Streetscape and history of Cluj

Cluj-Napoca, city, capital of Cluj județ (county), northwestern Romania. The historic capital of Transylvania, it is approximately 200 mi (320 km) northwest of Bucharest in the Someșul Mic River valley. The city stands on the site of an ancient Dacian settlement, Napoca, which the Romans made a municipium.

In the Middle Ages the name of the city was Culus, as attested in documents of 1173, but by the beginning of the 15th century it was known as Cluj (probably from Castrum Clus, a small fortification dating from 1213). The city has also been known by its German name, Klausenburg, and its Hungarian name, Kolozsvár. It became a thriving commercial and cultural centre, and in 1405 it was declared a free town. After the constitution of the autonomous principality of Transylvania in the 16th century, Cluj became its capital. In 1920 the city, with the rest of Transylvania, was incorporated into Romania. Napoca was added to the city’s name in 1974 by Nicolae Ceaușescu.Read more