Wikipedia

Brăila County

Brăila County (Romanian pronunciation: [brəˈila] ⓘ) is a county (județ) of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Brăila.

Brăila County
Județul Brăila
County
Flag of Brăila County
Flag
Coat of arms
Coordinates: 45°07′N 27°41′E / 45.11°N 27.68°E / 45.11; 27.68
Country Romania
Development region1Sud-Est
Historic regionMuntenia
Capital city (Reședință de județ)Brăila
Government
 • TypeCounty Council
 • President of the County CouncilFrancisk-Iulian Chiriac [ro] (PSD)
 • Prefect2Iulian Timofei [ro]
Area
 • County
4,766 km2 (1,840 sq mi)
 • Rank32nd in Romania
Population
 (2021-12-01)[1]
 • County
281,452
 • Rank30th in Romania
 • Density59.05/km2 (152.9/sq mi)
 • Urban
172,533
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal Code
81wxyz3
Area code+40 x394
Car PlatesBR5
GDPUS$1.930 billion (2015)
GDP/capitaUS$6,315 (2015)
WebsiteCounty Council
County Prefecture
1The developing regions of Romania have no administrative role. They were formed just to attract funds from the European Union
2 as of 2007, the Prefect is not a politician, but a public functionary. He (or she) is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and is banned to have any political activity in the first six months after the resignation (or exclusion) from the public functionary corps
3w, x, y, and z are digits that indicate the city, the street, part of the street, or even the building of the address
4x is a digit indicating the operator: 2 for the former national operator, Romtelecom, and 3 for the other ground telephone networks
5used on both the plates of the vehicles that operate only in the county limits (like utility vehicles, ATVs, etc.), and the ones used outside the county

Demographics

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At the 2021 Romanian census, Brăila County had a population of 281,452 (172,533 people in urban areas and 108,919 people in rural areas.) and the population density was 59.1/km2 (152.9/sq mi).[2]

Year County population[4]
1948 271,251 Steady
1956 297,276 Increase
1966 339,954 Increase
1977 377,954 Increase
1992 392,069 Increase
2002 373,174 Decrease
2011 304,925 Decrease
2021 281,452 Decrease

Geography

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This county has a total area of 4,766 km2 (1,840 sq mi).

All the county lies on a flat plane: the Bărăgan Plain, one of the best areas for growing cereals in Romania.

On the east side there is the Danube, which forms an island – the Great Brăila Island –surrounded by the Măcin channel, Cremenea channel, and Vâlciu channel. On the northern side there is the Siret River and on the north-western side there is the Buzău River.

Climate

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The climate is temperate-continental, characterized by hot, dry summers and cold winters, often marked by blizzards. The average annual temperature varies between 10.3°C and 10.5°C, with high annual amplitude values recorded, specifically 25.2°C between summer and winter. In Brăila County, the highest temperature ever recorded in the country (to date) was registered on August 10, 1951, at the Ion Sion meteorological station in Bărăgan, reaching 44.5°C. The absolute minimum temperature (-30.0°C) was recorded at the Griviţa meteorological station on January 25, 1942. The maximum amplitude of absolute extreme temperature values in Brăila County is 74.5°C, ranking second in the country after Braşov County, where this amplitude reaches 77.4°C. Annual atmospheric precipitation averages 400–500 mm, with the majority falling during the warm half of the year, often as heavy showers. Generally, the low amount of precipitation and the frequency of drought years (such as 1896, 1908, 1927, 1934, 1938, 1946, 1951, 1968, 1994, 1996) pose serious problems for agricultural crops, requiring water deficits to be compensated through irrigation. The predominant winds blow most frequently from the North (31.5%) and Northeast (18%), with average annual speeds varying between 1.5 and 5.3 m/s. Maximum speeds are recorded during winter, often exceeding 100 km/h (in February 1954, wind speeds reached 125 km/h). The most known winds are the Crivăț (a cold, dry winter wind blowing from the North and Northeast, caused by the Siberian Anticyclone) and the Suhovei (a hot, dry summer wind blowing from the East).[5]

Landscape in Brăila County in May 2012









Neighbours

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Economy

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The agriculture is the main occupation in the county. Industry is almost entirely concentrated in the city of Brăila. The predominant industries in the county are:

  • Food industry.
  • Textile industry.
  • Mechanical components industry.

In Brăila there is an important harbour, once the biggest cereal harbour in Romania.

Tourism

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DN21, a road in Romania, in Brăila County

The main tourist destinations are:

Politics

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The Brăila County Council, renewed at the 2020 local elections, consists of 30 counsellors, with the following party composition:[6]

    Party Seats Current County Council
  Social Democratic Party (PSD) 17                                  
  National Liberal Party (PNL) 10                                  
  People's Movement Party (PMP) 3                                  

Administrative divisions

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Historical county

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Județul Brăila
County (Județ)
The Brăila County prefecture and court building from the interwar period, now the engineering building of Dunărea de Jos University.
The Brăila County prefecture and court building from the interwar period, now the engineering building of Dunărea de Jos University.
Coat of arms of Județul Brăila
Coat of arms
Country Romania
Historic regionMuntenia
Capital city (Reședință de județ)Brăila
Area
 • Total
4,286 km2 (1,655 sq mi)
Population
 (1930)
 • Total
219,932
 • Density51.31/km2 (132.9/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

Historically, the county was located in the southeastern part of Greater Romania, in the northeastern part of the Muntenia region. Its territory included the portions of the current county to the east and south-east of the Buzău River. It was bordered on the west by the counties of Buzău and Râmnicu-Sărat, to the north by Covurlui County, to the east by Tulcea County, and to the south by the counties of Constanța and Ialomița.

Administration

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Map of Brăila County as constituted in 1938.

The county was originally divided administratively into four districts (plăși):[7]

  1. Plasa Călmățui, with headquarters at Făurei
  2. Plasa Ianca, with headquarters at Ianca
  3. Plasa Silistraru, with headquarters at Silistraru
  4. Plasa Viziru, with headquarters at Viziru

Subsequently, Plasa Călmățui, was abolished and two new districts were established in its place:

  1. Plasa I.I.C. Brătianu, with headquarters at Făurei
  2. Plasa Vădeni, with headquarters at Vădeni

Population

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Map of Brăila County's ethnic groups as reported in the 1930 census.

According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 219,831 inhabitants, ethnically divided as follows: 89.4% Romanians, 3.1% Jews, 2.2% Greeks, 0.7% Hungarians, 0.6% Russians, as well as other minorities.[8] From the religious point of view, the population was 93.6% Eastern Orthodox, 3.3% Jewish, 1.2% Roman Catholic, as well as other minorities.[9]

Urban population

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In 1930, the county's urban population was 68,347 inhabitants, comprising 75.4% Romanians, 9.7% Jews, 6.7% Greeks, 1.7% Hungarians, 1.6% Russians, as well as other minorities.[8] Mother tongues among the urban population were Romanian (82.6%), Greek (5.8%), Yiddish (4.8%), Russian (1.9%), Hungarian (1.5%), as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population was composed of 84.4% Eastern Orthodox, 10.4% Jewish, 3.2% Roman Catholic, as well as other minorities.[9]

References

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  1. ↑ "2021 Romanian census". National Institute of Statistics. 1 December 2021.
  2. ↑ "COMUNICAT DE PRESĂ : 2 februarie 2012 privind rezultatele provizorii ale Recensământului Populaţiei şi Locuinţelor – 2011" (PDF). Recensamantromania.ro. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 April 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  3. ↑ National Institute of Statistics, "Populația după etnie" Archived 16 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ National Institute of Statistics, "Populația la recensămintele din anii 1948, 1956, 1966, 1977, 1992 și 2002" Archived 22 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Brăila". România Geografică. Retrieved 14 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "Rezultatele finale ale alegerilor locale din 2020" (Json) (in Romanian). Autoritatea Electorală Permanentă. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  7. ↑ Portretul României Interbelice – Județul Brăila
  8. 1 2 Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 80-81
  9. 1 2 Recensământul general al populației României din 29 decemvrie 1930, Vol. II, pag. 561
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