Roșia Montană in the context of "Roșia Montană (river)"

Transylvania (Romanian: Transilvania [transilˈvani.a] or Ardeal; Hungarian: Erdély [ˈɛrdeːj]; German: Siebenbürgen [ˌziːbm̩ˈbʏrɡn̩] or Transsilvanien; Transylvanian Saxon: Siweberjen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border are the Carpathian Mountains and to the west the Apuseni Mountains. Broader definitions of Transylvania also include the western and northwestern Romanian regions of Crișana and Maramureș, and occasionally Banat. Historical Transylvania also includes small parts of neighbouring Western Moldavia and even a small part of south-western neighbouring Bukovina to its north east (represented by Suceava County).

Transylvania is known for the scenery of its Carpathian landscape and its rich history, coupled with its multi-cultural character. It also contains Romania's second-largest city, Cluj-Napoca, and other very well preserved medieval iconic cities and towns such as Brașov, Sibiu, Târgu Mureș, Bistrița, Alba Iulia, Mediaș, and Sighișoara. It is also the home of some of Romania's UNESCO World Heritage Sites such as the Villages with fortified churches, the Historic Centre of Sighișoara, the Dacian Fortresses of the Orăștie Mountains and the Roșia Montană Mining Cultural Landscape.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are places of importance to cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972. Cultural heritage consists of monuments (such as architectural works, monumental sculptures, or inscriptions), groups of buildings, and sites (including archaeological sites). Natural heritage consists of natural features (physical and biological formations), geological and physiographical formations (including habitats of threatened species of animals and plants), and natural sites which are important from the point of view of science, conservation, or natural beauty. Romania accepted the convention on 16 May 1990, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on the list.

As of 2024, there are 11 World Heritage Sites in Romania, nine of which are cultural sites and two of which are natural. The first site in Romania, the Danube Delta, was added to the list at the 15th Session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Carthage in 1990. Further sites were added in 1993 and 1999 and some of the sites were subsequently expanded. Roșia Montană Mining Cultural Landscape was listed in 2021 and was immediately placed in the list of World Heritage in Danger due to plans to resume mining. The site Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe is shared among 18 European countries. In addition, there are 17 sites on Romania's tentative list.

Roșia Montană Project was a proposed gold and silver mine in Roșia Montană, Romania. If approved, it would have become Europe's largest open-pit gold mine and it would have used the gold cyanidation mining technique. The project met with widespread protests in 2013 that indefinitely delayed the project, which saw its end in 2021, when Roșia Montană became a part of the UNESCO World Heritage list and was also included in the List of World Heritage in Danger. Following these measures, any mining activity in Roșia Montană is prohibited in the future.

The project was majority-owned by Canadian mining company Gabriel Resources (with 80.46%) and by state mining company Minvest Deva (19.31%) and other minority shareholders.

The Roșia Montană Protests were a series of protests in 2013 in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Iași and dozens of other cities in Romania and abroad against the Roșia Montană mining project. Protesters said that the mining project would destroy the environment and heritage of Roșia Montană and demanded the withdrawal of a law which would enable this project to commence. In Bucharest, protests were held every evening in the University Square and marches were held each Sunday.

Although at first largely ignored by the world press, the demonstrations started to receive more significant worldwide attention both by the media and the general population via the use of social networks. The protests were dubbed the Indignants Movement (Romanian: Mișcarea Indignaților) and Romanian Autumn (Romanian: Toamna Românească). by the Romanian press.