Ștei

(2020–2024) Iulian Balaj^[1] (PNL)Area6.57 km² (2.54 sq mi)Elevation275 m (902 ft)Population5,398 • Density820/km² (2,100/sq mi)Time zoneEET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)Postal codeArea code(+40) 02 59Vehicle reg.BHWebsitewww.stei.ro

Ștei (Hungarian: Vaskohsziklás) is a town in Bihor County, Crișana, Romania. Between 1958 and 1996, it was named Dr. Petru Groza, after the Romanian socialist leader who died in 1958.

The town is located in the southeastern part of the county, and lies on the banks of the river Crișul Negru.

History

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1956	5,874	—
1966	5,754	−2.0%
1977	7,794	+35.5%
1992	10,415	+33.6%
2002	9,466	−9.1%
2011	6,144	−35.1%
2021	5,398	−12.1%
Source: Census data

The town was founded in 1952, near a village of the same name, as an industrial centre for the grinding of uranium mined at the nearby Băița mine, serving the intensive mining development set as an imperative by the Romanian Communist regime as part of a Soviet-Romanian joint venture during the Soviet occupation of Romania.

Romulus Vereș, the notorious Romanian serial killer, was institutionalised in the Ștei psychiatric facility in 1976, and died there in 1993.

Population

According to the 2021 census, Ștei has a population of 5,398. At the census from 2011, there were 6,144 people living within the city; of those, 96.6% were ethnic Romanians, while 2.88% were ethnic Hungarians, and 0.5% others.^[3]

Natives

• Irina Bara, tennis player (born 1995)
• Camelia Adina Hora, singer (born 1986)

References