Satu Mare (pronounced [ˈsatu ˈmare] ⓘ; Hungarian: Szatmárnémeti [sɒtmaːrneːmɛti]; German: Sathmar; Yiddish: סאטמאר Satmar or סאַטמער Satmer) is a city with a population of 102,400 (2011).

The city is located at an altitude of 126 m (413 ft) on the Lower Someș alluvial plain, spreading out from the Administrative Palace at 25 October Square.

[3] The formation of the current terrain of the city, dating from the late Pliocene in the Tertiary period, is linked to the clogging of the Pannonian Sea.

The formation and evolution of the city was closely related to the Someș River, which, in addition to allowing for the settlement of a human community around it, has offered, since the early Middle Ages, the possibility of international trade with coastal regions, a practice that favored milling, fishing and other economic activities.

[3] The flora associated with the town of Satu Mare is characteristic for the meadow area with trees of soft essence like wicker, indigenous poplar, maple and hazelnut.

[6] The name Satu Mare, which means "great village" in Romanian, was used for the first time by the priest Moise Sora Novac in the 19th century.

Later, these lands may have formed part of Menumorut's holdings; one of the important defensive fortresses – castrum Zotmar, dating to the 10th century – was at Satu Mare, as mentioned in the Gesta Hungarorum.

[9] A royal free city since the 13th century, Satu Mare changed hands several times in the 15th century until the Báthory family took possession of the citadel in 1526,[10] proceeding to divert the Someș's waters in order to defend the southern part of the citadel; thus, the fortress remained on an island linked to the main roads by three bridges over the Someș.

[12][13] On 2 January 1721, Emperor Charles VI recognised the union, at the same time granting Satu Mare the status of royal free city.

[14] The city's importance was linked to the transportation and commerce of salt from nearby Ocna Dejului (Hungarian: Désakna, German: Salzdorf), possibly already at a very early date.

[6] Due to the economic and commercial benefits it began to receive in the 13th century, Satu Mare became an important centre for craft guilds.

In the 17th century, prince Gabriel Bethlen permitted Sephardi Jews from Turkey to settle in the Transylvanian capital Gyulafehérvár (Alba Iulia), in 1623.

Some of them became involved in large-scale agriculture, becoming landlords or lessees, or were active in trade and industry,[17] or distilled brandy and leased taverns on crown estates.

[18] In 1841, several Jews obtained the permission to settle permanently in Sathmar; the first Jewish community was formally established in 1849, and in 1857, a synagogue was built.

[25] Among the notable members of the local Jewish community have been historian Ignác Acsády, parliamentary deputies Ferenc Chorin and Kelemen Samu, politician Oszkár Jászi, writers Gyula Csehi, Rodion Markovits, Sándor Dénes, and Ernő Szép, painter Pál Erdös, Jacob Reinitz and director György Harag.

Satu Mare has a complex system of transportation, providing road, air and rail connections to major cities in Romania and Europe.

There are twenty-three urban and suburban lines with a total length of 190.1 km (118.1 mi), the main operator being Transurban S.A.[40] In addition, there are various taxi companies serving the city.

The city is served by the Satu Mare International Airport (IATA: SUJ, ICAO: LRSM), located 13 km (8.1 mi) south of the city, with a concrete runway, one of the longest in Romania, with TAROM and Wizz Air operating regular flights to Bucharest, London and Antalya (seasonal only).

Other popular recreational activities include fencing, handball, bowling, women's basketball, karate and chess.

The local women's basketball team CSM Satu Mare is one of the best in the Romanian league; it finished third in the 2008/2009 season playoffs.

[44] The Cypriot professional tennis player Marcos Baghdatis was brought to Satu Mare in 1998 for a month and a half by his former coach Jean Dobrescu[46] to train and to participate in local tennis competitions alongside his fellow Davis Cup team member, Rareș Cuzdriorean,[47] who is also a Satu Mare native with Cypriot citizenship.

[48] Satu Mare has a tradition in fencing dating to 1885, and is the city that has supplied the most world and Olympic champions in Europe.

Names like Ecaterina Stahl, Marcela Moldovan, Suzana and Ștefan Ardeleanu, Petru Kuki, Rudolf Luczki, Samuilă Melczhner, Geza Tere and in particular Alexandru Csipler figure prominently in the annals of Romanian fencing.

[49] Satu Mare benefits from its proximity to the borders with Hungary and Ukraine, which makes it a prime location for logistical and industrial parks.

Currently the largest private employer in Satu Mare is the German automotive company Dräxlmaier Group which owns since 1998 an electric engine components factory in the city and has around 3,600 employees.

[55] The Swedish company Electrolux owns a kitchen stove factory in the city acquired in 1997, that has a surface area of 52,000 square metres (560,000 sq ft) and 1,800 employees.

The facility has an annual production capacity of around 1.2 million units and the majority of the Zanussi brand kitchen stoves in Europe are manufactured there.

[56][57] The Austrian company Voestalpine owns, since 2004, a steel tubes production facility with an annual capacity of 50 million units per year.

The company also owns a 40,000 square metres (430,000 sq ft) logistic facility and a call center in the city.

[59] Satu Mare's retail sector is fairly well-developed; a number of international companies such as Carrefour, Auchan, Kaufland, Metro Point, Lidl and Penny Market have supermarkets or hypermarkets in the city.