Abstract
The article presents various aspects related to the historical geography and demography of central Bukovina—corresponding to the upper basin of Suceava River—between 1774–1848 (the first decades of the Austrian rule in Bukovina).
The research highlights the main demographic fluctuations, the general characteristics of the landscape, and the administrative and institutional organization of the region until the middle of the 19th century. The period was marked by the appearance of settlements founded by German, Hungarian, or Lipovan‑Russian colonists and the emergence of small German, Jewish, or Polish communities in the villages inhabited by Romanians. In the western mountainous part of the region, an ethno‑cultural Slavic subgroup related to the Ukrainians, called the Hutsuls, established their first separate villages near Suceava River.
At the same time, the region witnessed the secularization of the properties belonging to the Orthodox Church, the elevation of Rădăuți to a market town status and its subsequent urban growth, the expansion of the road network, and the appearance of the first factories and modern ventures. Another major occurrence was the transfer of the Bukovina Austrian Army’s Breeding Horse Station to Rădăuți.
The author concludes that the transformation of central Bukovina’s ethno‑confessional structure paralleled the political and economic developments.
Keywords
Bukovina under Austrian rule, historical demography, historical geography, historical spatial analysis, landscape history
