Oradea

Oradea is a city in western Romania and the administrative centre of Bihor County. It lies on both banks of the Crisul Repede River, between the Apuseni Mountains and the plain of the Crisana region, about 10 kilometres from the Hungarian border. At the 2021 census it had 183,105 inhabitants, which made it the ninth most populous city in Romania. The Oradea Fortress, whose origins go back to the 11th century when the site served as an episcopal residence and religious centre, played a strategic role in the border region of Central and Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages, and the citadel is first mentioned in 1241, during the Mongol invasion. The Romanian name derives from the Hungarian Nagyvarad, meaning large castle, and the city has also been known as Grosswardein in German and Varadinum in Latin. Oradea is noted for its Art Nouveau architecture and belongs to the Reseau Art Nouveau Network.