Zăbala


Zăbala is a commune in Covasna County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania.

Component villages

The commune comprises 4 villages:
In RomanianIn Hungarian
PeteniSzékelypetőfalva
SurceaSzörcse
TamașfalăuSzékelytamásfalva
ZăbalaZabola

Demographics

The commune has a Székely Hungarian majority. According to the 2002 census, it has a population of 4,814, of which 76.55% or 3,685 are Hungarian. There is also an important Romanian community.

Name

The name of "Zabola" means "bridle", i.e. the straps of leather that are put around the head of a horse to allow the rider to control it.
In the course of various battles with the Tatars, the villages north and south of Zabola were destroyed by the Tatars. However, the inhabitants of Zabola were capable of holding the Tatars in check and survived, as if they had put bridles around the Tatars horses in order to control them and their riders.
Outside the village lies the "Tatárhalom" ; some historians think the Tatars that were killed in action were buried there.

History

It formed part of the Székely Land region of the historical Transylvania province. From 1876 until 1918, the village belonged to the Háromszék County of the Kingdom of Hungary. After the Treaty of Trianon of 1920, it became part of Romania.

Famous people