MARAMURES (MARAMAROS), DIOCESE OF. — Diocese for the faithful of the Greek-Romanian rite in northern Romania, with its see at Baia Mare, erected by Pius XI through the constitution Sollemni conventione of 5 June 1930 (AAS, 22 [1930], pp. 381–86). By the same constitution, a vicar general was established, dependent on the bishop of M., for the faithful of the Greek-Romanian rite. Alessandro Rusu was elected the first bishop that same year; he is now imprisoned.
M. has approximately 398,000 faithful, 356 churches, 255 parishes, 258 diocesan priests, and 8 religious (Annuario Pont., 1951, p. 263). Petre Vălimăreanu