Zau de Câmpie (Hungarian: Mezőzáh, Hungarian pronunciation:[ˈmɛzøːzaːh]) is a commune in Mureș County, Transylvania, Romania composed of nine villages: Bărboși (Mezőszakál), Botei (Botadűlő), Bujor-Hodaie (Bozsortanya), Ciretea (Bábod), Gaura Sângerului (Szengyelisuvadás), Malea
(Boriskadűlő), Ștefăneaca, Tău (Mezőszélen), and Zau de Câmpie.
Geography
The commune is situated in the Transylvanian Plain, at an altitude of 307 m (1,007 ft). It lies on the banks of Pârâul de Câmpie (a right tributary of the river Mureș), which forms a string of lakes through the locality.
After the advent of the Romanian People's Republic, Zau de Câmpie became in 1950 part of the Turdaraion of Cluj Region. Between 1952 and 1960, it fell within the Magyar Autonomous Region, and between 1960 and 1968, the Mureș-Magyar Autonomous Region. In 1968, the region was abolished, and since then, the commune has been part of Mureș County.
The first natural gas deposit in Romania was discovered in 1909, in Sărmașel, about 22 km (14 mi) north of the commune. In 1913, the first production of methane gas was recorded from the drilling site at the Sărmașel gas field.[3] That year, the local Greek Catholic priest announced to his flock that they will start "to dig for gas, in the form of the one from Sărmașel," on a 2,400 m2 (26,000 sq ft) plot of land belonging to the church. The Zau de Câmpie gas field was discovered in 1914, when the first gas extraction fields were created; it supplied Târnăveni and Târgu Mureș with natural gas.[4]: 37
Demographics
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±%
1850
1,787
—
1920
2,757
+54.3%
1977
4,051
+46.9%
2002
3,509
−13.4%
2011
3,236
−7.8%
2021
3,108
−4.0%
Source: Census data
At the 2002 census, the commune had a population of 3,509, of which 80% were Romanians, 11% Roma, and 9% Hungarians. At the 2011 census, there were 3,236 inhabitants, of which 79.64% were Romanians, 10.11% Roma, and 7.42% Hungarians. At the 2021 census, Zau de Câmpie had a population of 3,108, of which 79.31% were Romanians, 9.97% Roma, and 5.69% Hungarians.[5]
^Tofan, George-Bogdan; Niță, Adrian (June 2018). "Industrial activities in Mureș County"(PDF). Analele Universității din Oradea, Seria Geografie. XXVIII (1): 36–53.