Moldoveneşti

Moldoveneşti Várfalva Orfalău, Varfalău
—  Commune  —
Location of Comuna Moldoveneşti Várfalva község
Coordinates: 46°29′55″N 23°40′13″E / 46.49861°N 23.67028°E / 46.49861; 23.67028Coordinates: 46°29′55″N 23°40′13″E / 46.49861°N 23.67028°E / 46.49861; 23.67028
Country	Romania
County	Cluj County
Component villages	Bădeni, Moldoveneşti, Pietroasa, Plăieşti, Podeni, Stejeriş
Government
– Mayor	Paul Kanyaro (since 2004) (UDMR)
Area
– Total	139 km2 (53.7 sq mi)
Population (2002)
– Total	3,644
– Density	26.2/km2 (67.9/sq mi)
Postal code
Website	Moldoveneşti on the Cluj County Council website (Romanian)

Moldoveneşti (formerly Orfalău and Varfalău; Hungarian: Várfalva; German: Burgdorf) is a commune in Cluj County, Romania, 12 km South-West of Turda, in the valley of the Arieş.

History

The oldest record about the ancient castle at the village is from 1075, calling the place Castrum Turda (the old Turda Castle). During the Tatar invasions of Hungary in the 13th Century, most of the area around the castle was ravaged. Later, the land was given to free Székelys who moved here from the Saschiz region and the territory became part of Aranyos Seat.

Etymology

The commune was renamed Moldoveneşti in the interwar period, in honour of Ioan Micu Moldovan. The previous name, Varfalău, is derived from Várfalva, which means "Village of the Castle" in Hungarian.

Component villages

The commune is composed of six villages:

In Romanian	In Hungarian	Ethnic majority
Bădeni	Bágyon	Hungarians
Moldoveneşti	Várfalva	Hungarians
Pietroasa	Csegez	Romanians
Podeni	Székelyhidas	Romanians
Plăieşti	Kövend	Hungarians
Stejeriş	Kercsed	Hungarians

Population

According to the census from 2002 there was a total population of 1,809 people living in this commune. Of this population, 58.36% are ethnic Hungarians, 40.45% are ethnic Romanians and 1.07% ethnic Rroma.^[1]

Famous natives

• Ioan Micu Moldovan - historian and theologian, member of the Romanian Academy

References

1. ^ http://www.edrc.ro/recensamant.jsp?regiune_id=2140&judet_id=2295&localitate_id=2352

• Atlasul localităţilor judeţului Cluj (Cluj County Localities Atlas), Suncart Publishing House, Cluj-Napoca, ISBN 973-86430-0-7