Copșa Mică, 622 Years of History in Search of a New Identity
Copșa Mică, 622 Years of History in Search of a New Identity

Summary/Abstract: The humble settlement Copșa Mică was put on the map by a famous fire that lasted seven years. The fire caused by the attempts to exploit a methane gas deposit led the place into a new age of development. A mostly rural community for 500 years, it was industrialised and became a town in less than 50 years. The demographic data unequivocally express the spectacular growth of the place: in this short time of its history, the population has increased almost six times. This artificial growth was based exclusively on the development of the industrial platform; in all other areas, Copșa Mică was always eclipsed by the proximity to Mediaș, an old historic city. Mediaș was the only place in the area to benefit from the status of a city, civitas, already in 1359. However, starting with 1407, the terms oppidum (market) and villa became more widely used. These names reflected the privileged status of the place. Earlier than Mediaș, only Sibiu (1326) and Bistrița (1349) were named civitas. A special case is Cisnădie, called civitas even before Sibiu, but then it regressed and never returned to its previous status.The accelerated development, oblivious to the harmful effects on the environment and health, has brought the city an unwanted reputation as the most polluted city in Europe. The ecological disaster continued in 2003–2004. Following the protest in 2008 and the countless complaints accumulated over time, one of the two major polluters decided to limit its production in 2009. In the past decades, Copșa Mică has embarked on the long road towards rehabilitation. However, for a town that barely numbers 5,000 inhabitants, which is a minimum number for preserving its current administrative form, finding a new identity seems to be a challenge. Or perhaps an opportunity and a paradigm shift?

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