Giurtelecu Şimleului

Infobox Settlement
name = Giurtelecu Şimleului
Somlyógyőrtelek
Wüst Görgen
official_name = Official name: Giurtelecu Şimleului
settlement_type = Settlement
native_name =
nickname = Giurtelec,
Jurtelec, Győrtelek
motto = Concordia Salus
("well-being through harmony")

imagesize =
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pushpin_

pushpin_label_position = Giurtelecu Şimleului
pushpin_map_caption =Location of Giurtelecu Şimleului within Romania
pushpin_mapsize =

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map_caption = Crasna River banks befor entry in Giurtelecu Şimleului


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = ROM
subdivision_type1 = County
subdivision_name1 =
subdivision_type2 =
subdivision_name2 =
government_footnotes =
government_type =
leader_title =
leader_name =
leader_title1 =
leader_name1 =
established_title =Established
established_date =1259

area_footnotes =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 =
area_land_km2 =
area_water_km2 =
area_total_sq_mi =
area_land_sq_mi =
area_water_sq_mi =

population_as_of = 2002
population_footnotes =
population_total = 1,055
population_metro = 1,055
population_density_km2 =
population_density_sq_mi =
population_blank1_title = Demonym
population_blank1 = Giurtelecan

timezone = EET
utc_offset = +2
timezone_DST = EEST
utc_offset_DST = +3
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m =
elevation_ft =
elevation_max_m = 267
elevation_max_ft = 879
elevation_min_m = 190
elevation_min_ft =
latd = 47 |latm = 18 |lats = 0 |latNS = N
longd = 22 |longm = 48 |longs = 0 |longEW = E
coordinates_display = inline,title
coordinates_type = type:city_region:RO
postal_code_type = Postal Code
postal_code = 457238
area_code = +40 x60¹
blank_name = Car Plates
blank_info = SJ
blank1_name = Official language
blank1_info = Romanian
blank2_name = Flow through
blank2_info = Crasna River
website =
footnotes = ¹x is a digit indicating the operator: 2 for Romtelecom and 3 for the other ground telephone networks

Giurtelecu Şimleului ( _hu. Somlyógyőrtelek or simply "Győrtelek", _de. Wüst Görgen) is a settlement situated in the North West part of Transylvania (Sălaj County), Romania. It is also known as "Giurtelec" or "Giurtelecu" in Romanian.

Giurtelecu Şimleului is an important archaeological site, as it has the oldest traces of human presence on Coasta lui Damian dates from the Stone Age. Traditionally, Giurtelecu Şimleului was a multiethnic community, with different languages being spoken and different religions practiced.

Geography

Giurtelecu Şimleului is situated at an altitude of 267 m on the banks of the Crasna River. The Crasna River belongs to the Black Sea draining basin, via the Tisza and Danube. The Vârşolţ dam protects the settlement against floods.

Damian’s promontory (Coasta lui Damian) is the natural landmark of Giurtelecu Şimleului, dominating its skyline. This promontory is part of North Eastern spur of "Măgura Şimleului" Massif, which belongs to the Carpathian Mountains.

Nearby settlements of Giurtelecu Şimleului

West: Soruşa - 3 km (1.7 nm)

North: Măerişte - 2 km (1.0 nm)

East: Ilişua (Hungarian: Ilosva) - 5 km (2.0 nm), Măgura - 5 km (2.0 nm), Slovacii - 5 km (2.0 nm), Lompirt - 5 km (2 mil)

South: Ceheiu - 6 km (3.1 nm), Ceheiu-Pusta - 6 km (3.1 nm), Şimleu Silvaniei 7 km (4.0 nm), Bădăcin - 7 km (3.6 nm)

Climate

Giurtelecu Şimleului has a continental climate, characterised by hot dry summers and cold winters. The average temperature in January is -3°C, in July 21.1°C. The average annual precipitation is about 627mm. Some West Atlantic influences are present during winter and autumn.

Winter temperatures are often below 0°C (32°F), even though they rarely drop below −10°C (14°F). On average, snow covers the ground for 65 days each winter. In summer, the average temperature is approximately 18°C (64°F) (the average for July and August), despite the fact that temperatures sometimes reach 35°C (95°F) to 40°C (104°F) in mid-summer. Although average precipitation and humidity during summer is low, there are infrequent yet heavy and often violent storms. During spring and autumn, temperatures vary between 13°C (55°F) to 18°C (64°F), and precipitation during this time tends to be higher than in summer, with more frequent yet milder periods of rain.

Tourism and Sightseeing in Giurtelecu Şimleului

Giurtelecu Şimleului is 25 km from the Transylvania Motorway, which is still under construction. A railway line connected the settlement with the rest of Europe at the end of the 19th century.

Giurtelecu Şimleului is in a scenic area, and Coasta lui Damian provides many spectacular views. The touristic potential of Giurtelecu Şimleului is bound to the natural and manmade elements.

Folk music (like "Barcaul din Giurtelec" or "Romanesc din Giurtelec") and dances from Giurtelecu Şimleului are also noteworthy for Transylvania, Partium and Crişana.

* http://www.propertyromania.com/Romanian%20music.htm
* http://www.photomagazine.ro/galeriefoto/pic_detail.php?

Demographics

Giurtelecu Şimleului has been shifting from agriculture to the service industry. In the second half of the 20th century, many inhabitants worked in nearby towns, but now the majority of the working age population works in other countries within the EU, although the majority of them return to retire in Giurtelecu Şimleului. The area has a low cost of living, which is attractive to seniors on a fixed income.

Housing costs in Giurtelecu Şimleului are low, and so many families are attracted to the area. The public school is the largest employer in Giurtelecu Şimleului and received a grant of 100.000 RON (approx. 30,000 Euro) in 2006 from the Romanian government for capital rehabilitation of the structure (Romania’s Official Monitor, October 19, 2006). The population of the town is fairly stable. As of the 2002 census, there were 1,055 people residing in Giurtelecu Şimleului.

In 1910, Giurtelecu Şimleului had 662 men and 660 women.

Archaeological Sites in Giurtelecu Şimleului

Here is a list with the archaeological sites from Giurtelecu Şimleului and the discoveries:

"Coasta lui Damian" Site

Damian’s Promontory (Romanian: Coasta lui Damian or Dealul lui Damian) is the most prominent landmark of Giurtelecu Şimleului and it can be seen from every corner of the settlement. "Coasta lui Damian" is the main archaeological site in Giurtelecu Şimleului. The promontory part of the North Eastern versant of the “Măgura Şimleului” Massif.

At the end of Coasta lui Damian, there is a plateau. The plateau is 60x30m. The hill is reachable only from the Crasna River meadow on a long route, slope, or via the narrow saddle that connects with the rest of the promontory.

Here is a list with the archaeological discoveries at "Coasta lui Damian" site:
* La Tène Culture (The Late Iron Age)
* Bronze Age settlement, Wietenberg Culture
* Bronze Age settlement, Coţofeni Culture
* Neolithic settlement, Tiszapolgár Culture
* discoveries from 7th-9th centuries
* 10th-11th centuries, The Early Middle Ages

Well positioned strategically and naturally fortified, the site different human communities in search of security for thousands of years. Older defensive settlements located on Coasta lui Damian have been destroyed by the most recent arrivals.

There is an archaeological site situated on a plateau at the end of Damian’s Promontory. The archaeological site was first studied by M. Moga, who made a short survey of the site. The Museum of Zalău began archaeological excavations in 1998. In August 1999, the archaeological site has been further excavated.

The oldest traces of human presence on Coasta lui Damian date from the Neolithic period. The Neolithic era layer is separated from the Eneolithic level by a thick ash layer, perhaps deriving from a wide-spread fire which destroyed the Neolithic settlement.

During the Tiszapolgár Culture, a new settlement grew up on the plateau. The plateau is exposed to winds which can cause fires to spread out of control, and the only water source is located at the foot of the hill, and it is probably these reasons which led the Eneolithic residents to abandon this area for a high terrace on the bank of Crasna River, called today “Dâmbul Radului” (Radu’s Hill); a bronze ax was discovered at this site in the 20^th century. Former settlements were a burial site or cemetery; a tomb of the Tiszapolgár Culture was discovered in 1998.

Archaeologists have found discarded household goods and other refuse from the Coţofeni Culture up on the plateau. A hut from this era was investigated but in an area away from the wind, on a terrace located below the plateau. Ceramic material indicates a late stage of Coţofeni Culture. After the Coţofeni Culture died away, Wietenberg Culture succeeded it on Coasta lui Damian (Damian’s Promontory). Two houses and a workshop of theWietenberg Culture are on the plateau.

Dacians used the site to bar access from this area to central area of “Măgura Şimleului” acropolis.

A top arrow dating from the 10th century was found on Coasta lui Damian.

"Tărbăcii" Site

* Bronze Age civil settlement, Wietenberg Culture

"Dâmbul Radului" Site or "Dealul Radului" Site

* Neolithic civil settlement

"Berc" Site

* Neolithic axe (isolated descovery until now)

"Măgură" Site or "Măgura" Site or "Poiana Măgura" Site

* Neolithic civil settlement

"Cârstor" Site

* discoveries from 7th-9th centuries

Time line of Giurtelecu Şimleului

* Stone Age - First settlement in Giurtelecu Şimleului
* 106 to 271 - Giurtelecu Şimleului was a few kilometers outside of Roman Empire border (Limes).
* 1241 - The region was devastated during the Mongol invasion
* 1259 - Giurtelecu Şimleului's earliest mention in recorded history
* 1687, October - Giurtelecu Şimleului was added to the expanding territories of Habsburg Monarchy
* 1715 - first official census in Giurtelecu Şimleului
* 1867 - Giurtelecu Şimleului returned to the Kingdom of Hungary within the newly established Austria-Hungary
* 1876 - Giurtelecu Şimleului became part of the newly established Szilágy County , Szilágysomlyó District
* 1919 - Giurtelecu Şimleului became part of Romania
* 1920 - Census: 1,395 inhabitants at Giurtelecu Şimleului
* 1940 to 1944 - Giurtelecu Şimleului was again part of Hungary during World War II
* 1944, May - mass deportations of Jews from Giurtelecu Şimleului to German death camps in occupied Poland
* 1950 - Giurtelecu Şimleului become part of Şimleu Rayon, Bihor region, set after the soviet style; in 1952 Bihor region changed its name into Oradea Region and in 1960 it changes its name to Crişana Region
* 1968 - part again of re-established Sălaj county
* 1998-1999 - systematic archaeological excavations at Giurtelecu Şimleului
* 2006 - The public school of Giurtelecu Şimleului received from the Romanian Government a grant of 30,000 Euro (100.000 RON) for capital rehabilitation of the structure

References

* The Cambridge Ancient History: Second Edition, By John Boardman (N. G. L. Hammond, D. M. Lewis, Frank William Walbank, A. E. Astin, Elizabeth Rawson, Edward Champlin, Andrew Lintott, Alan K. Bowman, J. A. Crook, Peter Garnsy, Dominic Rathbone), Cambridge University Press, 2000); ISBN 0521224969.
* G. Schumacher-Matthäus, Studien zu bronzezeitlichen Schmucktrachten im Karpatenbecken. Marburger Studien zur Vor- und Frühgeschichte 6 (Mainz 1985) 243; Karte 11
* N. G. O. Boroffka, Die Wietenberg-Kultur. Universitätsforschungen zur Prähistorischen Archäologie 19 (Bonn 1994) 46
*Petri Mór, "Szilágy vármegye monographiája" (Budapest, 1901-1904)
* Sanda Băcueţ Crişan, "Noi descoperiri preistorice în judeţul Sălaj" [New prehistoric discoveries in Sălaj County] , Giurtelecu Şimleului- Coasta lui Damian, in Acta Musei Porolissensis, Zalău, 2000, vol. 23 (1), pp. 9-28, ISSN 1016-2801
* Ioan Bejinariu, Dan Sana, Şantierul arheologic Giurtelecu Şimleului – “Coasta lui Damian”, Cronica cercetărilor arheologice din România, CIMEC, 1999.
* Gheorghe Sisestean, Forme traditionale de viata taraneasca, Ed. Centrului Judetean de Conservare si Valorificare a Traditiei si Creatiei Popular Sălaj (Zalău, 1999).
* Ioan Ciocian, Biserica si societatea romaneasca din Transilvania: vicariatul Silvaniei in a doua jumatate a sec. al XIX-lea (Vasile Goldis University Press, 2000).
* Zoia Maxim, Neo-Eneoliticul din Transilvania. Date arheologice şi matematico-statistice (Publicaţie), nr.465, 1999
* Sanda Băcueţ Crişan, Early Neolithic and Eneolithic in Şimleu Depression [Neoliticul şi eneoliticul timpuriu în Depresiunea Şimleului] , doctoral thesys (Alba Iulia, 2007).
* Dan Băcueţ Crişan, Depresiunea Silvaniei in secolele VII-XI, from Zeno Karl PINTER, Ioan Marian ŢIPLIC, Maria Emilia ŢIPLIC, (Sibiu, 2005), ISBN 973-709-158-2.
* Augustin Deac, "The History of the Historical Truth", 2002.
* V. Russu, Silvania antica (Regio transvallana Daciae porolissensis). Bulletin Societatea Geografică Română 10,3/4, 1889, 171-437 (388-391)
* M. Moga, Traiul populaţiei daco-romane şi barbare la grăniţa de vest a Daciei. Stud. şi Cerc. Istor. Veche 1, 1950, 131-135 (132)
* K. Horedt, Die Wietenbergkultur. Dacia N.S. 4, 1960, 107-137 (111 Nr. 59; 127)
* Ioan Oros, Cazania lui Varlaam în Sălaj - exemplarul necunoscut de la Giurtelec [On an unknown copy of Varlam's Homiliary in Giurtelec] ("Cazania" de Varlaam en Sălaj - l'exemplaire inconnu de Giurtelec). In: AMP, 1996, 20, p.465-467.
* I. H. Crişan, Contribuţie la inceputurile ritului de incineraţie în Transilvania. Probleme Muzeogr. 1961, 169-178 (Nr.3)
* N. Chidioşan, Sincronismele apusene ale culturii Wietenberg stabilite pe baza importurilor ceramice. Crisia 4, 1974, 153-170 (156 Nr. 11)
* T. Soroceanu/M. Blăjan/T. Cerghi, Cimitirul de incineraţie de la Aiton. File Istor. 4, 1976, 57-82 (67)
* I. Andriţoiu, Cimitirul de incineraţie din epoca bronzului de la Deva. Stud. şi Cerc. Istor. Veche 29, 1978, 241-256 (254 Nr.9)
* N. Chidioşan, Cultura Wietenberg la vest de Munţii Apuseni. Rezumatul tezei de doctorat (Cluj-Napoca 1979) 20 Nr. 12
* Viorel Ciubota, Cornel Grad, 1918: Sfarsit si inceput De Epoca [1918 the End and the Beginning of an Era] , Hardcover, Editura Muzeului Satmarean, ISBN 9739802664 (973-98026-6-4)
* N. Chidioşan, Contribuţii la istoria tracilor din nord-vestul României. Aşezarea Wietenberg de la Derşida (Oradea 1980) 88 Nr. 2
* Romania’s Official Monitor, nr. 859, 19 octombrie 2006.
* Legea nr. 2/1968, republicată în 1981/Anexa 1 - Judeţul Sălaj
* Ileana Petrean - Pausan si Gh. Chende – Roman, Profesorul, dirijorul si compozitorul Marius Cuteanu – Cetatean de Onoare al orasului Simleu Silvaniei: "A nu trai degeaba - acesta este un mare lucru", "Caiete Silvane", Zalău.
* E. Lakó, Repertoriul topografic al epocii bronzului şi al hallstattului timpuriu în judeţul Sălaj. Acta Mus. Napocensis 7, 1983, 69-100
* I. Bejinariu, Săpăturile arheologice de la Giurtelecu Şimleului-Coasta lui Damian (II). Descoperirile culturii Wietenberg, în C.I. Popa, G.T. Rustoiu (editori)
* László Zentai and Pál Kósa, A történelmi Magyarország atlasza és adattára 1914, Pécs: Talma Kiadó (2003). ISBN 9638568348.

External links

* http://www.donau-archaeologie.de/doku.php/kataloge/grabkatalog/g/giurtelec
* http://www.mek.oszk.hu/04700/04750/html/293.html
* http://sebok1.adatbank.transindex.ro/legbelso.php3?nev=Szilagy
* http://ro.wikisource.org/wiki/Legea_nr._2/1968,_republicat%C4%83_%C3%AEn_1981/Anexa_1_-_Jude%C5%A3ul_S%C4%83laj
* http://harta.infoturism.ro/romania/Salaj/harta_Salaj.php
* http://www.photomagazine.ro/galeriefoto/pic_detail.php?

* http://www.cimec.ro/scripts/Monumente/Culte/detaliu.asp?k=31123-1
* http://www.cjsj.ro/localitati/giurtelecusimleului.html
* http://www.hiszi-map.hu/catalog/displayimage.php?pid=2337&fullsize=1