Bucharest
Bucharest (UK: /ˌbuːkəˈrɛst/ BOO-kə-REST, US: /ˈbuːkərɛst/ -rest; Romanian: București [bukuˈreʃtʲ] ⓘ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater metropolitan area of 2.3 million residents, which makes Bucharest the 8th most-populous city in the European Union. The city area measures 240 km2 and comprises 6 districts (Sectoare), while the metropolitan area covers 1,811 km2 . Bucharest is a beta global city, a major cultural, political and economic hub, and the country's seat of government.
Not to be confused with Budapest.
Bucharest
București
Romania
1459
240 km2 (93 sq mi)
1,803 km2 (696 sq mi)
55.8–91.5 m (183.1–300.2 ft)
1,716,961
1,739,297
7,277/km2 (18,850/sq mi)
2,304,408 (Bucharest-Ilfov)[2]
1,278/km2 (3,310/sq mi)
€ 88.18 billion (25.4% of Romania)
€ 97.74 billion (28.2% of Romania)
€ 50,751[4]
+40 31
0.963[5] – very high
Bucharest was first mentioned in documents in 1459. The city became capital in 1862 and is the centre of Romanian media, culture, and art. Its architecture is a mix of historical (mostly Eclectic, but also Neoclassical and Art Nouveau), interbellum (Bauhaus, Art Deco, and Romanian Revival architecture), socialist era, and modern. In the period between the two World Wars, the city's elegant architecture and the sophistication of its elite earned Bucharest the nicknames of Little Paris (Romanian: Micul Paris) or Paris of the East (Romanian: Parisul Estului).[6] Although buildings and districts in the historic city centre were heavily damaged or destroyed by war, earthquakes, and even Nicolae Ceaușescu's program of systematization, many survived and have been renovated. In recent years, the city has been experiencing an economic and cultural boom.[7][8] It is one of the fastest-growing high-tech cities in Europe, according to the Financial Times, CBRE, TechCrunch, and others.[9][10][11][12][13]
In 2016, the historical city centre was listed as 'endangered' by the World Monuments Watch.[14] In 2017, Bucharest was the European city with the highest growth of tourists who stay over night, according to the Mastercard Global Index of Urban Destinations.[15] As for the past two consecutive years, 2018 and 2019, Bucharest ranked as the European destination with the highest potential for development according to the same study.[16]
In January 2023, there were 1.74 million inhabitants living within the city limits,[2] and adding the satellite towns around the urban area, the proposed metropolitan area of Bucharest would have a population of 2.3 million people.[2] In 2020, the government used 2.5 million people as the basis for pandemic reports.[17] Bucharest is the eighth largest city in the European Union by population within city limits, behind Warsaw, Poland and one position ahead of Budapest, Hungary.
Economically, Bucharest is the most prosperous city in Romania and the richest capital and city in the region, having surpassed Budapest since 2017.[18][19][20]
The city has a number of large convention facilities, educational institutes, cultural venues, traditional 'shopping arcades' and recreational areas.
The city proper is administratively known as the 'Municipality of Bucharest' (Romanian: Municipiul București), and has the same administrative level as that of a national county, being further subdivided into six sectors, each governed by a local mayor.
Etymology[edit]
The Romanian name București has an unverified origin. Tradition connects the founding of Bucharest with the name of Bucur, who was a prince, an outlaw, a fisherman, a shepherd or a hunter, according to different legends. In Romanian, the word stem bucurie means 'joy' ('happiness'),[21] and it is believed to be of Dacian origin,[22] hence the city Bucharest means 'city of joy'.[23]
Other etymologies are given by early scholars, including the one of an Ottoman traveller, Evliya Çelebi, who claimed that Bucharest was named after a certain 'Abu-Kariș', from the tribe of 'Bani-Kureiș'. In 1781, Austrian historian Franz Sulzer claimed that it was related to bucurie (joy), bucuros (joyful), or a se bucura (to be joyful), while an early 19th-century book published in Vienna assumed its name to be derived from 'Bukovie', a beech forest.[24] In English, the city's name was formerly rendered as Bukarest. A native or resident of Bucharest is called a 'Bucharester' (Romanian: bucureștean).
Bucharest is the centre of the Romanian economy and industry, accounting for around 24% (2017) of the country's GDP and about one-quarter of its industrial production, while being inhabited by 9% of the country's population.[84] Almost one-third of national taxes is paid by Bucharest's citizens and companies. The living standard in the Bucharest–Ilfov region was 145% of the EU average in 2017, according to GDP per capita at the purchasing power parity standard (adjusted to the national price level).
The Bucharest area surpassed, on comparable terms, European metropolitan areas such as Budapest (139%), Madrid (125%), Berlin (118%), Rome (110%), Lisbon (102%), and Sofia (79%), and more than twice the Romanian average.[85] After relative stagnation in the 1990s, the city's strong economic growth has revitalised infrastructure and led to the development of shopping malls, residential estates, and high-rise office buildings. In January 2013, Bucharest had an unemployment rate of 2.1%, significantly lower than the national unemployment rate of 5.8%.[86][87]
Bucharest's economy is centred on industry and services, with services particularly growing in importance in the past 10 years. The headquarters of 186,000 firms, including nearly all large Romanian companies, are located in Bucharest.[88] An important source of growth since 2000 has been the city's rapidly expanding property and construction sector. Bucharest is also Romania's largest centre for information technology and communications and is home to several software companies operating offshore delivery centres. Romania's largest stock exchange, the Bucharest Stock Exchange, which was merged in December 2005 with the Bucharest-based electronic stock exchange Rasdaq, plays a major role in the city's economy.
Malls and large shopping centres have been built since the late 1990s, such as Băneasa Shopping City, AFI Palace Cotroceni, Mega Mall, București Mall, ParkLake Shopping Centre, Sun Plaza, Promenada Mall and longest Unirea Shopping Centre. Bucharest has over 20 malls as of 2019.[89][90]
The corporations Amazon, Microsoft, Ubisoft, Oracle Corporation, or IBM are all present in the Romanian capital. The top ten is also dominated by companies operating in automotive, oil & gas (such as Petrom), as well as companies in telecommunication and FMCG.[91][92] The Speedtest Global Index ranks Bucharest the 6th city in the world (after Beijing, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Valparaíso, and Lyon) in terms of fixed broadband speed, at 250Mbps as of 2023.[93]
Overall, 159 faculties are in 34 universities. Sixteen public universities are in Bucharest, the largest of which are the University of Bucharest, the Politehnica University of Bucharest, the Bucharest University of Economic Studies, the Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Technical University of Civil Engineering, the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, and the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest.
These are supplemented by nineteen private universities, such as the Romanian-American University.[123] Private universities, however, have a mixed reputation due to irregularities.[124][125]
In the 2020 QS World University Rankings, from Bucharest, only the University of Bucharest was included in the top universities of the world. The Politehnica University disappeared from the ranking.[126] Also, in recent years, the city has had increasing numbers of foreign students enrolling in its universities.[127]
The first modern educational institution was the Princely Academy from Bucharest, founded in 1694 and divided in 1864 to form the present-day University of Bucharest and the Saint Sava National College, both of which are among the most prestigious of their kind in Romania.[128][129]
Over 450 public primary and secondary schools are in the city, all of which are administered by the Bucharest Municipal Schooling Inspectorate. Each sector also has its own Schooling Inspectorate, subordinated to the municipal one.
Media[edit]
The city is well-served by a modern landline and mobile network. Offices of Poșta Română, the national postal operator, are spread throughout the city, with the central post office (Romanian: Oficiul Poștal București 1) located at 12 Matei Millo Street. Public telephones are located in many places and are operated by Telekom Romania, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom and successor of the former monopoly Romtelecom.
Bucharest is the headquarters of most national television networks and national newspapers, radio stations and online news websites. The largest daily newspapers in Bucharest include Evenimentul Zilei, Jurnalul Național, Cotidianul, România Liberă, and Adevărul, while the biggest news websites are HotNews (with English and Spanish versions), Ziare.com, and Gândul. During the rush hours, tabloid newspapers Click!, Libertatea, and Cancan are popular for commuters.
Several newspapers and media publications are based in House of the Free Press (Casa Presei Libere), a landmark of northern Bucharest, originally named Casa Scânteii after the Communist Romania-era official newspaper Scînteia. The House of the Free Press is not the only Bucharest landmark that grew out of the media and communications industry. Palatul Telefoanelor ("The Telephone Palace") was the first major modernist building on Calea Victoriei in the city's centre, and the massive, unfinished communist-era Casa Radio looms over a park a block away from the Opera.
English-language newspapers became available in the early 1930s and reappeared in the 1990s. The two daily English-language newspapers are the Bucharest Daily News and Nine O' Clock; several magazines and publications in other languages are available, such as the Hungarian-language daily Új Magyar Szó.
Observator Cultural covers the city's arts, and the free weekly magazines Șapte Seri ("Seven Evenings") and B24FUN, list entertainment events. The city is home to the intellectual journal Dilema veche and the satire magazine Academia Cațavencu.
Visit Bucharest Today is another online platform promoting Bucharest as a tourist destination. It serves as a comprehensive resource for local and international travelers seeking to learn about the capital city of Romania. The online platform showcases Bucharest's rich history, cultural landmarks, hidden gems, and exciting experiences.
