Historic area in Transylvania, Romania
Map of Burzenland
The coat of arms of Burzenland
?ara Barsei
(
German
:
Burzenland
,
listen
ⓘ
;
Hungarian
:
Barcasag
) is a
historic
and ethnographic area in southeastern
Transylvania
,
Romania
with a mixed population of
Romanians
,
Germans
, and
Hungarians
.
[1]
Geography
[
edit
]
The Burzenland lies within the
Southern Carpathians
mountains ranges, bordered approximately by
Apa?a
in the north,
Bran
in the southwest and
Prejmer
in the east. Its most important city is
Bra?ov
. Burzenland is named after the
stream
Barsa
(
Barca
,
Burzen
, 1231:
Borza
),
[1]
which flows into the
Olt river
.
[2]
[3]
The
Romanian
word
bars?
is supposedly of
Dacian
origin
[4]
(
see
List of Romanian words of possible Dacian origin
).
History
[
edit
]
Middle Ages
[
edit
]
Based on archaeological evidence, it seems German colonization of the region started in the middle of the 12th century during the reign of King
Geza II of Hungary
.
[5]
The German colonists from this region are attested in documents as early as 1192 when
terra Bozza
is mentioned as being settled by Germans (
Theutonici
).
[6]
Map of Burzenland from the first half of the 18th century. Bra?ov appears as Cronstadt/Brassow
In 1211 the region was given to the
Teutonic Knights
by King
Andrew II of Hungary
in return for guarding the southeastern border of the
Kingdom of Hungary
against the
Cumans
. While the king retained his right to mint currency and claims on gold or silver deposits that would be uncovered, he granted the Teutonic Order the right to establish markets and administer justice. The crusaders were also free from taxes and tolls.
[7]
The Teutonic Knights began building wood-and-earth forts in the area and they had constructed five castles (
quinque castra fortia
):
[6]
Marienburg
,
Schwarzenburg
,
Rosenau
, Kreuzburg, and
Kronstadt
,
[7]
some of which were made of stone.
[7]
The
military order
was successful in reducing the threat of the nomadic Cumans.
Medieval Saxons
from the
Holy Roman Empire
developed farms and villages nearby to support the forts and settle the land.
[7]
The territory was already populated at the time when was disputed. Some medieval sources indicate it was uninhabited,
[8]
a view challenged by some scholars invoking archaeological
[5]
[6]
and documentary evidence.
[6]
[9]
Bountiful agricultural yields led to further colonization by German immigrants.
[7]
Burzenland on the Josephine Map of Transylvania, 1769?73
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The Teutonic Knights disregarded the rights of the local bishopric, however, and angered Hungarian nobility which already had settlers in the region. Led by
Bela
, the heir to the throne, the nobility pressed the need to expel the knights upon King Andrew II after his return from the
Fifth Crusade
.
Grand Master
Hermann von Salza
attempted to loosen the Order's ties to the Hungarian crown by drawing closer to the
Papacy
.
[7]
Andrew subsequently evicted the Order with his army in 1225, although
Pope Honorius III
protested to no effect.
[10]
The confusing status of the Teutonic Knights within the Kingdom of Hungary led Hermann von Salza to insist upon autonomy before committing the military order to
Prussia
.
[10]
Along with Germans, the kings of Hungary also settled
Szeklers
and
Pechenegs
in the region during the 12th and 13th centuries.
[6]
Archaeological evidence for the same period also suggests a strong Romanian population inhabiting the villages later known as
?cheii Bra?ovului
,
Satulung
,
Baciu
,
Cernatu
, and
Turche?
(the former is today part of Bra?ov, while the latter four are today part of the adjacent town of
S?cele
).
[6]
In the second half of the 13th century the Romanian population is attested in two documents: in the region of Bran (1252) and
Tohani
(1294),
[11]
while in the second half of the 15th century out of nine villages from the domain of
Bran
seven were Romanian (
villae valachicales, Bleschdorfer
) and only two German.
[11]
At the
Conference of Lutsk
in 1429,
Sigismund
,
Holy Roman Emperor
and King of Hungary, suggested that the Teutonic Knights defend the region during the
Ottoman wars in Europe
. Led by Claus von Redewitz, a detachment of knights from
Prussia
was stationed in the Burzenland until half were killed during an Ottoman campaign in 1432.
[10]
20th century
[
edit
]
Transylvanian Saxons remained in the Burzenland until the 20th century. Beginning in 1976, most of these Germans began to emigrate to
West Germany
with the approval of the
Communist Romanian regime
.
[1]
Towns
[
edit
]
View of part of the Burzenland from the peak of
Post?varu
.
Ghimbav
is on the right, while
Codlea
can be seen in the distance on
M?gura Codlei
.
Same view in winter.
In each case, the modern
Romanian
name is given first, followed by the
German
and
Hungarian
names.
- Apa?a
(
Geist
,
Apaca
)
- Bod
(
Brenndorf
,
Botfalva
)
- Bran
(
Torzburg
,
Torcsvar
)
- Bra?ov
(
Kronstadt
,
Brasso
)
- Codlea
(
Zeiden
,
Feketehalom
)
- Cristian
(
Neustadt
,
Keresztenyfalva
)
- Crizbav
(
Krebsbach
,
Krizba
)
- Dumbr?vi?a
(
Schnakendorf
,
Szunyogszek
)
- Feldioara
(
Marienburg
,
Foldvar
)
- Ghimbav
(
Weidenbach
,
Vidombak
)
- H?lchiu
(
Heldsdorf
,
Holtoveny
)
- H?rman
(
Honigberg
,
Szaszhermany
)
- M?ieru?
(
Nußbach
,
Szaszmagyaros
)
- Prejmer
(
Tartlau
,
Prazsmar
)
- Ra?nov
(
Rosenau
,
Barcarozsnyo
)
- Rotbav
(
Rotbach
,
Szaszveresmart
)
- S?cele
(
Siebendorfer
,
Szecselevaros / Negyfalu
)
- Sanpetru
(
Petersberg
,
Barcaszentpeter
)
- ?ercaia
(
Schirkanyen
,
Sarkany
)
- Vulcan
(
Wolkendorf
,
Szaszvolkany
)
- Z?rne?ti
(
Zernescht
,
Zernest
)
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
Vofkori Laszlo; Lenart Anna (1998). "Unit??i administrativ-teritoriale istorice ?i regiuni etnografice in sudul ?i estul Transilvaniei".
Acta Hargitensia III, Aluta XX
(in Romanian).
2
: 27?36.
. Introduction available on web:
"Unit??i administrativ-teritoriale istorice ?i regiuni etnografice in sudul ?i estul Transilvaniei. Introducere"
(in Romanian). Archived from
the original
on 2005-05-08
. Retrieved
2007-02-12
.
- ^
Deutsche Bergnamen in Tara Barsei (Burzenland)/Rumanien
Archived
2006-07-15 at the
Wayback Machine
. Accessed January 22, 2007.
(in German)
- ^
Deutscher Orden im Burzenland (1211-1225)
. Accessed January 22, 2007.
(in German)
- ^
In the matter of this toponym, Nicolae Dragan concurs with W. Tomaschek who considered that word barsa has a Dacian-Thracian origin having the meaning of birch-tree. That would explain also the plough's "barsa" wooden piece that binds the blades, base and furrows of the ploughs being made from birch-tree (Memoria Ethnologica 2004 quoting N. Draganu's "Din Vechea Noastr? Toponimie" 1920) See also Albanian
verz
. Variant
bir??
. Slovenian
brdce
and Moravian
brdce
"a cross shaped shaft of a carriage (Dic?ionarul etimologic roman, Alexandru Cior?nescu, Universidad de la Laguna, Tenerife, 1958-1966 and Noul dic?ionar explicativ al limbii romane, Litera Interna?ional, Editura Litera Interna?ional, 2002)
- ^
a
b
Ioni??, Adrian (2005).
"Mormintele cu gropi antropomorfe din Transilvania ?i rela?ia lor cu primul val de colonizare german?"
. In Pinter, Zeno Karl; ?iplic, Ion Marian; ?iplic, Maria Emilia (eds.).
Biblioteca Septemcastrensis XII. Rela?ii interetnice in Transilvania (secolele VI-XIII)
(in Romanian). Bucharest: Editura Economic?. pp. 215?226.
ISBN
973-709-158-2
. Retrieved
2007-02-12
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
?iplic, Ion Marian (2005).
Contribu?ii la istoria spa?iului romanesc in perioada migra?iilor ?i evul mediu timpuriu (secolele IV-XIII)
(in Romanian). Institutul European. pp. 165?178.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Urban, William (2003).
The Teutonic Knights: A Military History
. London: Greenhill Books. p. 290.
ISBN
1-85367-535-0
.
- ^
"
Terram Borza nomine ultra silvas versus Cumanos, licet desertam et inhabitatam
".
Georg Daniel Teutsch
and Friedrich Firnhaber.
Urkundenbuch zur Geschichte Siebenburgens
.
Vienna
, 1857, I, no. 10
- ^
Brezeanu, Stelian (2002).
Identit??i ?i solidarit??i medievale
. Bucharest: Corint. pp. 222?232.
ISBN
973-653-347-6
.
The diplomas from 1222 speak of native people inhabiting these lands at the time when the donation was made.
- ^
a
b
c
Christiansen, Erik (1997).
The Northern Crusades
. London: Penguin Books. p.
287
.
ISBN
0-14-026653-4
.
- ^
a
b
Pascu, ?tefan (1979).
Voievodatul Transilvaniei, vol. II
(in Romanian). pp. 441?494.
External links
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Burzenland
.
45°43′N
25°35′E
/
45.717°N 25.583°E
/
45.717; 25.583