The town administers seven villages: Buciumi (Törökfalu), Buteasa (Bucsonfalva), Ciolt (Csolt), Codru Butesii (Kodrulytelep), Finteușu Mare (Nagyfentős), Hovrila (Hávord), and Vălenii Șomcutei (Somkútpataka).

The exact founding date of Șomcuta Mare is unknown; however, it is first mentioned in 1319 as part of Cetatea de piatră (Stone Fortress) realm.

As of 1566, the Chioar Domain is divided in 12 voivodeships, of which those led by voivode Dan Butean are administered from Șomcuta Mare, covering 14 villages.

In the village of Finteușu Mare, a male choir was established on 1 December 1918, when the assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians declared the Union of Transylvania with Romania, which included most of the Maramureș region.

As of 2015, the choir was still interpreting the Romanian patriotic song "Dac-am plecat, Ardealule, din tine", composed as a reaction to the 1940 Second Vienna Award, where arbiters Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy assigned Northern Transylvania, including Maramureș, back to Hungary.

The team currently competes in the Liga IV – Maramureș County, the fourth tier of the Romanian football, following the relegation at end of the 2021–22 season.