Pâncota

Pâncota
—  Town  —
Pâncota Location of Pâncota
Coordinates: 46°19′21″N 21°41′13″E / 46.3225°N 21.68694°E / 46.3225; 21.68694Coordinates: 46°19′21″N 21°41′13″E / 46.3225°N 21.68694°E / 46.3225; 21.68694
Country	Romania
County	Arad County
Status	Town
Government
– Mayor	Iosif Retter (Social Democratic Party)
Area
– Total	66.96 km2 (25.9 sq mi)
Population (2002)
– Total	7,199
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
– Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)

Pâncota (Hungarian: Pankota) is a town in Arad County, western Transylvania, Romania. The town is situated at a 37 km distance from the county capital (Arad), in the central zone of the county, at the contact zone of the Aradului Plateau and Zărandului Mountains. The administrative territory of the town is 70.9 square km. The town administers one village, Măderat.

The first mention in documents of the locality dates back to 1202-1203 when it was known as villa Pankota.

Population

According to the last census its population counts 7186 inhabitants. From an ethnical point of view it has the following structure: 79,3% are Romanians, 8,4% Hungarians, 8,2% Roms, 3,0% Germans, 0,3% Slovaks, 0,7% Ukrainians and 0,1% are of other or undeclared nationalities.

History

The centre of the town was ravaged by the invaders for several times. The Turks captured the town repeatedly, in 1687 it got under the administration of the Habsburg empire, while in 1867 under Austrian-Hungarian administration, and it had belonged to it until the Great Union in 1918.

Economy

The town's present-day economy can be characterized by a powerful dynamic force with significant developments in all the sectors. Industry of building materials, furniture industry, light industry, food industry, services and tourism are the most representative economic sectors. Pâncota is an important centre of vineyards and vine, it is well-known in the country as well as abroad.

Tourist attractions

Among the most significant touristic sights of the town are the urban environs along Tudor Vladimirescu Street, the old post office, the "Schulkovschy" palace and the Matca channel - an important hydrotechnical work.