Hîncești
Municipality in Hîncești District, Moldova
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hîncești (Romanian pronunciation: [hɨnˈt͡ʃeʃtʲ]) is a city and municipality[2] in Moldova.
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Hîncești is situated on the Cogâlnic River, 33 km (21 mi) southwest of the Moldovan capital, Chișinău. Since 2003 it has been the seat of Hîncești District.
History
Hîncești was established in 1500 AD as Dobreni.[3] [4] It was part of the Principality of Moldavia until its annexation by Russia in 1812. Within the Russian Empire it was known under the Russified name Gincheshty (Гинчешты), but in Romanian as Hîncești. After World War I, it became part of Romania, formed in the meantime from the unification of the principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia. During World War II, it was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940, which changed its name to Kotovskoe after Grigore Kotovski, who was born there. But from 1941 to 1944 it was again known as Hîncești, when Romania regained control of the settlement. Before WWII, the Jewish community was rather large, in 1930, there were 1,523 Jews living there.
From 1945 to 1965 it was called Kotovskoe, which in 1965 was changed to Kotovsk. Since 1990 it is again called Hîncești.
Demographics
According to the 2024 census, 11,391 inhabitants lived in Hîncești, a decrease compared to the previous census in 2014, when 12,491 inhabitants were registered.[5][6]
- There is an ongoing controversy regarding the ethnic identification of Moldovans and Romanians.
- In March 2023, the Parliament of Moldova passed a law updating all legislative texts and the constitution to refer to the national language as Romanian, effectively rendering the term "Moldovan" obsolete.[7][8]
In 1890, Hîncești had a stable population of 3,098 citizens. By 1970, the population had increased to 14.3 thousand, and by 1991, to 19.3 thousand.
Education
There are four Lyceum (junior colleges) in Hîncești:
- Mihai Viteazul Lyceum
- Mikhail Lomonosov Lyceum
- Mihai Sadoveanu Lyceum
- Mihai Eminescu Lyceum
- Timotei Bătrânu Arts School
Sports
The local football club is FC Petrocub Hîncești.
Notable citizens
- Manuc Bei (1769–1817), Armenian merchant, diplomat, boyar, and inn-keeper
- Jana Costachi (born 1966), Moldovan lawyer and diplomat
- Victoria Furtună (born 1981), Moldovan prosecutor and politician
- Grigory Kotovsky (1881–1925), Soviet military leader and Communist activist
- Natalia Morari (born 1984), Moldovan journalist
