Sibiu is also known as Hermannstadt (in German) and Nagyszeben (in Hungarian). While the land belonged to Hungarian kings, the city was founded by the Saxons: German-born settlers from the valleys of the Rhine and the Mosel. At the end of the 17th century Sibiu became part of the Habsburg and Austro-Hungarian Empire, benefiting from this culturally as composers such as Franz Liszt and Johannes Strauss came to perform in its military casino and as a result the city became known in Western Europe as “Little Vienna”.
Sibiu is still an attractive city from an economic point of view today, accommodating many international companies; mainly German, Austrian and Italian. In 2007, together with Luxembourg, Sibiu was European Capital of Culture.