Turda

Turda (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈturda]; Hungarian: Torda, Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈtorda]; German: Thorenburg; Latin: Potaissa) is a city in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in the southeastern part of the county, 34.2 km (21.3 mi) from the county seat, Cluj-Napoca, to which it is connected by the European route E81, and 6.7 km (4.2 mi) from nearby Câmpia Turzii.

The city consists of four neighborhoods: Turda Veche, Turda Nouă, Oprișani, and Poiana. It is traversed from west to east by the Arieș River and north to south by its tributary, Valea Racilor.

There is evidence of human settlement in the area dating to the Middle Paleolithic, some 60,000 years ago. The Potaissa salt mines were worked in the area since prehistoric times.

The Dacians established a town that Ptolemy in his Geography calls Patreuissa, which is probably a corruption of Patavissa or Potaissa, the latter being more common. It was conquered by the Romans, who kept the name Potaissa, between AD 101 and 106, during the rule of Trajan, together with parts of Decebal's Dacia. "Potaissa" is first recorded on a Roman milliarium discovered in 1758 in the nearby Aiton commune. The city became a municipium Septimium, and benefited from Ius Italicum, however if it reached the rank of colonia is uncertain. At its height it housed as many as 20,000 people. About 200 inscriptions were recovered from the now entirely overlapped Roman ruins, many showing vulgarisms such as v/b alternation or simplification of the geminates.

The legionary fortress was established as the basecamp of the Legio V Macedonica from 166 to 274, and was also named Potaissa.

From the reign of Gordian III (238–244) numerous treasures were excavated from Turda, Țaga, Viișoara, and Mărtinești, showing that in this time the defense was breaking under the Carps, Goths, Gepids, and Vandals.

Objects dated to post-Aurelian retreat found at the site (for example an inscribed onyx gem depicting the Good Shepherd, and silver coins of Diocletian) together with a large burial containing sarcophagi and a cremation stone box point at continuous habitation until the early fifth century. The situation changes in the next two centuries when dwellings and cemeteries superpose the Roman site, in a similar manner to Apulum and Sirmium. After conquering the place, the Huns settled down near. From this time three solidus were found from graves. Burying with coins was a Gepid tradition not typical of the Huns, meaning that they settled their vassals in Transylvania too.

The territory changed hands between the Gepids and Langobards multiple times before both were expelled by the Avars.