About the City of Lugoj and Banat Region
October 20, 2024 2025-02-24 19:00About the City of Lugoj and Banat Region
About city of lugoj and banat region
Several foreign travelers have written about Lugoj, recognizing it as an important center while also highlighting the Latin character of its population, considering Romanians as a people resulting from the symbiosis of Dacians and Romans.
For instance, the Byzantine traveler Priscus recorded the city's geographical location, referring to the Timiș River as "Thifisas." Another traveler, the Italian Petrus Ranzanus from Palermo, who served as an ambassador at the court of Matthias Corvinus in 1488, also visited Lugoj.
Equally interesting is the admiration of Giovan Andrea Gromo, who described the villages of Transylvania and Banat in his journal, making significant references to the native language and considering it a variant of Latin. Regarding the city, Gromo noted: "In this land, there are many large, open cities, villages like castles and fortresses. The most notable cities include Lugoj—a large, open city through which the navigable Timiș River flows."
The Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi passed through Banat in 1661 and stopped in Lugoj, about which he wrote: "Lugoj is situated on a deserted plain, near the Zeppel stream, which flows into the Timiș. It has a small square fortress built of stone, reinforced with palisades, and surrounded by the Zeppel stream, with an eastern gate and a drawbridge... The city is surrounded by vineyards, gardens, and other fertile plantations. It has no inns, no shops, no schools."
Similarly, the German traveler Johann Lehmann, passing through Lugoj in 1785, made the following observation: "On a beautifully elevated and well-maintained road, I reached Lugoj, which is quite large in itself. It has a beautiful market square with many fine houses. In the square, there are shops run by Greek merchants. The city is divided into two parts by the Timiș River. The German part is well-built and has good inns where travelers stay, although they are somewhat far from the main road. Travelers crossing the bridge must pay a toll for each horse. Lugoj is a pleasant place with jovial inhabitants. In the German part, there is a café with billiards as well as a summer villa owned by Countess Soro, the commander's wife. This lady owns many estates in and around Lugoj. A large part of Lugoj is her property, including land and vineyards. The vineyards of Lugoj produce wines that surpass many others in quality. The countess owns Assu vineyards, which produce wine equal in quality to Tokaji. At the edge of the city, along the road to Transylvania, on the right-hand side, eight gallows are erected. Then, a pleasant plain follows, immediately leading to a high hill with vineyards on both sides of the road. Here and there, summer houses can be seen."
From Johann Lehmann's description, we can conclude that the city had been rebuilt after the expulsion of the Turks, and economic and social life had resumed, even though between 1737 and 1739, parts of Banat suffered from another Turkish incursion. The population that had supported the arrival of the Turks faced severe punishments after their retreat or sought refuge in forests, from where they launched attacks against the imperial administration.
The first documented mention of Lugoj in these lands, as recorded by Anonymus, refers to an earthen fortress on the banks of the Timiș in 896, which was part of the principality of Glad, ruler of the territories between the Mureș and the Danube. The Vlachs under Glad’s leadership resisted the Hungarian invaders, but despite their efforts, they were ultimately defeated, and Glad was forced to accept Hungarian suzerainty. The year 1241 marks the Tatar invasion, which managed to destroy King Béla IV’s army. After the Tatars left, in 1242, Béla IV ordered the reconstruction of several fortresses, including Lugoj, which represents the first written attestation of the city on the banks of the Timiș.
Another document, dating from 1376 and issued by the King of Hungary, Sigismund, states that the Lugoj fortress was granted to the Count of Timiș. Other documents from 1379 mention Lugoj as a city-fortress under the command of Nicholas Garai, known as the castellan. The city continued to develop, becoming an important strategic point, located at a crossroads of major communication routes toward Transylvania.
The earliest historical records of Lugoj, then just a small fortress, date back to the reign of Louis the Great (1369). It is later mentioned under King Sigismund, in 1428, when it was under the rule of the Teutonic Knights. On May 7, 1529, Lugoj was granted a municipal coat of arms, with Romanian mayors such as Dimitrie Luca (1529), N. Luca (1546), and Anca Gaspar (1557) leading the city during that period.
The city lies at approximately 125 meters above sea level, on both banks of the Timiș River. The landscape consists of the Timiș floodplain, accompanied by terraces on the left bank and bordered by forested hills to the northeast and southeast.
The first settlers in Lugoj arrived in 1718, settling on the left bank of the Timiș and forming their own administration, calling it "German Lugoj." However, historical documents and statistical records indicate that the Romanian population remained the majority in the area. Urbarial conscriptions confirm the predominance of the native population in local settlements. Although both Hungarian and Romanian historiography acknowledge the Habsburg colonizations, they did not cause significant demographic changes.
From an etymological perspective, the toponym "Lugoj" has been given various interpretations. Vasile Maniu argued that it derives from the Latin "lucus" (marshy forest). Some historians and linguists suggest that it originates from the Slavic "lug" or "luh" (meadow, swampy forest). The latter explanation seems more plausible, given the marshy terrain in the Timiș floodplain. Thus, "lug," with the addition of the suffix "-os," led to the toponym "Lugos," which underwent transformations in modern times, resulting in "Lugoj." According to the recent view of Simion Dănilă, the local pronunciation "Logoj" might come from "logoj," the plural of "logoz," a Banat dialect word for "rogoz" (a type of reed plant growing in marshy areas, used for weaving mats and sometimes for roofing rural houses).
For instance, the Byzantine traveler Priscus recorded the city's geographical location, referring to the Timiș River as "Thifisas." Another traveler, the Italian Petrus Ranzanus from Palermo, who served as an ambassador at the court of Matthias Corvinus in 1488, also visited Lugoj.
Equally interesting is the admiration of Giovan Andrea Gromo, who described the villages of Transylvania and Banat in his journal, making significant references to the native language and considering it a variant of Latin. Regarding the city, Gromo noted: "In this land, there are many large, open cities, villages like castles and fortresses. The most notable cities include Lugoj—a large, open city through which the navigable Timiș River flows."
The Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi passed through Banat in 1661 and stopped in Lugoj, about which he wrote: "Lugoj is situated on a deserted plain, near the Zeppel stream, which flows into the Timiș. It has a small square fortress built of stone, reinforced with palisades, and surrounded by the Zeppel stream, with an eastern gate and a drawbridge... The city is surrounded by vineyards, gardens, and other fertile plantations. It has no inns, no shops, no schools."
Similarly, the German traveler Johann Lehmann, passing through Lugoj in 1785, made the following observation: "On a beautifully elevated and well-maintained road, I reached Lugoj, which is quite large in itself. It has a beautiful market square with many fine houses. In the square, there are shops run by Greek merchants. The city is divided into two parts by the Timiș River. The German part is well-built and has good inns where travelers stay, although they are somewhat far from the main road. Travelers crossing the bridge must pay a toll for each horse. Lugoj is a pleasant place with jovial inhabitants. In the German part, there is a café with billiards as well as a summer villa owned by Countess Soro, the commander's wife. This lady owns many estates in and around Lugoj. A large part of Lugoj is her property, including land and vineyards. The vineyards of Lugoj produce wines that surpass many others in quality. The countess owns Assu vineyards, which produce wine equal in quality to Tokaji. At the edge of the city, along the road to Transylvania, on the right-hand side, eight gallows are erected. Then, a pleasant plain follows, immediately leading to a high hill with vineyards on both sides of the road. Here and there, summer houses can be seen."
From Johann Lehmann's description, we can conclude that the city had been rebuilt after the expulsion of the Turks, and economic and social life had resumed, even though between 1737 and 1739, parts of Banat suffered from another Turkish incursion. The population that had supported the arrival of the Turks faced severe punishments after their retreat or sought refuge in forests, from where they launched attacks against the imperial administration.
The first documented mention of Lugoj in these lands, as recorded by Anonymus, refers to an earthen fortress on the banks of the Timiș in 896, which was part of the principality of Glad, ruler of the territories between the Mureș and the Danube. The Vlachs under Glad’s leadership resisted the Hungarian invaders, but despite their efforts, they were ultimately defeated, and Glad was forced to accept Hungarian suzerainty. The year 1241 marks the Tatar invasion, which managed to destroy King Béla IV’s army. After the Tatars left, in 1242, Béla IV ordered the reconstruction of several fortresses, including Lugoj, which represents the first written attestation of the city on the banks of the Timiș.
Another document, dating from 1376 and issued by the King of Hungary, Sigismund, states that the Lugoj fortress was granted to the Count of Timiș. Other documents from 1379 mention Lugoj as a city-fortress under the command of Nicholas Garai, known as the castellan. The city continued to develop, becoming an important strategic point, located at a crossroads of major communication routes toward Transylvania.
The earliest historical records of Lugoj, then just a small fortress, date back to the reign of Louis the Great (1369). It is later mentioned under King Sigismund, in 1428, when it was under the rule of the Teutonic Knights. On May 7, 1529, Lugoj was granted a municipal coat of arms, with Romanian mayors such as Dimitrie Luca (1529), N. Luca (1546), and Anca Gaspar (1557) leading the city during that period.
The city lies at approximately 125 meters above sea level, on both banks of the Timiș River. The landscape consists of the Timiș floodplain, accompanied by terraces on the left bank and bordered by forested hills to the northeast and southeast.
The first settlers in Lugoj arrived in 1718, settling on the left bank of the Timiș and forming their own administration, calling it "German Lugoj." However, historical documents and statistical records indicate that the Romanian population remained the majority in the area. Urbarial conscriptions confirm the predominance of the native population in local settlements. Although both Hungarian and Romanian historiography acknowledge the Habsburg colonizations, they did not cause significant demographic changes.
From an etymological perspective, the toponym "Lugoj" has been given various interpretations. Vasile Maniu argued that it derives from the Latin "lucus" (marshy forest). Some historians and linguists suggest that it originates from the Slavic "lug" or "luh" (meadow, swampy forest). The latter explanation seems more plausible, given the marshy terrain in the Timiș floodplain. Thus, "lug," with the addition of the suffix "-os," led to the toponym "Lugos," which underwent transformations in modern times, resulting in "Lugoj." According to the recent view of Simion Dănilă, the local pronunciation "Logoj" might come from "logoj," the plural of "logoz," a Banat dialect word for "rogoz" (a type of reed plant growing in marshy areas, used for weaving mats and sometimes for roofing rural houses).
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