{{for|the settlement formerly known as Kongaz (now Rândunica)|Mihail Kogălniceanu, Tulcea}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Congaz | official_name = | native_name = Kongaz | settlement_type = Commune | nickname = | motto = | image_skyline = MD.GE.Congaz - casa de cultură - jun 2023 - 02.jpg | image_caption = Congaz House of Culture | image_flag = | image_seal = | image_map = | map_caption = Location of Congaz in Moldova | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_type1 = Autonomous Region | subdivision_type2 = | subdivision_name = 25px Moldova | subdivision_name1 = 25px Gagauzia | subdivision_name2 = | established_title = Founded | established_date = 1811 | established_title2 = | established_date2 = | government_type = | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Yesir Mikhail (Revival party)<ref>https://www.congaz.md/na-post-primara-sela-kongaz-podali-8-kandidatov/</ref><ref>https://www.congaz.md/mer-sela/#</ref> | area_magnitude = | area_total_sq_mi = | area_total_km2 = | area_urban_sq_mi = | area_urban_km2 = | area_metro_km2 = | area_metro_sq_mi = | population_as_of = 2024 | population_footnotes = | population_total = 8,269 | population_urban = | population_metro = | population_density_sq_mi = | population_density_km2 = auto | demographics_type1 = Ethnicity (2024 census) | demographics1_title1 = Gagauz people | timezone = EET | utc_offset = +2 | timezone_DST = | utc_offset_DST = | pushpin_map = Moldova Găgăuzia | pushpin_map_caption = Location of Congaz in Moldova | coordinates = {{coord|46|06|30|N|28|35|50|E|region:MD|display=inline,title}} | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_ft = | elevation_m = | blank_name = Climate | blank_info = Cfb | website = [https://www.congaz.md congaz.md] | footnotes = | demographics1_info1 = 95.44% | demographics1_title2 = Moldovans | demographics1_info2 = 1.57% | demographics1_title3 = other | demographics1_info3 = 2.99% }}

'''Congaz''' ({{langx|gag|Kongaz}}) is a commune and village in the Comrat district, Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova. It is the largest village in Gagauzia, with a population of around 8,269, 7,892 (95.44%) of which being Gagauz.<ref name=":0" /><ref>https://statistica.gov.md/en/statistic_indicator_details/60 Final Results of the Population and Housing Census 2024 - Population and Housing Census 2024: Demographic characteristics</ref>

== History == Name of the village is assumed to have a Turkic toponym. It has been considered to be a combination of Kon - "to sit" and kaz/kaaz - goose in Gagauz. This is thought to be derived from a legend, the present-day area of the village supposedly being a resting site for geese.<ref>https://repository.utm.md/bitstream/handle/5014/6128/Conf_StiinteSocioUmanist_2013_pg148-152.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y "К ВОПРОСУ О ПРОИСХОЖДЕНИИ ТОПОНИМА КОНГАЗ" Petru Furtună, Institutului de Relații Internaționale din Moldova (in Russian)</ref>

During the bronze age, a settlement existed 3km from the present-day village, in an area which is now called Kara-Su. The settlement was found by archeologists in 2012, during excavations ceramics and ornaments have been found.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-08-07 |title=ГОРОДИЩЕ «КАРА-СУ» ВБЛИЗИ КОНГАЗА - ЕЩЕ ОДНА НАХОДКА, КОТОРУЮ ПРЕДСТОИТ ИССЛЕДОВАТЬ АРХЕОЛОГАМ - Примэрия села Конгаз |url=https://www.congaz.md/gorodishhe-kara-su-vblizi-kongaza-eshhe-odna-nahodka-kotoruyu-predstoit-issledovat-arheologam/ |access-date=2026-04-10 |language=ru-RU}}</ref>

== International relations ==

=== Twin towns — Sister cities === Congaz is twinned with:<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2026-04-07 |title=История - Примэрия села Конгаз |url=https://www.congaz.md/istoriya/ |access-date=2026-04-09 |language=ru-RU}}</ref>

*{{flagicon|UKR}} Vynohradivka, Bolhrad Raion, Ukraine; *{{flagicon|TUR}} Selçuklu, Turkey;

==Notable people== People from Congaz include these individuals: * {{ill|Demian Caraseni|ro|Demian Caraseni}} (born 1966), Gagauz-Moldovan politician * Zinovia Dushkova (born 1953), Russian author and historian * {{ill|Stepan Esir|ro|Stepan Esir}} (born 1950), Gagauz politician * Mihail Kendighelean (born 1941), Gagauz-Moldovan politician * {{ill|Anatoli Laiba|ro|Anatoli Laiba}} (1954–2016), Russian geologist * {{ill|Daniil Stadnikov|bg|Даниил Стадников}} (1851–1927), figure in the Bulgarian revival in Macedonia * Oleksandr Tkachenko (born 1984), Ukrainian politician * Todur Zanet (born 1958), Gagauz journalist, folklorist and poet * Gavril Zanetov (1874–1934), Bulgarian-Gagauz lawyer and historian

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{Gagauzia, Moldova}}

Congaz

{{Gagauzia-geo-stub}}