Caraș County is one of the historic counties of Romania in the historic region of the Banat. The county seat was Oravița. The county was founded in 1926, following the division of the former Caraș-Severin County.
In 1938, the county was disestablished and incorporated into the newly formed Ținutul Timiș, but it was re-established in 1940 after the fall of Carol II's regime – only to be abolished 10 years later by the Communist regime on September 6, 1950.
Administratively, Caraș County was originally divided into five districts (plăși):[1]
Plasa Bocșa-Montană
Plasa Bozovici
Plasa Moldova-Nouă
Plasa Oravița
Plasa Reșița
Subsequently, a sixth district was established:
Plasa Sasca-Montană
The county contained two urban communes (cities): Oravița (the county's headquarters) and Reșița (the largest city of the county).
Population
According to the 1930 census data, the county's population was 200,929, ethnically divided as follows: 69.5% Romanians, 12.8% Germans, 4.9% Serbs and Croats, 3.6% Czechs and Slovaks, 2.8% Romanies, 2.5% Hungarians, as well as other minorities.[2] The county's population was divided religiously as follows: 70.3% Eastern Orthodox, 21.5% Roman Catholic, 5.1% Greek Catholic, 1.5% Baptist, as well as other minorities.[3]
Urban population
In the year 1930, the county's urban population was 29,453, ethnically divided as follows: 43.4% Germans, 42.2% Romanians, 8.8% Hungarians, 1.6% Czechs and Slovaks, 1.4% Jews, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 50.5% Roman Catholic, 39.7% Eastern Orthodox, 3.7% Greek Catholic, 2.1% Reformed, 1.7% Jewish, 1.6% Lutheran, as well as other minorities.
