Corabia

Corabia
Corabia
Town
	Romanian War of Independence memorial in Corabia
	Coat of arms
	Location in Olt County
	Corabia Location in Romania
	Coordinates: 43°46′25″N 24°30′12″E / 43.77361°N 24.50333°E
Country	Romania
County	Olt
Government
• Mayor (2020–2024)	Iulică Oane (PSD)
Area	123.19 km2 (47.56 sq mi)
Elevation	35 m (115 ft)
Population (2021-12-01)	13,527
• Density	110/km2 (280/sq mi)
Time zone	EET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)
Postal code	235300
Vehicle reg.	OT
Website	www.primariacorabia.ro

Corabia (Romanian pronunciation: [koˈrabi.a]) is a small Danube port located in Olt County, Oltenia, Romania, which used to be part of the now-dissolved Romanați County before World War II. Across the Danube from Corabia lies the Bulgarian village of Gigen.

History

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1912	9,124	—
1930	8,857	−2.9%
1948	10,772	+21.6%
1956	11,502	+6.8%
1966	14,502	+26.1%
1977	19,705	+35.9%
1992	22,386	+13.6%
2002	21,932	−2.0%
2011	16,441	−25.0%
2021	13,527	−17.7%
Source: Census data

Beneath Corabia, around the former village of Celei, lie the remains of Sucidava, an ancient Dacian and Daco-Roman town and fortress. Near the town, Emperor Constantine the Great built the longest European bridge over the Danube (2,437 m (7,995 ft)). The bridge was destroyed during the Avar invasions, probably in the 7th century. The ruins also contain an old Roman bath and an old basilica. The name Corabia reflects the fact that the new settlement was built from the remains of a wrecked Genoan ship (corabia is the Romanian language term for "sailing ship", specifically used for "galley"). It became a thriving port in the 1880s.

Under the communist regime, Corabia developed as a considerable manufacturing town, with a sugar mill, furniture factory, tannery, a fiber manufacturing plant, and various other facilities. However, in more recent times the town's population has dwindled. Many inhabitants have migrated to larger towns in the wake of the closure of many of Corabia's factories.

Geography

Corabia is located in the southern part of Olt County, on the left bank of the Danube, on the border with Bulgaria. It administers two villages, Tudor Vladimirescu and Vârtopu. The town houses a football club, several shops and bars, the remains of the Roman castrum Sucidava, dating back to the Roman period and featuring the "Secret Fountain" (an unusual piece of engineering); the Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral (one of the largest buildings of its kind in Romania), as well a monumental statue in the middle of the town square commemorating the use of Corabia's facilities in the initial attack during the Romanian War of Independence of 1877. Corabia also has an important archaeological museum with, inter alia, a remarkable collection of Roman pottery. From the town harbour one can make trips along the Danube, with stops at the nearby Băloi Island.

Natives

Pavel Chihaia (1922–2019), novelist
Theodor Danetti (1926–2016), stage and film actor
Nicolae Dobrescu (1874–1914), church historian and theologian
Valentin Al. Georgescu [ro] (1908–1995), jurist, member of the Romanian Academy
Pola Illéry (1909–1993), Romanian-American actress and singer
Șerban Ionescu (1950–2012), actor
Theodor D. Ionescu [ro] (1898–1990), chemical engineer, corresponding member of the Romanian Academy
Virgil Mazilescu (1942–1984), poet, essayist, and translator
Ion Oblemenco (1945–1996), footballer
Ion Rîmaru (1946–1971), serial killer
Robert Săceanu (born 1983), footballer
Vladimir Screciu (born 2000), footballer
Cristina Vărzaru (born 1979), handballer
Ștefan Voitec (1900–1984), Marxist journalist and communist politician