Baia

Baia
Commune
Ruins of the early 15th century local Roman Catholic church
Coat of arms
Country	Romania
County	Suceava County
Population (2002)	6,793
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)

Baia (German: Stadt Molde/Moldenmarkt, Hungarian: Moldvabánya, Latin: Civitas Moldaviae) is a commune in the Suceava County, Romania with a population of 6,793 (2002 census). It is composed of two villages, Baia and Bogata. Located on the Moldova River, it was one of the earliest urban settlements in Moldavia.

The Romanian baia and Hungarian banya both mean "mine". Archeologists found traces of iron slag and coal, but only for a brief period before 14th century, before the arrival of the colonists. It is possible that it derives from the term Bania (from Ban, a political leader). Baia was mentioned for the first time in the Nestor chronicle under the name Bania.

Another name of the settlement was Târgul Moldovei which means "the market of Moldavia", referring to the Moldova River. Its Hungarian name was Moldvabánya, "the Moldova mine". It also had a Latin name, Civitas Moldaviae which was found on an early seal of the city.

There has been a settlement in Baia since the 13th century, but the first written evidence is from the following century. It is possible that a document in Poland mentions the town in 1335, when a certain merchant was mentioned by the name of "Alexa Moldaowicz" (i.e. Alexa from the Town of Moldavia) and the next was in 1345, when Baia is placed on a list of towns of the Franciscan missionaries.

It was through Baia that the army of King Louis I of Hungary went when conquering the region around 1345-1347. There is evidence of a large fire dated mid-14th century discovered by the archeologists and associated with this conquest.

The early Moldavian chronicles place the first capital of Moldavia in Baia, however, it was only an interim capital, as soon the court was moved to Siret and Baia was not even a county seat by the time of Bogdan I of Moldavia.