The City of Cluj-Napoca
The city of Cluj-Napoca (Hungarian: Kolozsvár, German: Klausenburg) can trace its origins back to the 2nd century AD, when the Dacian settelement "Napuca" is first mentioned. After the Romans conquered Dacia, they renamed the city "Napoca", which received the rank of "municipium" in 124 AD. The city quickly advanced socially and economically, and during Marcus Aurelius' reign, Napoca received the title "colonia", the highest possible urban status in the Roman Empire.Visiting Cluj-Napoca? Find great accomodation here...
The name Cluj comes from "Castrum Clus", first used in the 12th century as the name of the citadel surrounding the city. "Clus" means "closed" in Latin, and is related to the hills that surround the city. Today's name is therefore made of two parts: "Cluj" (the Roman name of the former citadel from the middle ages) and Napoca (the Dacian name of the city that existed here about 2000 years ago).
Currently, the city is the socio-economic center of Transylvania.
The stable population of the city is around 330.000. However, the city has six state (and several private) universities, of which the Babes-Bolyai University, with over 43.000 students, is the largest and most diverse university in Romania. Consequently, the student population of the city is quite significant, making Cluj-Napoca the city with the largest percentage of student population in Romania.
Five european and nine national road segments meet around Cluj-Napoca, and work is ongoing at the Bors - Cluj-Napoca - Brasov motorway, currently the largest road project in Europe. When finished, Cluj-Napoca will be placed on one of the most important road corridors in Europe, linking the Atlantic Ocean with the Black Sea.