Ațel

For the river in Sibiu County, see Ațel (river).
Ațel
Hetzeldorf
Commune
Aerial view of Ațel/Hatzeldorf with the local medieval Evangelical Lutheran fortified church in the centre
Aerial view of Ațel/Hatzeldorf with the local medieval Evangelical Lutheran fortified church in the centre
Location in Sibiu County
Location in Sibiu County
Ațel is located in Romania
Ațel
Ațel
Location in Romania
Coordinates: 46°09′N 24°28′E / 46.150°N 24.467°E / 46.150; 24.467
CountryRomania
CountySibiu
Established1283 (first attested)
SubdivisionsAțel, Dupuș
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2024) Ioan-Ovidiu Aldea[1] (PNL)
Area
27.21 km2 (10.51 sq mi)
Population
 (2021-12-01)[2]
1,263
 • Density46/km2 (120/sq mi)
Time zoneEET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)
Postal code
557020
Vehicle reg.SB
WebsitePrimăria Comunei Ațel (in Romanian)
Fortified church of Ațel

Ațel (German: Hetzeldorf; Transylvanian Saxon: Hätselderf; Hungarian: Ecel) is a commune in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Ațel and Dupuș (Tobsdorf; Táblás). The commune first appears in written history in 1283 as villa Echelini. Later appearances in written documents are villa Heclini (1289), Hetzelini villa and villa Eczlen (1359), Ecczel (1365), and Heczeldorf (1548). A church is mentioned as of 1380.[3]

Demographics

Population number (grouped by ethnicity) from 1850 to 2011:

Year Romanians Roma Hungarians Germans
(more specifically
Transylvanian Saxons) 		Jews Slovaks Russians Other/
Unknown		 Total
1850 2,078 152 454 1,359 19 - - - 4,062
1992[4] 2,672 205 585 263 - - - - 3,726
2002[5] 1,288 118 34 92 - 6 - 2 1,540
2011[6] 1,138 154 20 77 - - 3 37 1,429

Local architecture

The local medieval Evangelical Lutheran fortified church of Ațel was built by the native Transylvanian Saxon community and completed by the end of the 15th century; it is surrounded by double walls. Above the entrance rises the Old School tower, and close by is the Oat Tower. The fortified church of Dupuș was also built during the 15th century.

Notes

  1. ^ "Results of the 2020 local elections". Central Electoral Bureau. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Populaţia rezidentă după grupa de vârstă, pe județe și municipii, orașe, comune, la 1 decembrie 2021" (XLS). National Institute of Statistics.
  3. ^ Léstyán, Ferenc: Megszentelt kövek. A középkori erdélyi püspökség templomai, Budapest, Arcanum, 2003, ISBN 963-9374-74-1[1]
  4. ^ Varga E. Árpád: Erdély etnikai és felekezeti statisztikája (1850–1992)
  5. ^ Aţel Commune Hall
  6. ^ National Institute of Statistics

References

  • Ațel at GEOnet Names Server
  • Edroiu, Nicolae, Comuna Ațel : Studiu monografic complex, Editura Eurodidact, 2002 ISBN 973-85629-0-2
  • Augustin Ioan, Hanna Derer. The Fortified Churches of the Transylvanian Saxons. Noi Media Print, 2004
Stub icon

This Sibiu County location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.