Suceava County, as part of the historical and geographical region of Bukovina, had been sometimes described as 'Switzerland of the East'.[4][5][6] It has also been known as 'Switzerland of Eastern Europe' in the minds of the educated public.[7]
In 2011, as per the official census conducted that year, Suceava County had a population of 634,810, with a population density of 74/km2. The proportion of each constituent ethnic group is displayed below as follows, according to how they were officially recorded:[10]
Historical population in the 20th and 21st centuries
In the recent past, during the early 20th century, Suceava County used to be more ethnically heterogenous or mixed (due to the ethnic legacy and heritage of the former Austro-Hungarian times when most of the territory of the county was part of the Duchy of Bukovina), with sizeable minority populations of Germans (more specifically Bukovina Germans, including Zipsers), Jews, Ukrainians, Poles, or Hungarians (more specifically Székelys of Bukovina). These minority communities gradually dwindled throughout much of the 20th century.
In addition, small German minority groups/communities existed (and still exist) on the territory of Suceava County which forms part of Western Moldavia as well, more specifically Regat Germans (German: Regatsdeutsche) inhabiting the small town of Fălticeni (German: Folitscheni) for example.
Nowadays, during the early 21st century, the county is inhabited mostly by Romanians with very few minority ethnic groups, therefore making it very ethnically homogenous. Additionally, the primary language of the majority of the population is Romanian and the main religion is Eastern Orthodoxy represented by the Romanian Orthodox Church.
Geography
Most of Suceava County is situated in southern Bukovina, which is represented by the darker area on this map.[a]
The location of Suceava, the county seat town of Suceava County, in the northeast of Romania.[b]
Two-thirds of the county lies within the southern part of the historical region of Bukovina, while the rest of it incorporates territories from Western Moldavia proper.
In terms of total area, it covers a surface of 8,553 square kilometres (3,302 sq mi), making it thus the second in Romania in this particular regard, just after Timiș County in Banat.
The western side of the county consists of mountains from the Eastern Carpathians group: the Rodna Mountains, the Rarău Mountains, the Giumalău Mountains, and the Ridges of Bukovina, the latter with lower heights.
The county's elevation decreases towards the east, with the lowest height in the Siret River valley. The rivers crossing the county are the Siret River with its tributaries: the Moldova, Suceava, and Bistrița rivers.
Neighbours
The county of Suceava is bordered by the following other territorial units:
In 2017, Suceava was ranked 3rd in Romania regarding the total tourist accommodation capacity, after Brașov and Constanța counties.[13] Furthermore, one year later in 2018, Suceava County was designated "European destination of excellence" by the European Commission (EC).[14]
The main tourist attractions of the county are:
The town of Suceava with its medieval fortifications;
The elected President of the County Council was Constantin Sofroni (FSN).[15] The Suceava County Council, elected at the 1992 local elections, consisted of 45 councillors, with the following party composition:[16]
The elected President of the County Council was Gavril Mârza (PDSR). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 1996 local elections, consisted of 45 councillors, with the following party composition:[17]
The elected President of the County Council was Gavril Mârza (PDSR). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 2000 local elections, consisted of 45 councillors, with the following party composition:
The elected President of the County Council was Gavril Mârza (PSD). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 2004 local elections, consisted of 37 councillors, with the following party composition:
The elected President of the County Council was Gheorghe Flutur (PDL). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 2008 local elections, consisted of 36 councillors, with the following party composition:
The elected President of the County Council was Cătălin Nechifor (PSD/USL). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 2012 local elections, consisted of 36 councillors, with the following party composition:[18]
The elected President of the County Council was Gheorghe Flutur (PNL). The Suceava County Council, elected at the 2016 local elections, consisted of 37 councillors, with the following party composition:[19]
The elected President of the County Council is Gheorghe Flutur (PNL). The Suceava County Council, renewed at the 2020 local elections, consists of 36 county councillors, with the following party composition:[20]
During June 2010, Gheorghe Flutur, at that time (as now) the president of Suceava County Council, stated in a Mediafax interview that his county was one of the worst hit in the country. In the morning of June 29, relief work was coordinated to deal with the flooding that killed 21 people and caused hundreds to be evacuated from their homes.[22]
In the Kingdom of Romania, between the early 20th century up to the end of the 1940s, the county had a smaller size and population.
The contemporary Suceava county is the result of the merger of other smaller former Romanian counties from the historical regions of Bukovina and Western Moldavia that were functional mostly throughout the interwar period (e.g. Rădăuți County, Câmpulung County) and part of Baia County). As per the administrative reform of 1938 under King Carol II, the whole counties which divided Bukovina in the Kingdom of Romania were united into a bigger land called Ținutul Suceava. Later, during World War II, Suceava County was part of the Bukovina Governorate of Romania.
As for the historical interwar Suceava County, this administrative unit was located in the northern part of Greater Romania and the southern part of the historical region of Bukovina respectively. Its territory was situated entirely within the borders of the current Suceava County, constituting thus the central-eastern part of the contemporary namesake county. During the interwar period, it was the smallest county of Greater Romania by area, covering 1,309 square kilometres (505 sq mi).
During the communism period, Suceava County was at some point dissolved (as were all other counties in Romania as per the law no. 5 from 6 September 1950), then changed into the Suceava Region and then re-organized once again as county starting from 1968.
The coat of arms of Ținutul Suceava (1938–1940)
The communist coat of arms of Suceava County
Alternative contemporary coat of arms of Suceava County
Administrative organization
Map of Suceava County as constituted in 1938.
As of 1930, the county was administratively subdivided into three districts (plăși):[24]
As a mother tongue in the urban population, Romanian (60.4%) predominated, followed by German (18.7%), Yiddish (13.8%), Ukrainian (3.2%), Polish (2.2%), as well as other minor spoken languages. From the religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 60.6% Eastern Orthodox, 18.8% Jewish, 15.3% Roman Catholic, 2.0% Greek Catholic, 1.7% Evangelical Lutheran, 0.7% Baptist as well as other confessional minorities.[26]
Notes
^The rest of the territory encompassed by the county is part of Western Moldavia (i.e. the area coloured in yellow).
^Due also to its geographic location and historical legacy, Suceava County used to be (and still is to some extent) a county where more ethnicities and cultures live together.
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