Timișoara

The Hungarian name of the city, Temesvár, was first recorded as Temeswar in 1315. It refers to a castle (vár) on the Timiș River (Temes). The Romanian and German oikonyms (Timișoara and Temeschburg, respectively) derived from the Hungarian form. hydronym which was in use until the 18th century when it was changed to Bega or Beghei. == History ==

Early history The southeastern part of the Pannonian Basin is bounded by the Mureș, the Tisza and the Danube; the region was very fertile and already offered favorable conditions for food and human livelihood in 4000 BC. Archeological remains attested the presence of a population of farmers, hunters and artisans, whose existence was favored by mild climate, fertile soil and abundant water and forests. The first identifiable civilization in Banat were the Dacians who left traces of their past. Several Romanian historians have advanced the idea that the current location of Timișoara corresponds to the Dacian settlement of Zurobara. Although its location is unknown, the coordinates given by geographer Ptolemy in Geographike Hyphegesis place it in the northwest of Banat. Middle Ages served as a defensive wall of the Timișoara Fortress. It is assumed that in the 9th century, Knyaz Glad ruled over these lands, accepting Hungarian sovereignty, though no contemporary accounts exist. or castrum regium Themes. This year is disputed by historians of the opinion that the city's first documentary mention comes from 1266, when heir apparent Stephen V of Hungary donates part of the Tymes fortress, built by his father, Béla IV, to Count Parabuch. The city was destroyed by the Tatars in the 13th century, He even moved the royal seat from Buda to Timișoara between 1316 and 1323. John Hunyadi would come to be known throughout the region for his victory in Belgrade over the Ottomans, considered at that time a defender of Christianity. An important event in the city's history was the peasant uprising led by György Dózsa. On 10 August 1514 he tried to change the course of Bega River to be able to enter more easily into the city, but he was defeated by attacks from both inside and outside the city. After the death of John Zápolya, Habsburgs tried to obtain Transylvania and Banat, including Timișoara, with mixed results; Transylvania even entered into dual vassalage for a time. During this period, Timișoara was transformed into an Ottoman fortification, with mosques, minarets, Quran schools, Turkish baths, and bazaars being built. Timișoara became home to a large Islamic community and was predominantly populated by Muslims. The Ottoman period of Timișoara produced famous historical figures, such as Osman Ağa of Temeşvar and Ali of Temeşvar. Except for a period in the late 16th century, the city did not suffer sieges until the end of the 17th century. In 1594, Gregory Palotić, Ban of Lugos and Karánsebes, started an anti-Ottoman uprising in Banat, with its starting point in Nagybecskerek. Following a strong Transylvanian offensive led by György Borbély, the Christian army conquered several towns, but Timișoara remained untouched. Another attempt to retake the city took place in 1596, when an army of Sigismund Báthory began the siege of the city. After 40 days of futile efforts, the besiegers drew back. Habsburg rule (1716–1860) After the victory at Petrovaradin on 5 August 1716, the Austrian army led by Prince Eugene of Savoy decided to conquer Timișoara. The Ottoman military, the kuruc and the Turkish civilian population were forced to leave the city after a 48-day siege marked by repeated bombings that destroyed much of the city's buildings. After the Treaty of Passarowitz (1718), the Banat of Temeswar became the province of the Habsburg monarchy under the German name of Temeschburg and was proclaimed a "possession of the Crown", with a military administration which ruled it until 1751 when it was replaced by a civil one. After the conquest of Banat, the imperial authorities in Vienna began an extensive process of colonization, inviting especially German Catholics from Württemberg, Swabia, Nassau, etc. who would become known as Banat Swabians. In 1781 Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor declared Temeschburg free from the county authority and, to prevent the nobles from interfering with the administration of the city, he raised it to the rank of a "free royal city". In December 1989, Timișoara witnessed a series of mass street protests in what was to become the Romanian Revolution. On 20 December, three days after bloodshed began there, Timișoara was declared the first city free of Communism in Romania. == Geography ==

Timișoara is located at the intersection of the 45th parallel north with the 21st meridian east. As a mathematical position, it is in the Northern Hemisphere, almost equally distant from the North Pole and the equator, and in the Eastern Hemisphere, using Central European Time. The local time of the city (considered after the meridian) is 1 h 25' 8" ahead of the Greenwich Mean Time, but it is 34' 52" behind the official time of Romania (Eastern European Time). Timișoara lies at an altitude of 90 meters on the southeast edge of the Banat Plain, part of the Pannonian Plain, near the divergence of the Timiș and Bega rivers. The rich black soil and relatively high water table make this a fertile agricultural region. Taken as a whole, the relief of Timișoara appears as a relatively flat, monotonous surface, the smoothness of the surface interrupted only by the Bega riverbed. Researched in detail, the relief of the city and its surroundings presents a series of local peculiarities, represented mainly by deserted meanders, micro-depressions and ridges (generally made of coarse materials). These are the result of the deposits in the area of the Timiș and Bega rivers, before their drainage, regularization and damming (concretized altimetrically by modest bumps, which do not exceed anywhere, the interval of 2–3 m). The earthquakes recorded in the region are normal earthquakes, of crustal type, with depths of foci between . Flora and fauna Lake, 2012 In the past, there were extensive oak forests between the Tisza and Timiș. Over time, they were cleared to obtain the wood needed to build the fortress and houses, as well as to gain arable land. Today, except for the areas forested with Turkey oak and Hungarian oak (Green Forest, Bistra Forest, Timișeni–Șag Forest), the territory falls within the anthropogenic forest steppe that characterizes the entire Pannonian Basin. The landscape is diversified by meadow vegetation, along the main rivers, in which softwood trees predominate: willows, poplars, alders. Within the city limits is the Green Forest (), a forest massif with an area of about , systematically arranged in squares of . The fauna of Timișoara includes few mammals, represented only by a few insectivores and rodents. The birds, on the other hand, are numerous, some of which are of hunting importance (the pheasant). Climate Like parts of Romania, Timișoara exhibits a transitional humid continental (Köppen: Dfb) and humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa), characteristic of the southeastern part of the Pannonian Basin, with some sub-Mediterranean influences. The dominant air masses, during spring and summer, are the temperate ones, of oceanic origin, which bring significant precipitations. Frequently, even in winter, humid air masses arrive from the Atlantic, bringing significant rains and snows, less often cold waves. From September to February there are frequent penetrations of continental polar air masses, coming from the east. In Banat, the influence of cyclones and hot air masses from the Adriatic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea is also strongly felt, which in winter generate complete thawing and in summer impose periods of stifling heat. while the highest temperature was , recorded in August 2017. The average number of frost days (with minimum temperatures below ) is 80, and the average number of winter days (with maximum temperatures below 0 °C) is 17. The average number of tropical days (with maximum temperatures above ) is 45. Predominantly under the influence of the maritime air masses from the northwest, Timișoara receives a higher amount of precipitation than the cities in the Wallachian Plain. The average amount of precipitation for the year in Timișoara is , falling on 87 days. The month with the most precipitation on average is June with 80.8 mm of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is February with an average of . == Demography ==

{{Pie chart {{Pie chart From a demographic point of view, Timișoara is defined, according to the Zipf's law, as a second-tier city, along with Iași, Constanța, Cluj-Napoca and Brașov, with extensive macro-territorial functions and having the second largest functional urban area, after Bucharest, of over . In 2013, Bucharest and Timișoara were also the only metropolitan European growth areas (MEGAs) in Romania. According to the 2021 census, the population of Timișoara amounted to 250,849 inhabitants, However, these figures are questioned by local authorities and sociologists due to the defective way in which the census was conducted. According to the mayor's office and local population records, Timișoara numbers over 309,000 inhabitants as of 2023. The population of the city represents roughly 38% of the population of Timiș County, 15% of the population of the West development region and 1.3% of the total population of Romania. According to a study conducted by the World Bank, Timișoara was between 2001 and 2011 the regional city in Romania that attracted the highest number of in-migrants. Timișoara serves as an important polarizer of the labor force for other regions of the country, with a demographic surplus, especially for the counties in northern Moldavia, northwestern Transylvania and Oltenia. In fact, 46.2% of the current population of Timișoara is made up of people who have moved here from elsewhere. Ethnic minorities Timișoara has stood out since ancient times as an ethnically diverse city. In 1910, the largest community was represented by Germans, followed by Hungarians, Romanians, Jews, Serbs and many other smaller communities, such as Czechs, Slovaks, Croats, Romas, Bulgarians, Poles, etc. The figures and percentage ratios are much changed today, but the multiethnic aspect of the city persists. Nowadays, 85% of the inhabitants are Romanians, while the minorities are much more diverse due to the presence of Asians, Italians, Muslims, and fewer Germans and Hungarians. Despite this, Timișoara is the city with the largest population of Germans in Romania. The decline of German and Hungarian communities is mainly due to assimilation (for instance, 64% of Hungarians in Timișoara live in mixed marriages), migration and low birth rates. Timișoara is also home to an important Serb community, which in 2011 numbered almost 5,000 people. Many of them use Serbian as a second language, preferring Romanian. Serbian is more common among older generations educated in it. In 2018, according to official data, over 7,000 foreigners lived in Timișoara. The actual figure is higher, given that many foreigners living in Timișoara do not apply for permanent residence, while spending most of their time in the city. Languages Timișoara's linguistic landscape is shaped by its complex historical, cultural, and demographic evolution. Romanian is the official and predominant language, spoken by the vast majority of the population. Reflecting the city's ethnic diversity, several minority languages continue to be present, including Hungarian, German, and Serbian, particularly within older generations and specific ethnic communities. Beyond these, languages such as Slovak, Bulgarian, and Romani have also been part of the city's linguistic fabric for centuries. While Yiddish, once widely spoken among the Jewish population, has nearly vanished, German dialects – especially those of the Swabian (Schwäbisch) variety – remain in use in some communities. in 2011 75% declared themselves Romanian Orthodox. In Timișoara there are 80 churches, 12 of which were built after 1989; 41 belong to the Orthodox Church, eight to the Roman Catholic Church and three to the Greek Catholic Church. the Orthodox synagogue in Iosefin and the central Neolog synagogue still hold regular religious services. Timișoara is the seat of the Archiepiscopate of Timișoara, the see of the Metropolis of Banat, as well as the seat of the Diocese of Timișoara, one of the six Roman Catholic dioceses in Romania. == Law and government ==

Administration , mayor since 2020 The first free local elections in post-communist Timișoara took place in 1992. The winner was Viorel Oancea, of the Civic Alliance Party (PAC), which later merged with the National Liberal Party (PNL). He was the first officer who spoke to the crowd of revolutionaries gathered in Opera Square. The 1996 elections were won by Gheorghe Ciuhandu, of the Christian Democrats (PNȚ-CD). He had four terms, also winning elections in 2000, 2004 and 2008. Meanwhile, Ciuhandu took over the Christian Democratic Party and ran for president of Romania in 2004. Nicolae Robu (PNL) was elected mayor in 2012 and again in 2016. In 2020, Dominic Fritz, a native of Germany, was elected mayor on behalf of the USR with support from the FDGR. He won a new mandate in 2024 on behalf of the United Timișoara Alliance (USR–PMP–FD–UDMR). The Local council and the city's mayor are elected every four years by the population. Decisions are discussed and approved by the Local Council () made up of 27 elected councilors. After the 2024 local elections, the Local Council has the following composition by political parties: Additionally, as Timișoara is the capital of Timiș County, the city hosts the Administrative Palace, the headquarters of the County Council () and the prefect, who is appointed by Romania's central government. The prefect is not allowed to be a member of a political party, and his role is to represent the national government at the local level, acting as a liaison and facilitating the implementation of national development plans and governing programs at the local level. In 2003, neighborhood advisory councils were set up as a measure to improve local government consultation with citizens on local public policies. As of 2013, Timișoara had 20 neighborhood advisory councils. Timișoara is the informal capital of the West development region, which is equivalent to NUTS-II regions in the European Union and is used by the European Union and the Romanian Government for statistical analysis and coordination of regional development projects. The West development region is not an administrative entity. Timișoara is also the largest economic, social and commercial center of the DKMT Euroregion. Districts Traditionally, Timișoara was divided into ten constituencies () that today have no administrative function: In addition to the above, a number of new neighborhoods have emerged in the 20th and 21st centuries: : • Aeroport • Antene • Aradului • Baba Dochia • Badea Cârțan • Blașcovici • Braytim–Timișoara Sud • Bucovina • Buziașului • Câmpului • Circumvalațiunii • Complexul Studențesc • Crișan • Dacia • Dâmbovița • Dorobanților • Gara de Nord • Girocului (Martirilor) • I.I. de la Brad • Kogălniceanu • Kuncz • Lipovei • Mircea cel Bătrân • Modern • Odobescu • Olimpia–Stadion • Pădurea Verde • Prințul Turcesc–Lunei • Ronaț • Șagului • Soarelui • Steaua • Telegrafului • Tipografilor • Torontalului • UMT Metropolitan area The Timișoara metropolitan area was outlined in 2008 following the collaboration of the local authorities from Timișoara and 14 neighboring communes (Becicherecu Mic, Bucovăț, Dudeștii Noi, Dumbrăvița, Ghiroda, Giarmata, Giroc, Moșnița Nouă, Orțișoara, Pișchia, Remetea Mare, Săcălaz, Sânmihaiu Român and Șag). The Timișoara metropolitan area is part of the Federation of Metropolitan Areas and Urban Agglomerations in Romania (FZMAUR). As of 2016, the metropolitan area groups over 410,000 inhabitants on an area eight times larger than the city proper. Several localities neighboring Timișoara have experienced a significant development in recent years. Ghiroda, Giroc, Dumbrăvița, Chișoda, Moșnița Nouă and Utvin became suburbs of Timișoara due to the development of facilities, utilities and infrastructure, territorially joining the city. In the last 20 years, Timișoara has expanded its borders by about 8%, which means about 1,000 hectares, due to the construction of new neighborhoods or residential complexes. The city limits were moved outwards in 2006 by almost . The largest expansion took place towards Șag. the first of its kind in Romania, part of the integrated development strategy Timișoara Vision 2030, carried out with the support of the World Bank, ADR Vest and FZMAUR. The project has been under discussion since 2006 and involved the unification of the metropolitan areas of Timișoara and Arad. In 2018, the population of the metropolis was 805,000 and is expected to exceed one million by 2030. Justice system houses the local court, tribunal and court of appeal. Timișoara has a complex judicial structure due to its role as the capital of Timiș County. The local judicial body is the Timișoara Court of Justice, which operates under the authority of the Timiș County Tribunal. This tribunal also oversees the courts in Lugoj, Deta, Sânnicolau Mare, and Făget. Appeals and more serious cases from these courts are handled by the Timișoara Court of Appeals. Additionally, the city is home to the county's commercial and military tribunals. Timișoara maintains its own municipal police force, Poliția Municipiului Timișoara, which is responsible for law enforcement throughout the city and operates several specialized divisions. The headquarters is located on Andrei Mocioni Street near the city center, with five precincts distributed across the city. The municipal police operate under the authority of the County Police Inspectorate, based on Take Ionescu Boulevard. Additionally, the City Hall runs its own community police force, Poliția Primăriei, which focuses on local community matters. Timișoara is also home to the County Gendarmerie Inspectorate. Although the Romanian Police reported a relatively high local crime rate of 799 incidents in 2024, Timișoara nevertheless continues to rank among the safest urban areas in Romania. == Economy ==

in Romania (lei) at the end of 2024 and changes since 2015, by county. Timiș County has the highest average income in the country after Bucharest, and Timișoara has the highest standard of living nationwide (53rd in Europe) Timișoara is one of the most dynamic economic centers in Romania. Based on its proximity to the western border, Timișoara has managed to attract many foreign investments in recent years, forming, together with Arad, the second largest area in Romania in terms of economic mass. By the mid-2000s, the foreign investments in Timișoara amounted to €753 per capita, compared to €450 per capita at county level. Most of these investments come from the EU countries, especially from Italy, Germany and France. Similar to other growth poles in Romania, the services sector has developed significantly in recent years, accounting for half of the revenues. In 2016, Timișoara was awarded by Forbes as the most dynamic city and the best city for business in Romania. Between 2000 and 2013, Timișoara had the highest growth rate of GDP per capita, surpassing even Bucharest. Industrial sector , the first brewery established on the current territory of Romania. roll machine at Uzinele Textile Timișoara, 1961. During Ceaușescu's time, labor force came to Timișoara from all over Romania After 1989, major changes took place in the structure of industrial activities in Timișoara due to the restructuring and retrofitting processes, industrial production currently including both traditional sub-branches and new, modern and dynamic ones. Unlike cities such as Cluj-Napoca, Iași or Bucharest, the localization of industry within the city is specific to Timișoara. The main industrial groups in the city can be structured in three types: urban industrial areas, with large area and complex profile (Calea Buziașului, Freidorf, pericentral area along the railway, Calea Șagului, etc.), industrial platforms with unitary profile (UMT and Solventul) and dispersed industrial units, respectively. In recent decades, industrial areas have developed along major road or rail arteries, with a tendency to group units by industrial profiles. Developed on the old buildings of the former lens factory, Optica Business Park offices have attracted tenants such as Microsoft, Linde or ZTE. Șagului industrial area includes warehouses of construction materials (Arabesque, Arthema, Lipoplast, Mobexpert, etc.), as well as a significant number of showrooms and car dealers (Mercedes-Benz, Ford, Mitsubishi, Hyundai, Citroën, Opel, etc.). An important role in the development and diversification of the profile of the area is played by the Incontro Industrial Park, where construction companies are mainly located. Calea Șagului has also become an important commercial area, with hypermarkets such as Brico Dépôt, Auchan, Jysk, Metro or Leroy Merlin. Aradului industrial area is the newest industrial area, with various locations for storage and provision of services. Like Calea Șagului, the Aradului area has become an important commercial hub, retailers like Selgros, Hornbach, Altex or Auchan operating here. This economic branch has old traditions. Between 1988 and 1991, the Romanian car model Dacia 500 Lăstun was made in the Tehnometal factories. The electronics and electrical engineering industry is a successful branch of Timișoara's industry, especially due to the investments of large companies with activities in high tech production (Flex, Bosch, ABB, AEM, ELBA, Ericsson, etc.), which determined a development of local companies, suppliers or subcontractors. the stock of class A offices available for rent reaching 290,000 m2 in 2020, almost 10% of Bucharest's stock. The return on investment in office buildings exceeds the level in Bucharest (7%), standing at around 8.25%. City Business Center is the main office park in Timișoara, located in the city center. Completed in 2015, the complex is fully leased, with tenants including international companies such as Accenture, SAP, Deloitte, Wipro, IBM, Visma, Hella, etc. Named the greenest office project in Romania by BREEAM, Vox Technology Park was completed in early 2018. Bega Business Park is located near the historic center. The first two buildings were completed in 2015 and early 2018, respectively, and are fully occupied by Nokia's campus. Under construction are ISHO Offices, part of a larger project, and United Business Center. The latter will include the tallest office building in Romania (155 m). IT&C sector At national level, Timișoara is one of the poles of the most intense activities in the IT industry. Well-known companies such as Google, Microsoft, IBM, Intel, Nvidia, Siemens, Nokia, Huawei, Atos, Accenture, Endava, Bitdefender or Visteon have offices in the city, supporting – through the hubs and the digital workshops created – start-ups and SMEs in the field. Before the rapid expansion of Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara concentrated the most IT professionals after Bucharest. In 2014, Timișoara had 7,000 employees in the field. In the same year, the Incuboxx cluster was inaugurated. Incuboxx is the largest IT&C business incubator in Romania, which includes 54 office spaces addressed to entrepreneurs and companies with local capital in the field. Timișoara ranks 394th in the 2019 Innovation Cities Index, an annual list of the world's most innovation-friendly cities. Bucharest and Timișoara are the only Romanian cities on the list published by the World Economic Forum. Real estate sector The real estate market in Timișoara, supported by the upward economic trend, has been booming lately. In 2017, about 4,000 living spaces were delivered to the market, an increase of almost 60% compared to the previous year, most of the projects representing high-rise residential complexes, addressed to the mass and mid-market segments. In the first nine months of 2016, according to the National Agency for Cadastre and Real Estate Advertising, over 32,000 sale/purchase transactions were concluded, making Timiș County the largest real estate market in Romania after Bucharest–Ilfov. 87% of them took place in Timișoara and neighboring communes. Among the largest residential complexes in Timișoara are ISHO, Adora Forest, Vivalia Grand, XCity Towers, Vox Vertical Village, Ateneo and City of Mara. After 1989 the rural areas within the city became "hot spots" for housing investors, and the emergence of the middle class after 2000 changed both the landscape and the prices of houses and land. In 2020, for example, the price of an apartment reached 1,300 euros/m2, the third-highest among Romanian big cities, after Cluj-Napoca and Bucharest. On the other hand, the phenomenon of gentrification renewed a part of the underused housing stock. Commercial sector at night Bega Shopping Center is the only shopping center in the center of Timișoara and the first in the city. Bega Shopping Center is structured on six levels and has a leasable area of 7,500 m2, of which 1,300 are allocated to a Carrefour supermarket. Bega Group, the holding company that owns Bega Shopping Center, has opened three other retail parks in Buziașului, Circumvalațiunii and Lipovei. Iulius Mall was inaugurated in October 2005. Following an investment by Iulius Group and Atterbury Europe, Iulius Mall has been integrated into a large urban regeneration project – Iulius Town, complementing it with retail, office and entertainment functions. Iulius Town has the largest shopping area in Romania (120,000 m2), a space that brings together over 450 stores. The estimated annual traffic for Iulius Town is over 20 million visitors. The shopping center has a leasable area of 70,000 m2, covering almost 20 ha and comprising 110 stores on two levels. Within Shopping City, the largest Cinema City multiplex outside Bucharest was opened in April 2016, with 13 3D rooms, an IMAX room and a 4DX room. In the first year since its opening, Shopping City had a traffic of over nine million visitors. The first strip mall in the city, Funshop Park, opened in 2022. Built on the former industrial platform of Azur, Funshop Park has a leasable area of 10,800 m2 and is provided with an outdoor food court area. Along with the existing stores in the central area, new supermarkets have been opened by national and international concerns such as Selgros, Metro, Auchan, Kaufland, Carrefour, Lidl, Penny, Mega Image or Profi. On the bricolage and DIY market are present the stores of Dedeman, Hornbach, Brico Dépôt, Arabesque, Leroy Merlin, Mobexpert, Mömax, Jumbo and Decathlon, among others, part of local and international chains. Tourism Timișoara constitutes the core of regional tourism, receiving 80% of the area's tourists. It draws 250,000–300,000 tourists each year and is distinguished by its safety, quality of hospitality, and gastronomic excellence. Recreational tourism (such as city breaks and visits to friends and relatives) accounts for the largest share, followed by business and study tourism. The majority of tourists are young, well-educated individuals, primarily from Romania and other European countries. The average stay is two nights. In 2013, in Timișoara there were 107 accommodation units (comprising 49 hotels, seven hostels, 50 pensions, and an international campsite) totaling 5,547 accommodation places. == Education ==

Pre-university education Preschool education takes place in 70 kindergartens; the primary education in 47 schools; the secondary education in 36 high schools; the post-secondary education in 11 post-secondary schools; and the master workman education in six foreman schools. The school network also includes two special high schools for students with disabilities, three schools of inclusive education, five seminaries, a special school for students with amblyopia, two educational assistance centers and a Waldorf high school. an English-language kindergarten and primary school, as well as a nursery and kindergarten with teaching according to the Finnish curriculum. The specificity of pre-university education in Timișoara is the diversity of teaching languages. The city's rich multiethnic tradition has been maintained by the schools with teaching in Hungarian (Béla Bartók High School), German (Nikolaus Lenau High School), English (William Shakespeare High School), French (Jean-Louis Calderon High School) and Serbian (Dositej Obradović High School). According to a ranking made by the AdmitereLiceu.ro portal in 2020, five high schools in Timișoara are among the top 100 high schools in Romania: Grigore Moisil High School, Constantin Diaconovici Loga National College, National College of Banat, Carmen Sylva National Pedagogical College and Nikolaus Lenau High School. File:Liceul Pedagogic Carmen Sylva Timisoara.jpg | Carmen Sylva National Pedagogical College File:Colegiul CD Loga 2016.jpg | Constantin Diaconovici Loga National College File:Colegiul National Banatean 2017.jpg | National College of Banat File:Nikolaus Lenau High School, Timișoara, August 2022.jpg| Nikolaus Lenau High School Higher education Higher education has a tradition of over 100 years, with the establishment of the Polytechnic University in 1920. From then until today, Timișoara has become the most important university and academic center in western Romania, with about 40,000 students enrolled in undergraduate and postgraduate study programs in four public and two private universities. There are branches of the National Alliance of Student Organizations in Romania and AIESEC. Student organizations are very active, known for events such as StudentFest, the largest international student art and culture festival in Southeast Europe or the ten-day International Student Week. The Polytechnic University is one of the largest and most famous technical universities in Central and Eastern Europe. In 2011 it was classified by the Ministry of Education in the category of universities of advanced research and education, the highest position that a university in Romania can reach. In the 2018 SCImago Institutions Rankings, the Polytechnic University is on the third place among the Romanian universities with research activity. Established by royal decree in 1944, the West University is the largest university in the city in terms of student numbers. The West University is one of the five members of the Universitaria Consortium, the group of elite Romanian universities. In 2018, the West University was present in 19 international rankings of universities, one of the top-ranked in Romania. One of the six medical universities in Romania is located in Timișoara – the Victor Babeș University of Medicine and Pharmacy. The fourth public university in Timișoara, specialized in life sciences and veterinary medicine, is the King Michael I University of Life Sciences. The student campuses are located in Complexul Studențesc–Medicinei (25 dormitories), Lipovei–Tipografilor (six dormitories) and Blașcovici (two dormitories), offering a total of about 13,000 accommodation places. Complexul Studențesc in particular is known for its nightlife, with several pubs, bistros, nightclubs and themed bars concentrated here. There are several public libraries, municipal or university, most importantly: • Library of the Victor Babeș University of Medicine and Pharmacy, founded in 1946; • Central Library of the Polytechnic University, hosted between 1947 and 2014 in the ensemble of Piarist Gymnasium; • Eugen Todoran Central University Library, with a book fund of over one million volumes; • Sorin Titel County Library, founded in 1904. Scientific research Several institutes operate within the Timișoara branch of the Romanian Academy: the National R&D Institute for Electrochemistry and Condensed Matter, the National R&D Institute for Welding and Materials Testing, the Titu Maiorescu Institute of Banat Studies, the Coriolan Drăgulescu Institute of Chemistry and the Astronomical Observatory. In the patrimony of the West University there are several research centers, such as: the Institute of Advanced Environmental Research, the Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen Interdisciplinary Training and Research Platform, the Creation Center of Contemporary Visual Arts, the Research Laboratory in Structural and Computational Chemistry–Physics for Nanosciences and QSAR, the Research Center in Criminal Sciences, the East European Center for Research in Economics and Business, the Center for Romance Studies, the Research Center in Computer Sciences, the Center for Social Research and Development, the Institute of Socio-Political Research, etc. Also in Timișoara there are branches of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Academy of Technical Sciences, respectively. The first computer built in Romania (1961) was put into operation within the Polytechnic Institute of Timișoara, nowadays the Polytechnic University. It was called MECIPT, an acronym for "Electronic Computing Machine of the Polytechnic Institute of Timișoara" (). Its design was started in 1956 by a team led by mathematician Iosif Kaufmann, electronic engineer Wilhelm Löwenfeld and student Vasile Baltac. Out of the 1,700 members of the Romanian Academy, from 1866 until 2016, 102 members come or have worked in Banat and the surrounding areas. Among them are Traian Vuia, the inventor of the first tractor monoplane, Traian Lalescu, one of the fathers of integral equations, Dumitru Prunariu, the first Romanian to fly in space and Stefan Hell, winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. In the second half of May, biannually, the Timișoara branch of the Romanian Academy organizes, collaborating and involving the local academic, cultural and scientific community, the Timișoara Academic Days. == Healthcare ==

Due to the specialized university programs, Timișoara is a research center in the fields of medicine and public health; there are branches of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Student Society of Surgery, the headquarters of the Romanian Hemophilia Association, the Romanian Society of Medical Informatics and the Romanian Society of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology, as well as the regional training center in emergency medicine, operated by SMURD. In Timișoara there are eight hospitals, seven publicly owned and one private: • Pius Brînzeu County Emergency Clinical Hospital (included by the Ministry of Health in the first class of competence); • Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (first class); There are also: six integrated specialized outpatient clinics (four public and two private); three ambulance services (one public and two private); 494 dental offices; 229 family medicine offices; 138 specialized offices; seven medical expertise offices and 24 work capacity recovery offices; 39 school dispensaries; 11 student dispensaries; a sports dispensary; 63 pharmacies and 32 pharmaceutical warehouses. == Transport ==

Timișoara is an important regional road and railway hub, connecting the city to Bucharest and other major cities, as well as Romania to Hungary and Serbia, and further to Western Europe. It is located along the Pan-European Corridor IV linking Germany to Turkey and has access, thanks to the Bega Canal, to the Pan-European Corridor VII. Road transport near Timișoara The street plot of Timișoara is composed of 1,278 streets totaling almost . The street network is based on a radial model, consolidated by a series of five concentric rings, none of them completely built. Unlike other cities of similar size, there is no predominant corridor in terms of loading, with traffic volumes distributed fairly evenly across a series of radial and circular arteries. The shape of the road network outside the city is web-like, all the main roads in the county converging towards the capital city. In the northern part of the city there is a bypass; its southern extension is currently under construction. The city is crossed in the northeast by the A1 motorway, a segment that continues with the M43 motorway in Hungary. The A1 is connected near Lugoj to the A6 motorway, which is under construction. Timișoara is connected to the European and national road network by the following roads: • European route E70 – to the border with Serbia through the Moravița customs; • European route E671 Timișoara–Satu Mare; • national road 6 – to the border with Hungary through Cenad customs; • national road 59 – with branch DN59A, to the border with Serbia through Jimbolia customs; • national road 69 Timișoara–Arad. Locally, car transport experienced a boom after 1990, so that in 2017 the degree of motorization in Timișoara was among the highest in Romania, with one car for every 2.66 inhabitants. Timișoara has one of the most extensive infrastructures for charging electric cars and plug-in hybrids in Romania, with 16 stations located throughout the city and a hub in 700 Square. Public transport Timișoara's public transport network consists of nine tram lines, eight trolleybus lines and 31 bus lines and is operated by STPT (Societatea de Transport Public Timișoara). The network covers all the important areas of the city and it also connects Timișoara with some of the communes of the metropolitan area. 45% of urban public transport is served by trams, 22% by trolleybuses, 18% by buses and the remaining 15% by water buses and alternative means of transport. In 2019, Timișoara became the second city in Romania to introduce public school transport, after Cluj-Napoca; as of 2020, it is served by 14 lines. Timișoara has a well-developed market for taxi services. There are also several car rental companies. Alternatively, short- and long-distance carpooling platforms operate in Timișoara, such as Uber, Bolt or BlaBlaCar. For internal coach transport there are several coach stations, most located around the Timișoara North railway station and on Stan Vidrighin Way. There are also daily coach trips to destinations in Europe, served by private passenger transport companies, such as Atlassib, Eurolines or Flixbus. Rail transport Timișoara has the oldest and the densest railway network in Romania, with over of lines for of territory, although some of the components are no longer operational due to low demand and lack of maintenance. The old station building, built in neoclassical style, was badly damaged by the Allied bombing of 1944, so it was rebuilt in socialist classical style. Timișoara North is one of the busiest stations in Romania, with an average of 174 passenger trains/day and a flow of 5,530 passengers/day. Although the nature of freight traffic has changed, decreasing the requirement for maneuvering and recomposing trains, Timișoara is an important center for rail freight transport; there are several large industrial concerns that receive and ship goods by train. and the most important air hub in the DKMT Euroregion. In 2017, it became the first airport in Romania certified by EASA. In 2018, Traian Vuia International Airport attracted 15.1% of the total number of passengers embarked at Romanian airports, 32.8% of the total tons of goods loaded and 13.2% of the total number of flights. Traian Vuia International Airport serves as an operational base for Wizz Air. As of 2021, the airport is undergoing expansion works, by adding two terminals – internal arrivals and external departures – and creating an intermodal center for freight transport. The city's first airport, the Cioca Airfield, had remained in use for recreational and utility aviation. Water transport The Bega Canal is the first navigable canal built in Romania, connecting Timișoara with the Serbian town of Titel. Its total navigable length was , of which on the Romanian territory. In 2018, repair works were started on the navigation infrastructure of the Bega Canal, which would allow the resumption of naval traffic between Timișoara and Serbia, halted in 1967. Since 2018, Timișoara is the first Romanian city with urban public transport by water, made with vaporetto-like boats on a single line with six stations. Cycling and micromobility Timișoara has the most developed integrated cycling system in Romania. Cyclists have access to more than of bike lanes, including outside the city via the Bega Canal cycle path, which connects Romania with Serbia, providing a direct connection to the European network of cycling routes – EuroVelo. Timișoara is the first city in Romania with a public bike-sharing system, VeloTM, inaugurated in 2015. The system has 440 bicycles in the 25 stations in the city and, depending on the season, is accessed by 1,000–1,500 people daily. In 2019, Timișoara introduced public transport with electric scooters. == Architecture ==

Timișoara has the largest architectural ensemble of historic buildings in Romania (around 14,500), consisting of the urban patrimony of the neighborhoods of Cetate, Fabric, Iosefin and Elisabetin. Most of these buildings are part of the imperial heritage, a period of economic prosperity that left its mark on the city. The architectural diversity, represented by baroque, historicism, neoclassicism, Art Nouveau and Wiener Secession, earned Timișoara the nickname "Little Vienna". The oldest building in Timișoara is Huniade Castle, which today houses the Museum of Banat. Destroyed during the siege of 1849, the castle was later rebuilt, but still retains elements of the former castle built by John Hunyadi between 1443 and 1447, but also elements from the period of Charles I of Hungary. The center of today's Timișoara is the "successor" of the Austrian military fortress built mostly between 1732 and 1761. Today, only a few parts of the old city wall remain standing, namely the Theresia Bastion in the east and a few others which are located on the western limit of the old city wall. These were later listed as part of the architectural heritage of Timișoara. Timișoara is regarded as a city with strong potential for densification, thanks to its numerous vacant lots and buildable areas located right in the city center—an advantage that other cities of similar size in the country lack. As a result, the city experienced few major demolitions during the communist era and has largely retained its original radial-concentric urban structure. Historic neighborhoods Cetate The Cetate neighborhood, the political, administrative and cultural center of Timișoara, is divided into two distinct urban areas. The first area is the "inner city" of the 18th and 19th centuries. The whole area has the status of heritage site. The area houses the oldest buildings of the city, dating from the 18th century. The second area was established after 1900 on the lands liberated by the demolition of the fortifications. This style underwent two different stages: the first occurred approximately between 1900 and 1908 and was similar to Art Nouveau, with floral and curvilinear decorations, while the second, which continued until World War I, saw simpler, larger buildings with geometrical designs, similar to Viennese architecture at the time. The historic center of Timișoara has a system consisting of three urban squares, unique in Romania, each square presenting different sizes, plastic solutions and architectural styles. Union Square (), built in baroque style, is the oldest square in Timișoara. It is also called Dome Square (), because it houses the Roman Catholic Dome, built in 1774. Victory Square (), also known as the Opera Square (), is the central square of Timișoara. The entire square was designed by the then chief architect László Székely, educated in Budapest, but a great admirer of Austrian architecture. The square was completely pedestrianized in the late 1980s, with the removal of tram rails. The Metropolitan Cathedral is the largest religious building in Timișoara and the second tallest church in Romania, after the People's Salvation Cathedral in Bucharest. It stands out for its massiveness, having no less than 11 bell towers and architectural style, unusual for a 20th-century building, inspired by the architecture of Moldavian monasteries. The promenade side from the Opera to the cathedral is called Corso and houses several 1900s style palaces (Lloyd, Neuhaus, Merbl, Dauerbach, Hilt and Széchenyi); the opposite side, Surogat, houses two palaces (Löffler and Chamber of Commerce) and several modernist blocks of flats. The other buildings are in the classic style, in the 1900s style – szecesszió movement and in other styles. Liberty Square is the pedestrian link between Union Square and Victory Square. In the extension of the Liberty Square there is a smaller square, St. George Square (), known in the past as Seminar Square (). Its eastern side was formed by the Jesuit Church, transformed into a mosque during the Ottoman occupation and demolished during the modernization works provided in the urbanistic plan of 1911 (in its place was built the Szana Bank). The square is dominated by the equestrian statue of Saint George fighting the dragon, built in 1996. It is one of several monuments erected in the 1990s in parts of the city where people were killed during the Romanian Revolution. In this square, the first horse-drawn tram was set in motion in July 1869. The neighborhood is bordered by the Neptune Baths, the Timișoara East railway station, the waterworks and the Timișoreana breweries. 16 December 1989 Boulevard forms the traditional historical border between the Iosefin and Elisabetin neighborhoods. Along it are a series of Art Nouveau palaces (Besch–Piffl, Kuncz, Menczer, etc.), as well as the 1900s-style Fire Station. The boulevard divides Alexandru Mocioni Square () into two unequal parts, the triangular one (formerly called Küttl Square and Sinaia Square) belonging to Iosefin. The square is flanked by the Orthodox Church, built in neo-Byzantine style and inspired by Hagia Sophia, in contrast to the Art Nouveau architecture of the surrounding buildings. Elisabetin in St. Mary Square. In the background, the Reformed Community Palace Like the Iosefin neighborhood, Elisabetin had a rural appearance for a long time. Other squares in Elisabetin are the Nicolae Bălcescu Square () with its 57-meter-high Catholic Church and the smaller Pleven Square (), surrounded by an ensemble of Art Nouveau residential buildings (the House with Peacocks, the Szilárd House, the House with Beautiful Gate, etc.). More and more projects have been entrusted to Romanian architects, from Timișoara or Bucharest. Outside the former walls of the fortress and in Elisabetin, numerous villas were built in which the influence of the modern style, of the Brâncovenesc style as well as the French influences are predominant, but also public buildings, emblematic for the new architectural line. The evolution of the postwar architecture of the city was strongly influenced by the activity of the architect Hans Fackelmann, who designed, among others, the West University, one of the first modern constructions in Romania and the Ion Vidu National Art College. Despite the central policy of urban systematization, which saw entire historic neighborhoods demolished, such as the Uranus neighborhood in Bucharest, the Timișoara authorities did not demolish old buildings, but only "filled in", where there were no buildings. Re-established in 1990 as a department within the Faculty of Constructions, the Timișoara school of architecture brought together architects from the late 1980s who, embracing the theoretical discourse of postmodernism, perpetuated the arts and crafts philosophy of the previous generation, either by a subtle return to historical tradition (Șerban Sturdza, Mihai Botescu or Radu Radoslav), or through a critical regional approach (Vlad Gaivoronschi, Ioan Andreescu or Florin Ionașiu). Constructions such as Austria House (Mihai Botescu), BRD Tower (Radu Radoslav), City Business Center (Vlad Gaivoronschi) or Reghina Blue Hotel (Ioan Andreescu) are linked to their names. Similar to other Romanian cities, Timișoara underwent large-scale de-/reindustrialization and tertiarization after 1989, which shaped its current urban landscape. The 2008–2009 real estate crisis led to a change in the economic behavior of both investors and home buyers. Post-crisis, a number of peripheral real estate projects have been abandoned, and investors and home buyers have shifted their interest to the available plots within the city. As a result of the economic restructuring process during the 2000s, many industrial areas or isolated factories were demolished and their place was taken by residential complexes and shopping malls. == Culture ==

Visual arts In Timișoara there are eight contemporary art galleries, five of which are publicly funded: the Pygmalion Gallery (House of Arts), the geamMAT Gallery of the Art Museum, the Helios Gallery (Fine Artists' Union), the Mansarda Gallery (Faculty of Arts and Design) and the City Hall Gallery. The Romanian National Opera as an institution in its current form has existed since 1947, when the Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida opened its first season, on 27 April. Literature Literary life has been revitalized in Timișoara over the last decade: open, public readings of prose and poetry have turned into social-literary experiments and two new literary festivals have been launched – LitVest and Timișoara International Literature Festival. The literary society Aktionsgruppe Banat, founded by German-speaking authors of the Banat Swabian minority, was active in Timișoara between 1972 and 1975. Many of its members also activated in the Adam Müller-Guttenbrunn circle, which included, among others, Herta Müller, Horst Samson and Werner Söllner. A recognized literary figure of the underground in Timișoara in the 1980s, Herta Müller was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2009. The Philharmonic Society was founded later, in 1871, as a men's choral society. The inaugural concert took place on 8 December and included the ballads Die Frithjof-Saga by Max Bruch and Der Taucher by Heinrich Weidt. The current Banatul Philharmonic was founded in 1947 by royal decree. The Philharmonic has been organizing the Timișoara Muzicală International Festival since 1968, the longest-running cultural festival in Timișoara. In Banat, dishes are typically made with pork, chicken, beef, lamb, or fish, accompanied by vegetable sides fried in lard or oil. Flour-based sauces like rântaș are often used to thicken the dishes, which are generously seasoned with a variety of spices such as pepper, salt, thyme, paprika, rosemary, cumin, or aromatic herbs. The cuisine of Banat as a whole is characterized by fatty, nutritious, and tasty dishes. Rasol with bone, steaks, paprikash, tochituri, goulash, aspic, stuffed peppers, fish brine, , drob, soups, broths, sarmale, fresh pork prepared and semi-prepared foods (barbeque, schnitzel, sausage, , pastrami, ham, slănină, jumări, salami, tobă, or cracklings), cheeses (caș, telemea, or urda), and desserts (gomboți, cozonac, crempita, crofne, doboș, scovergi, plăcintă or papanași) are just some of the traditional dishes that are consumed on holidays, at special events, but also on ordinary days. Due to the fast pace of urban life and easy access to a wide range of delivery and catering services, many Timișoara residents also show a notable preference for fast food. This trend is highlighted by the presence of restaurant chains and establishments offering quick dishes, from shawarma, kebab, burgers, fries, rice, or noodles to pizza, hot dog, grill, salads, sandwiches, or pastries and confectionery, consumed alongside juices, energy drinks, or soft drinks. The most important companies on the Timișoara food delivery market are Glovo, Wolt, Bolt Food, and Bringo. Events such as Banat Brunch or Mic Dejun la Margina ("Breakfast at Margina"), which celebrate the culinary richness and traditions of Banat cuisine, are popular events in the local gastronomic landscape. Museums and the Brück House, shown together , home of the National Museum of Banat The Art Museum is housed in the Baroque Palace, a Late Baroque building in the Union Square. The exhibition space includes collections of contemporary, decorative and European art. Founded in 1877 and housed in the Huniade Castle, the National Museum of Banat has as fields of activity history and archeology. On the ground floor of the museum there is a reconstruction of the Parța Neolithic Sanctuary dating from the 6th millennium BC. and interior fabrics on display at the Banat Village Museum The Banat Village Museum is conceived as a traditional village from Banat, a living museum and open-air folk architecture reserve located in the Green Forest; it includes rustic households belonging to various ethnic groups in Banat, buildings with social function of the traditional village (town hall, school and church), technical installations and workshops. There are plans to integrate the museum into a center for art, technology and experiment – MultipleXity. Founded in 1964, the Military Museum operates in the Military Casino in Liberty Square. The museum's patrimony consists of over 2,000 exhibits: maps, documents, models of historical monuments, photographs, weapons and military uniforms. In the museum collections owned by the Metropolis of Banat, the Serbian Orthodox Episcopate and the Roman Catholic Diocese there are objects of worship, icons on wood and glass from the 16th–19th centuries, books, manuscripts and old church objects. At present, there is a Memorial of the Revolution, in the collection of which there is written, audio and video information about the events of 1989. In addition, there are several independent museums in Timișoara, including the Museum of the Communist Consumer, arranged as a typical house of the Golden Age, the museum dedicated to the Romanian cartoonist Popa's and the Kindlein Museum, a reenactment of Peter Kindlein's jewelry and clock shop and workshop. Festivals in 2023 In 2013, around 400 cultural manifestations and events (shows, concerts, exhibitions, art and literature salons, festivals, etc.) were organized in Timișoara. The latter was first organized in 2019; it has since become one of the best-attended public events among young people in Timișoara. == Parks and green spaces ==

Timișoara is known as the "city of parks" for its parks and green spaces. At the end of 2009, the area of the city parks was 117.57 ha. In 2015, Timișoara had 16 m2 of green spaces per capita, under the EU recommendation of 26 m2. One of the most famous parks in Timișoara is the Anton Scudier Central Park, founded in 1850. Since 2009, the park has an Alley of Personalities with 24 bronze statues of local personalities. In 2019 the park was redesigned in the style of the Schönbrunn Gardens in Vienna. Also close to the city center is the Rose Park, which at the beginning of the 20th century earned Timișoara the nickname "city of roses". The English- and French-style garden stretched over 9 ha and was visited by Emperor Franz Joseph I on 16 September 1891. The current park was arranged between 1928 and 1934, when it was the largest rosary in Southeast Europe, with 1,200 species and varieties of roses. The delimitation of the two parks was made later, when the area was crossed by the current Michelangelo Street. In 2012 it was redesigned as the largest children's playground in the city. Queen Marie Park, formerly known as the People's Park, is the oldest park in Timișoara, established at the initiative of the governor of the Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar, Count Johann von Coronini-Cronberg, in 1852. One of the newest parks, the Civic Park was arranged over the former military barracks, demolished between 1956 and 1959. The main attraction of the park is the floral clock, built in 1971. File:Timisoara, Parcul Scudier 2019.jpg | Monument to the Unknown Soldier in the Anton Scudier Central Park File:Parcul Rozelor - panoramio (3).jpg | Roses Park File:Parcul Copiilor - panoramio (6).jpg | Ion Creangă Children's Park File:Parcul Regina Maria - panoramio (2).jpg | The Secession entrance gate to the Queen Marie Park File:Temisvar sat.jpg | The floral clock in the Civic Park == Sports ==

The amateur and performance sports activity has an old tradition in Timișoara through sports associations and clubs. The first football game in Timișoara took place on 25 June 1899. Three years later, CA Timișoara – the first football club in Romania – was founded. Traditional teams have been active between the two world wars. Ripensia Timișoara, founded in 1928 and dissolved in 1948, was the first Romanian club to turn professional. and currently plays in Liga 2. Chinezul Timișoara (), active between 1910 and 1946, was one of the most successful teams in the history of Romanian football, winning between 1921 and 1927 six consecutive titles of champion of Romania. With a capacity of 32,000 seats, Dan Păltinișanu Stadium, home stadium of ACS Poli Timișoara, is the second largest stadium in Romania, after Arena Națională in Bucharest. The current stadium will be demolished in 2021; a multifunctional sports complex with a 36,000-seat arena and a 16,000-seat multipurpose hall will be built in its place. There are three other smaller stadiums: CFR's CFR Stadium near Timișoara North railway station, ASU Politehnica's Știința Stadium on the campus of the Polytechnic University and Ripensia's Electrica Stadium near the Green Forest. There are many sports centers in the city as well. Most of these facilities are sports halls and swimming pools, == Mass media ==

Print media The first newspaper printed in Timișoara in 1771, edited by typographer Matthias Joseph Heimerl, was called Temeswarer Nachrichten and appeared in 13 editions. Between 1830 and 1849, Temeswarer Wochenblatt appeared, whose editor was Joseph Klapka, the founder of the first circulating library in the Habsburg monarchy (1815) and mayor of Timișoara between 1819 and 1833. Between 1872 and 1918 the Hungarian-language newspapers Délmagyarország and Temesvári hirlap appeared. The Serbian minority first appeared on the local media market in 1829 with the Banatski almanah (). The first Romanian-language newspapers published in Banat were printed in Vienna and then in Pest, as happened with Luminatorul led by Vincențiu Babeș. During the mid-19th century, there was a branch of the state printing house in Vienna, and in 1878 Prince Alexander Karađorđević, fleeing from Serbia, opened a printing house in Iosefin, which he used exclusively for political purposes. The printing activity was boosted at the end of the century, when the manual printing machines, driven by a distribution wheel, were replaced by those driven by electricity, after the establishment of the power plant. The first machine of this kind in Timișoara was a Druckmaschine belonging to the episcopal printing house in the Diocese of Cenad, which was inaugurated in 1891. After 1945, but especially since 1948, the number of newspapers and magazines was reduced to a few, all published or under the political control of the Communist Party. There were the following papers in Timișoara between 1970 and 1977: Drapelul roșu, Neue Banater Zeitung (German language), Szabad szó (Hungarian language), Banatske novine (magazine, Serbian language) and the literary revue Orizont, all of them with an important circulation. Even if the years of 1965–1971 are better known as providing a relative political freedom, press in Romania went away with the control. Media was obliged both to put in light the socialist reality in Romania and to combat the ideological bourgeois influences and retrograde mentality. The cultural revues had to promote the "involved" militant socialist arts and literature and criticize the tendencies to separate the artistic creation from the socialist realities; it was the way the Romanian press became an instrument of the PCR. • dailies: in Romanian: Renașterea bănățeană (successor of Drapelul roșu), Timiș Expres and Ziua de Vest; in Hungarian: Nyugati jelen; • one biweekly: Timpolis; • one triweekly: Timișoara; • weeklies: in Romanian: Opinia Timișoarei and Bănățeanul; in German: Banater Zeitung (weekly supplement of Allgemeine Deutsche Zeitung für Rumänien); in Hungarian: Heti új szó; in Serbian: Naša reč; • monthly: in Romanian: Orizont, Monitorul Primăriei municipiului Timișoara and Agenda Consiliului Județean Timiș; in Hungarian: Irodalmi jelen; in Italian: Azienda Italia; • quarterly: in Romanian: Orient latin and Anotimpuri literare; in Serbian: Književni život; • annuals: in Romanian: Almanahul Agenda; in Hungarian: Mindenki kalendáriuma; in German: Die Stafette; • sporadic periodicity: Helion magazine of the homonymous science fiction club. In recent years, more and more publications have given up the printed version, continuing their activity only in the online version. Audiovisual media Radio stations Radio Timișoara, a public station, is part of Radio România Regional, the network of local and regional public radios of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company. The idea of building a radio station in Timișoara was advanced for the first time in July 1930. The first broadcast of Radio Timișoara dates from 5 May 1955, with Andrei Dângă and Emilia Culea as broadcasters. Today, Radio Timișoara broadcasts in 10 languages on four frequencies that cover a large part of the counties in western Romania. Another local private radio station is Radio Europa Nova, founded in July 1995. Its broadcasting area covers around the city. In recent years, numerous local stations of some national stations have appeared, such as Digi FM, Europa FM, Virgin Radio, Radio Impuls, Radio ZU, RFI România, Pro FM, Kiss FM, Radio Guerrilla, etc. Television stations TVR Timișoara is one of the four territorial studios of the Romanian Television Society. It broadcasts since 17 October 1994 and covers the western part of Romania (Timiș, Arad, Caraș-Severin and Hunedoara counties), as well as the Romanian communities in Vojvodina (Serbia) and southeastern Hungary. TVR Timișoara is a member of CIRCOM Regional and has collaborated over the years with regional public televisions in Novi Sad (Serbia), Szeged (Hungary) and Uzhhorod (Ukraine). Teleuniversitatea (Teleuniversity) has the status of a department within the Polytechnic University, obtaining a broadcasting license in 1994. Teleuniversitatea is a television station with educational objectives, which operates on a non-profit basis, without a budget allocation. TV Europa Nova is the only local private television station. It first aired on 1 May 1994. == Notable people ==

Honorary citizens Among the recipients of the honorary citizenship of Timișoara are: ==International relations==

Timișoara hosts two general consulates, representing Germany and Serbia. The German consulate is situated in the Flavia Palace on Splaiul Tudor Vladimirescu, whereas the Serbian consulate is located at 4 Remus Street. ==Twin towns – sister cities==

Timișoara is twinned with: • Graz, Austria (1982) • Sassari, Italy (1990) • Mulhouse, France (1991) • Faenza, Italy (1991) • Karlsruhe, Germany (1992) • Rueil-Malmaison, France (1993) • Szeged, Hungary (1998) • Gera, Germany (1998) • Treviso, Italy (2003) • Novi Sad, Serbia (2005) • Palermo, Italy (2005) • Shenzhen, China (2007) • Nottingham, United Kingdom (2008) • Chernivtsi, Ukraine (2010) • Trujillo, Peru (2010) • Da Nang, Vietnam (2014) • Bolzano, Italy (2015) • Lublin, Poland (2016) • Porto, Portugal (2018) • Cancún, Mexico (2019) == Notes ==