Merișani is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia, Romania. It is composed of nine villages: Borlești, Brăteasca, Capu Piscului, Crâmpotani, Dobrogostea, Malu Vânăt, Merișani, Vărzaru and Vâlcelele.

Merișani
Commune
The Romanian Railways station in Merișani, built 1898
Merișani Location in Romania
Coordinates: 44°58′N 24°44′E
Country	Romania
County	Argeș
Population  (2011)[1]	4,569
Time zone	EET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)
Vehicle reg.	AG

History

Humans have inhabited the area that now belongs to the commune since the Neolithic.[2] In the Middle Ages, the oldest written evidence is from 1428.[3] The church in Vărzaru village was built around 1620.[4]

Location

The commune is situated in the centre of Argeș County, at about 15 km from Pitești and 25 km to Curtea de Argeș.[5]

Geography

The commune is on the valley of the Argeș River, in a hilly region called Platforma Argeșului (in English, the Argeș Platform), part of the Getic Plateau.[6] The climate is temperate, with frequent rains. Winters are usually cold, with plenty of snow, while summers have a moderate heat.

Demographics

The official data from the 2002 Census[7] shows that the total population is of 4428 persons. The majority are Romanians (4252 or 96%). The second ethnic group are the Romani people (171 or 4%). There are 5 people with other nationalities. However, the representants of the Romani community[8] say that the Romani population is over 1200 persons.

Transportation

The main way to get to Merișani is by car. There are a national road and several county roads.[9] The railway is the other access way, but trains are very rare.[10]

Economy

There are local resources, like oil,[11] forests[12] and large lakes.[13] There is also a camp that could help tourist development.[14]

Merişani is considered, however, the poorest commune in the county.[15]

References