# Baja, Hungary

Baja (Hungarian pronunciation:) is a city with county rights in Bács-Kiskun County, southern Hungary. It is the second largest city in the county, after the county seat at Kecskemét, and is home to some 35,000 people. Baja is the seat of the Baja municipality.
The environs of Baja have been continuously inhabited since the end of the Iron Age, but there is evidence of human presence since prehistoric times. The settlement itself was most likely established in the 14th century. After the Ottoman Empire had conquered Hungary, it grew to prominence more than the other nearby settlements, and was granted town rights in 1696.
Today, Baja plays an important role in the life of Northern Bácska as a local commercial centre and the provider of public services such as education and healthcare. It has several roads and a railway connection to other parts of the country, and also offers local Public transport for its residents. Being close to the Danube and the forest of Gemenc, as well as having its own cultural sights, makes it a candidate for tourism, but this is not well established yet.

## Etymology

The city's Hungarian name is probably derived from a Turkic language. The commonly known "bull" name is likely not its real origin, but may have gotten its title from the first owner of the city, Baja. The Latin name of the town is Francillo. Baja also used to have a German name: Frankenstadt.
The South Slavs, Bunjevci and Serbs, who live in the city call Baja by the same name as Magyars do, but with a slightly different pronunciation ([baja] instead of [bɒjɒ]). Its spelling in Serbian Cyrillic writing is Баја.

## History

The city was first mentioned in 1308. The Bajai family was the first known owner of the town. In 1474 the settlement was given to the Czobor family by Matthias Corvinus.
During the Turkish Conquest in the 16th and 17th centuries it was the official center for the region and it possessed a fortification. This era saw the immigration of Bunjevci and Serbs into the town. There was also an active Franciscan mission with monks from Bosnia.
In the 18th century, Hungary with its regained territories was a part of the Habsburg Empire. Germans, Hungarians and Jews migrated into the town. Due to its location on the Danube, it became a transportation and commercial hub for the region. This was the place where grain and wine were loaded onto boats to be transported upriver to Austria and Germany. In 1727 the Czobor family regained its ownership. Until 1765, the inhabitants belonged to three nations; Bunjevac (under name of Dalmatians), the Germans and the Serbs. Following this, according to a government decree the Natio Dalmatica was changed into the Natio Hungarica, but even in 1768, the elected mayor swore the oath in the Bunjevac language in the Franciscan Church.
In 1699, Baja was Bács-Bodrog county's most "industrialized" city.
In the 19th century Baja became a minor railway hub, but its importance declined as the railway to Fiume (Rijeka) was built in order to get Hungarian grain seaborne. The city was still a commercial and service center for the region.
In 1918, after World War I, the ceasefire line placed the city under administration of the newly formed Kingdom of Yugoslavia. By the Treaty of Trianon from 1920, the city was assigned to Hungary, and became the capital of the reduced county of Bács-Bodrog.
After World War II the city became known for its textile mill and because of its important bridge crossing the Danube. Its importance is still evident as people from the Bácska region (Serbian: Bačka) of Hungary come for higher education, government and business services.

### Historical population

The city's population was growing rapidly in the 20th century (especially in the interwar period and during the socialist era), but in the last decade its population declined significantly.
The demographic evolution of Baja is the following:
| Year | Population |
| 1870 | 21,248 |
| 1910 | 24,588 |
| 1920 | 22,522 |
| 1941 | 32,084 |
| 1949 | 27,936 |
| 1960 | 30,263 |
| 1970 | 35,575 |
| 1980 | 38,523 |
| 1990 | 38,686 |
| 2001 | 38,360 |
| 2008 | 37,573 |
| 2019 | 34 495 |