Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012	Oct. 26, 2012
Entity Registrant Name	PENN VIRGINIA CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000077159
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		55,093,146