Adrian Bourceanu [ro]
Area
• Total	5,897 km2 (2,277 sq mi)
• Rank	18th
Population  (2021-12-01)[1]
• Total	454,203
• Rank	17th
• Density	77/km2 (200/sq mi)
Telephone code	(+40) 233 or (+40) 333[2]
ISO 3166 code	RO-NT
GDP (nominal)	US$ 2.430 billion (2015)
GDP per capita	US$ 5,161 (2015)
Website	County Council Prefecture

Demographics

Population

In 2011, it had a population of 470,766 and a population density of 80/km².

• Romanians - 98.25%^[3]
• Lipovans - 0.05%
• Hungarians (more specifically Csángós) - 0.04%
• Roma - 1.48%, and others

Year	County population[4]
1948	357,348
1956	419,949
1966	470,206
1977	532,096
1992	577,619
2002	554,516
2011	470,766
2021	454,203

Religion

Religion in Neamț County (2011)[5] Eastern Orthodox   83.2% Catholic   9.6% Unknown   5.0% Other faiths (e.g. Seventh-day Adventists, Pentecostalism, Islam)   2.2%

Geography

Bistrița Valley

Neamț County has an area of 5,897 km² (2,277 sq mi).^[6]: 17

The relief decreases from west to east. In the western part, there are mountains, the Eastern Carpathians, with heights of over 1,800 m (5,900 ft) and the impressive peak of Ceahlău Massif. Along the Bicaz River lies the canyon of Cheile Bicazului. Construction of the Bicaz Dam in the 1950s on the Bistrița River led to the formation of Lake Bicaz (Lake Izvorul Muntelui), the largest artificial lake completely in Romania.^[6]: 15

On the western side, the lowest point, at about 160 m (520 ft), is found along the Siret River's valley.

Neighbours

AB

AR

AG

BC

BH

BN

BT

BV

BR

BZ

CS

CL

CJ

CT

CV

DB

DJ

GL

GR

GJ

HR

HD

IL

IS

IF

MM

MH

MS

NT

OT

PH

SM

SJ

SB

SV

TR

TM

TL

VS

VL

VN

B

• Iași County and Vaslui County in the East.
• Harghita County in the West.
• Suceava County in the North.
• Bacău County in the South.

Economy

The Bicaz Dam

The county's main industries are

• Chemical industry
• Mechanical parts
• Textiles
• Food stuffs
• Construction materials

One of the greatest dams in Romania, the Bicaz Dam is built along the Bistrița River, forming the Bicaz Lake; the water of the lake is used for electricity production at Bicaz-Stejaru Hydroelectric Power Station.

History

In 2025 researchers using LiDAR in the forests of Neamț County discovered a 5,000-year-old fortification which roughly dates back to the transition from the Neolithic period to the Bronze Age.^[7]

Tourism

Further information: Tourism in Romania

The church of Văratec Monastery

Ceahlău Massif

Neamț County is known as the region with the most monasteries to be found per square kilometer in the world.^{[citation needed]} The monumental church of Neamț Monastery has been a model for Moldavian churches and monasteries. The Moldavian art style, of great originality and stylistic unity, was developed by blending Gothic elements with Byzantine motifs.

The county is host to two of Romania's 9 national parks: the Ceahlău Massif and the Vânători-Neamț Natural Park.

The county's main tourist attractions include

• The city of Piatra Neamț, with its medieval square and ski facilities;
• The city of Roman
  • Agapia Monastery
  • Bistrița Monastery
  • Durău Monastery
  • Horaița Monastery
  • Neamț Monastery
  • Pângărați Monastery
  • Petru Vodă Monastery
  • Războieni Monastery
  • Secu Monastery
  • Sihăstria Monastery
  • Sihla Monastery
  • Văratec Monastery
• Vânători-Neamț Natural Park
• Neamț Citadel in Târgu Neamț
• Ceahlău National Park
• Bicaz Canyon - "Cheile Bicazului"
• Durău Ski Resort
• Hanu Ancuței

Politics

Further information: Politics of Romania

The Neamț County Council, renewed at the 2020 local elections, consists of 34 councillors, with the following party composition:^[8]

	Party	Seats	Current County Council
	Alliance For The Modernisation Of Neamț 2020 (PSD)	13
	National Liberal Party (PNL)	11
	Save Romania Union (USR)	4
	People's Movement Party (PMP)	3
	PRO Romania (PRO)	3

Administrative divisions

Piatra Neamț (German: Kreuzburg an der Bistritz)

The History Museum in Roman

Neamț County has 2 municipalities, 3 towns and 78 communes.

• Municipalities
  • Piatra Neamț - capital city; population: 77,393 (as of 2011 census)
  • Roman - population: 45,344 (as of 2011 census)
• Towns
  • Bicaz
  • Roznov
  • Târgu Neamț

• Communes
  • Agapia
  • Alexandru cel Bun
  • Bahna
  • Bălțătești
  • Bârgăuani
  • Bicaz-Chei
  • Bicazu Ardelean
  • Bâra
  • Bodești
  • Boghicea
  • Borca
  • Borlești
  • Botești
  • Bozieni
  • Brusturi
  • Cândești
  • Ceahlău
  • Cordun
  • Costișa
  • Crăcăoani
  • Dămuc
  • Dobreni
  • Dochia
  • Doljești
  • Dragomirești
  • Drăgănești
  • Dulcești
  • Dumbrava Roșie
  • Farcașa
  • Făurei
  • Gâdinți
  • Gârcina
  • Gherăești
  • Ghindăoani
  • Girov
  • Grințieș
  • Grumăzești
  • Hangu
  • Horia
  • Icușești
  • Ion Creangă
  • Mărgineni
  • Moldoveni
  • Negrești
  • Oniceni
  • Păstrăveni
  • Pâncești
  • Pângărați
  • Petricani
  • Piatra Șoimului
  • Pipirig
  • Podoleni
  • Poiana Teiului
  • Poienari
  • Răucești
  • Războieni
  • Rediu
  • Români
  • Ruginoasa
  • Sagna
  • Săbăoani
  • Săvinești
  • Secuieni
  • Stănița
  • Ștefan cel Mare
  • Tarcău
  • Tașca
  • Tazlău
  • Tămășeni
  • Timișești
  • Trifești
  • Tupilați
  • Țibucani
  • Urecheni
  • Valea Ursului
  • Văleni
  • Vânători-Neamț
  • Zănești

Natives

• Sergiu Celibidache, conductor
• Vasile Conta, philosopher
• Ion Creangă, writer
• Virgil Gheorghiu, writer
• Ștefan Macovei, contemporary sculptor
• Nicodim Munteanu, patriarch

Historical county

Județul Neamț
County (Județ)
The Neamț County Prefect's building from the interwar period, currently the county museum.
Coat of arms
Country	Romania
Historic region	Moldavia
Capital city (Reședință de județ)	Piatra Neamț
Area
• Total	3,977 km2 (1,536 sq mi)
Population  (1930)
• Total	198,223
• Density	50/km2 (130/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)

The county was located in the north-eastern part of Romania, in the north-west of the region of Moldavia. Today, most of the territory of the former county is part of the current Neamț County. It was bordered on the north by Câmpulung County, to the north-east by Baia County, to the east by Roman County, to the south by Bacău County, to the southwest by Ciuc County, and to the west by Mureș County.

Administration

Map of Neamț County as constituted in 1938.

In 1930, the county had four districts (plăși):^[9]

1. Plasa Bistrița
2. Plasa De Mijloc
3. Plasa Muntele
4. Plasa Neamț

In 1938, the county had five districts:

1. Plasa Bistrița, with 45 villages and headquartered in Roznov
2. Plasa Muntele, with 53 villages and headquartered in Broșteni
3. Plasa I.Gh. Duca, with 39 villages
4. Plasa Răsboeni, with 56 villages and headquartered in Răsboeni
5. Plasa Cetatea Neamț, with 15 villages and headquartered in Târgu Neamț

Apart from Piatra Neamț, the county had two urban municipalities (cities): Târgu Neamț and Buhuși.

Population

According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 198,223 inhabitants, 90.3% Romanians, 6.3% Jews, 1.2% Hungarians, as well as other minorities.^[10] From the religious point of view, the population was 90.5% Eastern Orthodox, 6.7% Jewish, 2.3% Roman Catholic, as well as other minorities.

Urban population

In 1930, the county's urban population was 47,957 inhabitants, comprising 69.6% Romanians, 24.7% Jews, 1.3% Hungarians, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population was composed of 69.7% Eastern Orthodox, 25.2% Jewish, 3.4% Roman Catholic, as well as other minorities.