Cernavodă (Romanian pronunciation: [t͡ʃernaˈvodə]) is a town in Constanța County, Northern Dobruja, Romania with a population of 15,088 as of 2021.

Cernavodă
Cernavodă and the Danube-Black Sea Canal
Cernavodă and the Danube-Black Sea Canal
Coat of arms of Cernavodă
Location in Constanța County
Location in Constanța County
Cernavodă is located in Romania
Cernavodă
Cernavodă
Location in Romania
Coordinates: 44°20′17″N 28°02′01″E / 44.33806°N 28.03361°E / 44.33806; 28.03361
CountryRomania
CountyConstanța
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2024) Liviu Negoiță[1] (PNL)
Area
46.69 km2 (18.03 sq mi)
Elevation
50 m (160 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-01)[2]
15,088
 • Density320/km2 (840/sq mi)
Time zoneEET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)
Postal code
905200
Vehicle reg.CT
Websitewww.primaria-cernavoda.ro

The town's name is derived from the Bulgarian černa voda (черна вода in Cyrillic), meaning 'black water'. This name is regarded by some scholars as a calque of the earlier Thracian name Axíopa, from IE *n̥ksei 'dark' and upā 'water' (cf. Avestan axšaēna- 'dark' and Lithuanian ùpė 'river, creek').[3]

Economy

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The town is a Danube fluvial port. It houses the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant, consisting of two CANDU reactors providing about 18% of Romania's electrical energy output. The second reactor was built through a joint venture between Canada's Atomic Energy of Canada Limited and Italy's ANSALDO and became fully functional in November 2007.

The Danube–Black Sea Canal, opened in 1984, runs from Cernavodă to Agigea and Năvodari.

The outskirts of Cernavodă host numerous vineyards, producers of Chardonnay wine. The largest winery in the area is Murfatlar.

History

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Cernavodă was founded under the name Axiopolis by the ancient Greeks in the 4th century BC as a trading post for contacts with local Dacians.[citation needed] A Roman fort was built as part of the defensive frontier system of the Moesian Limes along the Danube.

The railroad from Constanța to Cernavodă was opened in 1860 by the Ottoman administration.

Cernavodă was one of the capitals of the short-lived Silistra Nouă County (1878–1879).

The town gives its name to the late copper age Cernavodă archaeological culture, ca. 40003200 BC.

Demographics

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Historical population
YearPop.±%
1912 5,743—    
1930 6,744+17.4%
1948 6,100−9.5%
1956 8,802+44.3%
1966 11,259+27.9%
1977 13,608+20.9%
1992 22,043+62.0%
2002 20,514−6.9%
2011 16,129−21.4%
2021 15,088−6.5%
Source: Census data

At the 2021 census Cernavodă had a population of 15,088 with a majority of Romanians (80.4%) and minorities of Turks (2.23%), Roma (0.66%), Lipovans (0.47%), Tatars (0.15%), Hungarians (0.05%), Bulgarians (0.02%), others (0.7%) and unknown (15.32%).[4]

At the 2011 census Cernavodă had 16,129 inhabitants; of those, 14,969 were Romanians (92.81%), 463 Turks (2.87%), 374 Roma (2.32%), 106 Lipovans (0.66%), 40 Tatars (0.25%), 15 Hungarians (0.09%), and 162 others.

Natives

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Results of the 2020 local elections". Central Electoral Bureau. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Populaţia rezidentă după grupa de vârstă, pe județe și municipii, orașe, comune, la 1 decembrie 2021" (XLS). National Institute of Statistics.
  3. ^ Radoslav Katičić; Mate Križman (1976). Ancient Languages of the Balkans, Part One. Mouton. p. 149.
  4. ^ "Populația rezidentă după grupa de vârstă, pe județe și municipii, orașe, comune, la 1 decembrie 2021" (in Romanian). INSSE. 31 May 2023.
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