Difference between revisions of "Hungary"

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'''Hungary''', officially the Republic of Hungary is located in [[Central Europe]].  Hungary joined the [[European Union]] on May 1, [[2004]]. The native people of Hungary are called [[Magyar]]. The capital city is [[Budapest]].
 
'''Hungary''', officially the Republic of Hungary is located in [[Central Europe]].  Hungary joined the [[European Union]] on May 1, [[2004]]. The native people of Hungary are called [[Magyar]]. The capital city is [[Budapest]].
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{{Infobox Country or territory
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|native_name              = ''Magyar Köztársaság''
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|conventional_long_name  = Republic of Hungary
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|common_name              = Hungary
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|image_flag              = Flag of Hungary.svg
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|image_coat              = Coat of arms of Hungary.png
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|image_map                = EU location HUN.png
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|map_caption              = {{map_caption |region=[[Europe]] |subregion=the [[European Union]] |legend=European location legend en.png}}
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|national_motto          = none<br/><small>Historically ''Regnum Mariae Patrona Hungariae''&nbsp;([[Latin]])<br/>"Kingdom of Mary the Patroness of Hungary"</small>
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|national_anthem          = ''[[Himnusz]]'' <small style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="font-size:111%;">''("Isten, áldd meg a magyart")''</span><br/>"Hymn" ("God, bless the Hungarians")</small>
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|official_languages      = [[Hungarian language|Hungarian (''Magyar'')]]
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|capital                  = [[Budapest]]
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|latd=47 |latm=26 |latNS=N |longd=19 |longm=15 |longEW=E
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|largest_city            = capital
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|government_type          = [[Parliamentary system|Parliamentary]]&nbsp;[[republic]]
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|leader_title1            = [[President of Hungary|President]]
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|leader_title2            = [[Prime minister of Hungary|Prime minister]]
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|leader_name1            = [[László Sólyom]]
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|leader_name2            = [[Ferenc Gyurcsány]]
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|accessionEUdate          = [[May 1]] [[2004]]
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|area_rank                = 109th
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|area_magnitude          = 1 E10
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|area                    = 93,030
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|areami²                  = 35,919 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
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|percent_water            = 0.74%
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|population_estimate      = 10,076,581 <!--Use KSH estimates. The source for this one was http://portal.ksh.hu/pls/ksh/docs/eng/xstadat/tabl1_01_01a.html-->
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|population_estimate_year = 2006
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|population_estimate_rank = 79th
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|population_census        = 10,198,315
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|population_census_year  = 2001
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|population_density      = 109
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|population_densitymi²    = 282 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
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|population_density_rank  = 92nd
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|GDP_PPP_year            = 2006
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|GDP_PPP                  = $169.875 billion
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|GDP_PPP_rank            = 48th
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|GDP_PPP_per_capita      = $16,823<ref name="IMF">[http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2006/02/data/weorept.aspx?sy=2005&ey=2005&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=512%2C446%2C914%2C666%2C612%2C668%2C614%2C672%2C311%2C946%2C213%2C137%2C911%2C962%2C193%2C674%2C122%2C676%2C912%2C548%2C313%2C556%2C419%2C678%2C513%2C181%2C316%2C682%2C913%2C684%2C124%2C273%2C339%2C921%2C638%2C948%2C514%2C686%2C218%2C688%2C963%2C518%2C616%2C728%2C223%2C558%2C516%2C138%2C918%2C353%2C748%2C196%2C618%2C278%2C522%2C692%2C622%2C694%2C156%2C142%2C624%2C449%2C626%2C564%2C628%2C283%2C228%2C853%2C924%2C288%2C233%2C293%2C632%2C566%2C636%2C964%2C634%2C182%2C238%2C453%2C662%2C968%2C960%2C922%2C423%2C714%2C935%2C862%2C128%2C716%2C611%2C456%2C321%2C722%2C243%2C965%2C248%2C718%2C469%2C724%2C253%2C576%2C642%2C936%2C643%2C961%2C939%2C813%2C644%2C199%2C819%2C184%2C172%2C524%2C132%2C361%2C646%2C362%2C648%2C364%2C915%2C732%2C134%2C366%2C652%2C734%2C174%2C144%2C328%2C146%2C258%2C463%2C656%2C528%2C654%2C923%2C336%2C738%2C263%2C578%2C268%2C537%2C532%2C742%2C944%2C866%2C176%2C369%2C534%2C744%2C536%2C186%2C429%2C925%2C178%2C746%2C436%2C926%2C136%2C466%2C343%2C112%2C158%2C111%2C439%2C298%2C916%2C927%2C664%2C846%2C826%2C299%2C542%2C582%2C443%2C474%2C917%2C754%2C544%2C698%2C941&s=PPPPC&grp=0&a=&pr1.x=56&pr1.y=10 IMF report] retrieved on [[4 April]][[2007]]</ref>
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|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank  = 39th
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|Gini                    = 24.96
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|Gini_year                = 2002
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|Gini_rank                = 3rd
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|Gini_category            = <font color="#009900">low</font>
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|sovereignty_type        = [[Independence]]
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|established_event1      = {{nowrap|Principality of Hungary}}
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|established_date1        = [[896]]
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|established_event2      = Kingdom of Hungary
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|established_date2        = December [[1000]] 
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|established_event3      = Dissolution of Austria-Hungary
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|established_date3        = <br/>[[1918]]
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|established_event4      = Republic of Hungary
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|established_date4        = [[1989]]
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|HDI_year                = 2004
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|HDI                      = {{increase}} 0.869
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|HDI_rank                = 35th
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|HDI_category            = <font color="#009900">high</font>
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|currency                = [[Hungarian forint|Forint]]
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|currency_code            = HUF
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|country_code            = hu
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|time_zone                = [[Central European Time|CET]]
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|utc_offset              = +1
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|time_zone_DST            = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
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|utc_offset_DST          = +2
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|cctld                    = [[.hu]]<sup>1</sup>
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|calling_code            = 36
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|footnotes                =
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|ISO_3166-1_alpha2        = HU
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|ISO_3166-1_alpha3        = HUN
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|ISO_3166-1_numeric      = 348
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|sport_code              = HUN
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|vehicle_code            = H
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|footnote1                = Also [[.eu]] as part of the European Union.
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}}
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'''Hungary''' ({{lang-hu|Magyarország}}; {{IPA2|mɒɟɒrorsaːɡ}}; {{audio|hu-Magyarország.ogg|listen}}), officially in English the '''Republic of Hungary''' (''Magyar Köztársaság'' {{audio|hu-Magyar Köztársaság.ogg|listen}}, literally ''Hungarian Republic''), is a [[landlocked]] country in [[Central Europe]], bordered by [[Austria]], [[Slovakia]], [[Ukraine]], [[Romania]], [[Serbia]], [[Croatia]], and [[Slovenia]]. Its capital is [[Budapest]].
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Hungary has been a member state of the [[European Union]] since [[May 1]] [[2004]].
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==History==
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[[Image:Arpadfeszty.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The arrival of the Magyars at the [[Carpathian Basin]].]]
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{{main|History of Hungary}}
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{{seealso|Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary before the Magyars}}
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In the time of the [[Roman Empire]], the region west of the [[Danube river]] was known as [[Pannonia]]. After the [[Western Roman Empire]] collapsed under the stress of the migration of [[Germanic tribes]] and [[Carpia]]n pressure, the [[Migration Period]] continued bringing many invaders to [[Europe]]. Among the first to arrive were the [[Huns]], who built up a powerful empire under [[Attila the Hun|Attila]]. It is presently believed that the origin of the name "Hungary" does not come from the [[Central Asia]]n nomadic invaders called the [[Huns]], but rather originated from a later, [[7th century|seventh century]] [[Bulgar]] alliance called [[On-Ogour]], which in [[Old Turkic language|Old Turkish]] meant "(the) Ten Arrows"<ref name="OSZK">[http://www.oszk.hu/kiadvany/hsr/2000/notes.htm OSZK].</ref><ref name="EB">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-34784/Hungary Hungary], Encyclopædia Britannica.</ref>.
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After Hunnish rule faded, the [[Lombards]] and the [[Gepids]] ruled in Pannonia for about 100 years, during which the [[Slavic tribes]] began migrating into the region. In the 560s, the Slavs were supplanted by the [[Eurasian Avars|Avars]], who maintained their supremacy of the land for more than two centuries. The [[Franks]] under [[Charlemagne]] from the west and the [[Bulgars]] from the southeast managed to overthrow the Avars in the early [[9th century|ninth century]]. However, the Franks soon retreated, and the Slavonic kingdom of [[Great Moravia]] and the [[Balaton Principality]] assumed control of much of Pannonia until the end of the century. The [[Magyars]] migrated to Hungary in the late ninth century.
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Magyar tradition holds that the Country of the Magyars (''Magyarország'') was founded by [[Árpád]], who led the [[Magyars]] into the [[Pannonian plain]] in 896 AD. The "Ten Arrows" mentioned above referred to ten tribes, the alliance of which was the foundation of the army of the invading Magyars.
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===Stephen I of Hungary===
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The [[Kingdom of Hungary]] was established in 1000 by King [[Stephen I of Hungary|Saint Stephen]]. Originally named Vajk, Stephen was a direct descendant of [[Árpád]], and was baptised as a child. He married [[Giselle of Bavaria]], the daughter of [[Henry II, Duke of Bavaria]] in 996, and after the death of his father [[Géza of Hungary|Prince Géza]] in 997, he assumed the mantle of ruler and became the first Christian king of Hungary.
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[[Image:Saint Stephen Crown.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Crown of St. Stephen|crown]] of [[Stephen I of Hungary|Saint Stephen]].]]
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St. Stephen I received his [[Crown of St. Stephen|crown]] from [[Pope Silvester II]] in 1000. As a Christian king, he established the Hungarian Church with ten dioceses and the royal administration of the country that was divided into counties ([[Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)|comitatus]] or ''vármegye'').  Hungary became a [[patrimonial kingdom]] where the majority of the land was the private property of the ruler. In [[1083]], he was [[canonize]]d along with his son, [[Imre of Hungary]].
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Initially, Hungarian history and politics developed in close association with that of [[Poland]] and [[Bohemia]], driven by the interventions of various Popes and Emperors of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. Between 1241&ndash;1242, under [[King Béla IV]], Hungary was devastated, suffering great loss of life at the hands of the [[Mongol]] ([[Tatar]]) armies of [[Batu Khan]] who defeated the Hungarians at the [[Battle of Muhi]]. Despite the victory, the Mongols did not occupy Hungary, but withdrew shortly after upon the news of the death of [[Ögedei Khan]], leaving behind a country in ruins. The famous "Bent Cross" atop the crown has become a symbol of Hungary. Originally the cross was upright but was bent when the crown was stolen in the eleventh century.
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===Árpáds===
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Gradually, under the rule of the dynasty of the [[Árpáds]] and even before it (since the ninth century), Hungary joined the greater West European [[civilization]]s. Ruled by the [[Angevins]] since [[1308]], the Kingdom of Hungary slowly lost control over territories later called [[Wallachia]] ([[1330]]) and [[Moldavia]] ([[1359]]).
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[[János Hunyadi]], the Regent of Hungary, fought defensive wars against the invading [[Ottoman Empire]]. The custom of sounding the [[noon bell]] is closely related to an important battle against the Ottomans that took place on [[June 29]], [[1456]], at [[Siege of Belgrade|Nándorfehérvár]].
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János's son, King [[Matthias Corvinus of Hungary|Matthias Corvinus]], ruled the Kingdom of Hungary from [[1458]] to [[1490]]. He strengthened Hungary and its government: under his rule, Hungary became an important artistic and [[Cultural center|cultural centre]] of Europe during the [[Renaissance]]. Matthias, whose wife was [[Italy|Italian]], imported artisans from Italy and France. Likewise, [[Culture of Hungary|Hungarian culture]] influenced others--for example, the [[Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth]]. King [[Matthias Corvinus of Hungary|Matthias Corvinus]] was also successful in many battles against the [[Ottoman Empire]].
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{{History of Hungary}}
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===Ottomans===
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The forthcoming two centuries were dominated by constant warfare against the [[Ottoman Empire]]. The Ottomans gained a decisive victory over the Hungarian army at the [[battle of Mohács]] in [[1526]]. The next decades were characterised by political chaos; the divided Hungarian nobility elected two kings simultaneously, [[Ferdinand Habsburg]] (1526-1540) and [[János Szapolyai]] (1526-1540), whose armed conflicts weakened the country further. After the conquest of [[Buda]] by the Ottomans in 1541, the Kingdom of Hungary came to be divided into three parts: one third of Hungary fell under Ottoman rule; one third (in the West) remained under [[Habsburg]] rule [[Kings of Hungary]]); and the third part, in the east (originally supporting János Szapolyai), remained independent (the Principality of [[Transylvania]]) and subsequently become a semi-independent, vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. It was only more than 150 years later, at the end of the [[17th century|seventeenth century]], that Austria and its Christian allies regained the territories of the Kingdom from the Ottoman Empire.
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===Austro-Hungarian empire===
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[[Image:Francisc rakoczi.jpg|thumb|left|230px|[[Ferenc II Rákóczi]], painted by [[Ádám Mányoki]].]]
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After the final retreat of the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]], struggle began between the Hungarian nation and the [[Habsburg]] kings for the protection of noblemen' rights (thus guarding the autonomy of Hungary). The fight against Austrian [[absolutism]] resulted in an unsuccessful revolt for popular freedom between 1703 and 1711, led by a Transylvanian nobleman, [[Ferenc II Rákóczi]]. The [[Revolutions of 1848 in Hungary|revolution]] and war of 1848&ndash;1849 eliminated [[serfdom]] and secured [[civil rights]]. The Austrians were finally able to prevail, but only with Russian help.
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Thanks to the victories against Austria by the French-Italian coalition (the [[Battle of Solferino]], 1859) and Prussia ([[Battle of Königgrätz]], 1866), Hungary would eventually, in 1867, manage to become a theoretically equal half of the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]] (see [[Ausgleich]]). Having achieved this, the Hungarian government made an effort to nationally unify the kingdom by [[Magyarisation]] of the various other nationalities. This lasted until the end of [[World War I]], when the Austro-Hungarian empire collapsed.
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On [[November 16]], [[1918]], an independent Hungarian Republic was proclaimed.  This was Hungary's first republic.
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===Interwar era===
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Following [[World War I]], [[Romania]] took control over [[Transylvania]] and eastern Hungary, [[Czechoslovakia]] took control over the northern parts of the Kingdom of Hungary (also known as [[Upper Hungary]]), and a joint [[Serbia]]n and [[French Army|French army]] took control over the southern parts. These territories had a majority population of the respective occupying nations, however each had significant Hungarian population as well. The post-War Entente backed the subsequent annexations of these territories.
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In [[March]] [[1919]], the Communists took power in Hungary.  In April, [[Béla Kun]] proclaimed the [[Hungarian Soviet Republic]].  But Kun's government, like its immediate predecessor, proved to be short-lived.  This was despite some initial military successes against the Czechoslovakian Army.
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On [[13 June]][[1919]], the Versailles Peace Conference ordered Hungary to evacuate the northern territories and Romania to leave [[Tiszántúl]].  Hungary fulfilled its part of the order by [[30 June]] [[1919]].  But the [[Romanian army]] refused to leave [[Tiszántúl]].
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The ensuing war between Hungary and Romania led to the defeat of the Hungarian [[Red Army]].  By [[August]] [[1919]], more than half of present-day Hungary, including Budapest, was occupied by Romania.  The Romanian occupation lasted until [[November]] [[1919]] when the [[Romanian army]] departed.
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Rightist Hungarian military forces, led by the former Austro-Hungarian Admiral [[Miklós Horthy]], entered Budapest in the wake of the Romanian army's departure and filled the vacuum of [[state power]].  In [[January]] [[1920]], elections were held for a unicameral assembly.  Admiral Horthy was elected Regent, thereby formally restoring the monarchy to Hungary.  However, there would be no more "Kings of Hungary" despite attempts by the former Habsburg ruler to return to his former seat of power.  Horthy ruled as Regent until 16 October 1944.  Hungary remained a parliamentary democracy.  But, after 1932, autocratic tendencies gradually returned as a result of Nazi influence and the [[Great Depression]].
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[[Image:Kingdom of Hungary counties.svg|thumb|250px|Map of the counties in the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen (the Kingdom of Hungary proper and Croatia-Slavonia) around 1880.]]
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On [[June 4]], [[1920]], the [[Treaty of Trianon]] was signed, establishing Hungary's new borders.  Compared with the pre-war Kingdom, post-Trianon Hungary had 71% less territory and 66% less population.  About one-third of the Magyar population became minorities in neighbouring countries.  Hungary also lost its only [[Port|sea port]] at Fiume (today [[Rijeka]]).  Therefore, [[Politics of Hungary|Hungarian politics]] and culture of the [[interwar period]] was dominated by [[irredentism]] ( the restoration of historical "[[Greater Hungary (political concept)|Greater Hungary]]").
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===World War II===
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{{main|Hungary during the Second World War}}
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The country became allied with [[Nazi Germany]] in the [[1930s]].  The Hungarians allied themselves with the Germans in the hope that the territorial loss by the [[Treaty of Trianon]] could be reversed.  Initially the alliance with Germany paid off.  Some lost territories were returned to Hungary in the two [[Vienna Awards]]. In [[1941]], Hungary belatedly assisted the Germans with the [[invasion of Yugoslavia]].  Hungary then occupied the [[Backa]].  On [[22 June]] [[1941]], the Germans invaded the Soviet Union ([[Operation Barbarossa]]).  The Hungarians soon followed the Germans and entered [[World War II]] as a member of the [[Axis]].  In late [[1941]], the Hungarian troops on the Eastern Front experienced success at the [[Battle of Uman]].  By [[1943]], after the [[Hungarian Second Army]] suffered extremely heavy losses at the [[Battle of Stalingrad]], the Hungarian government sought to negotiate a surrender with the Allies.  On [[19 March]] [[1944]], as a result of this duplicity, German troops quietly occupied Hungary in what was known as [[Operation Margarethe]].  But, by now it was clear that the Hungarians were Germany's "unwilling satellite".  On [[15 October]] [[1944]], the pro-West Horthy again ran afoul of the Germans.  This time the Germans launched [[Operation Panzerfaust]] and Horthy was replaced by a puppet government under the pro-German Prime Minister [[Ferenc Szálasi]].  Szálasi and his pro-Nazi [[Arrow Cross Party]] remained loyal to the Germans until the end of the war.  In late [[1944]], Hungarian troops on the Eastern Front again experienced success at the [[Battle of Debrecen]].  But this was followed immediately by the Soviet invasion of Hungary and the [[Battle of Budapest]].  On [[28 December]] [[1944]], a "provisional government" was formed in Hungary under acting Prime Minister [[Béla Miklós]].  While the Miklós government immediately ousted Prime Minister [[Ferenc Szálasi]]'s government, the Germans and pro-German Hungarians loyal to Szálasi fought on in Hungary.  On [[20 January]] [[1945]], representatives of the Hungarian "provisional government" went to Moscow and agreed to complete Hungarian capitulation.  Again, the Germans and pro-German Hungarians loyal to Szálasi fought on in Hungary.  On [[13 February]] [[1945]], the Hungarian capital city surrendered unconditionally.  On [[8 May]] [[1945]], [[World War II]] in Europe officially ended.
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===Holocaust===
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Hungary was the first modern nation to pass distinctly [[History of the Jews in Hungary#20th century: persecution and destruction|anti-Semitic laws]]. The [[Numerus clausus|"numerus clausus"]] laws of the early 1920s restricted Jewish access to higher education. In the late 1930s, more specifically anti-Semitic laws followed. Though massacres of Jews by Hungarian forces took place during the early part of the Second World War, Hungary initially resisted large scale deportation of its [[Jewish population]]. Ultimately, however, during the German occupation in May-June [[1944]], the [[Arrow Cross Party]] and Hungarian police deported nearly 440,000 Jews, mostly to [[Auschwitz concentration camp|Auschwitz]].<ref name="USHMM">[http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/index.php?ModuleId=10005458 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Holocaust Encyclopedia]</ref> Over 400,000 Hungarian Jews were murdered during the [[Holocaust]], as well as tens of thousands of [[Roma people]]. Hundreds of Hungarian people were also executed by the [[Arrow Cross Party]] for sheltering Jews, among them Sister [[Sára Salkaházi]]. Foreign heads of states and diplomats who helped save many lives included Cardinal Roncalli, later Pope [[John XXIII]], [[Raoul Wallenberg]], and [[Carl Lutz]]. Italian businessman [[Giorgio Perlasca]] posed as a Spanish diplomat in order to issue forged visas and establish safe houses, including one for Jewish children. When Soviet forces liberated Budapest in February 1945, more than 100,000 Jews remained.<ref name=USHMM/>
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===Soviet era===
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[[Image:Mock&Horn.jpg|left|thumb|240px|The fall of the [[Iron Curtain]], [[1989]]: the [[foreign minister]]s of [[Austria]] and Hungary, [[Alois Mock]] and [[Gyula Horn]], ceremoniously cut through the border defences separating their countries.]]
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Following the fall of Nazi Germany, Hungary became a communist satellite state of the Soviet Union.  This followed a brief interval of democracy from  1946 to 1947 when the Hungarians proclaimed their second republic.  After 1948, Communist leader [[Mátyás Rákosi]] established Stalinist rule in the country.  The rule of the Rákosi government was nearly unbearable for Hungary's war-torn citizens.  This led to the [[1956 Hungarian Revolution]] and Hungary's temporary withdrawal from the [[Warsaw Pact]].  The Soviets retaliated massively with military force, sending in over 150,000 troops and 2,500 tanks<ref>Findley, Carter V., and John Rothney. Twentieth Century World. sixth ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. 278.</ref>.  Nearly a quarter of a million people left the country during the brief time that the borders were open in 1956.  From the 1960s through the late 1980s, Hungary was often satirically referred to as "[[the happiest barrack]]" within the [[Eastern bloc]].  This was under the autocratic rule of its controversial communist leader, [[János Kádár]].
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{{-}}
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===Third Hungarian Republic===
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In the late [[1980s]], Hungary led the movement to dissolve the Warsaw Pact and shifted toward multi-candidate democracy. This means that even though there were several candiates, the communist party, [[MSZMP]], was not out for dispute. However,  independent candidates were elected as protest against the party. At this time,  there were increasing presures for reform within the party.  They also moved towards a [[Market economy|market-oriented economy]]. On [[October 23]] [[1989]], [[Mátyás Szűrös]] declared the [[Third Hungarian Republic]] and became interim President. Hungary's first [[free election]]s were held in 1990. Following the [[History of the Soviet Union (1985-1991)|collapse of the Soviet Union]] in [[1991]], Hungary developed closer ties with [[Western Europe]] as well as with other Central European countries. It became a member of the [[Visegrad Group]] in [[1991]], joined [[NATO]] in 1999, and became a member of the [[European Union]] on [[May 1]], [[2004]].
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==Politics==
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[[Image:Hungarian Parlament.jpg|thumb|250px|right|The [[Hungarian Parliament Building]] in Budapest.]]
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{{main|Politics of Hungary}}
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The [[President of Hungary|President of the Republic]], elected by the [[Parliament]] every five years, has a largely ceremonial role, choosing the dates of the parliamentary elections.
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The prime minister selects [[Cabinet (government)|Cabinet]] ministers and has the [[exclusive right]] to dismiss them. Each Cabinet nominee appears before one or more parliamentary committees in open hearings and must be formally approved by the President.
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A [[unicameral]], 386-member [[National Assembly of Hungary|National Assembly]] (the ''Országgyűlés'') is the highest organ of state authority and initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the Prime Minister. National Parliamentary elections are held every four years; the next are due to be held in 2010.
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An 11-member Constitutional Court has power to challenge legislation on grounds of unconstitutionality.
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==Counties and regions==
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[[Image:HU NUTS 3.png|thumb|left|300px|Counties of Hungary in 2007]]
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[[Image:HU NUTS 2.png|thumb|left|300px|Regions of Hungary]]
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{{main|Counties of Hungary|Regions of Hungary}}
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: ''See also [[Administrative divisions of the Kingdom of Hungary|List of historic counties of Hungary]]''
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Administratively, Hungary is divided into [[Counties of Hungary|nineteen counties]]. The [[Capitals of Hungary|capital city]] (''főváros''), [[Budapest]], is independent of any county government. The counties and the capital are the twenty [[Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics|NUTS]] third-level units of Hungary.
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Since 1996, these twenty administrative units have been grouped into seven [[Regions of Hungary|regions]] for statistical and development purposes. These seven regions constitute NUTS' second-level units of Hungary.
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There are also twenty-three towns with county rights (singular ''megyei jogú város''), sometimes known as "urban counties" in English (although there is no such term in Hungarian). The local authorities of these towns have extended powers, but these towns belong to the territory of the respective county instead of being independent territorial units.
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<table border="0"><tr><th>Counties (County Capital)</th><th>Regions</th></tr>
 +
<tr><td>
 +
 +
* [[Bács-Kiskun]] ([[Kecskemét]])
 +
* [[Baranya]] ([[Pécs]])
 +
* [[Békés (county)|Békés]] ([[Békéscsaba]])
 +
* [[Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén]] ([[Miskolc]])
 +
* [[Csongrád (county)|Csongrád]] ([[Szeged]])
 +
* [[Fejér]] ([[Székesfehérvár]])
 +
* [[Győr-Moson-Sopron]] ([[Győr]])
 +
* [[Hajdú-Bihar]] ([[Debrecen]])
 +
* [[Heves (county)|Heves]] ([[Eger]])
 +
* [[Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok]] ([[Szolnok]])
 +
* [[Komárom-Esztergom]] ([[Tatabánya]])
 +
* [[Nógrád (county)|Nógrád]] ([[Salgótarján]])
 +
* [[Pest (county)|Pest]] ([[Budapest]])
 +
* [[Somogy]] ([[Kaposvár]])
 +
* [[Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg]] ([[Nyíregyháza]])
 +
* [[Tolna (county)|Tolna]] ([[Szekszárd]])
 +
* [[Vas]] ([[Szombathely]])
 +
* [[Veszprém (county)|Veszprém]] ([[Veszprém]])
 +
* [[Zala]] ([[Zalaegerszeg]])
 +
* [[Budapest]], capital city
 +
 +
</td><td valign="top">
 +
 +
* [[Western Transdanubia]]
 +
* [[Southern Transdanubia]]
 +
* [[Central Transdanubia]]
 +
* [[Central Hungary]]
 +
* [[Northern Hungary]]
 +
* [[Northern Great Plain]]
 +
* [[Southern Great Plain]]
 +
 +
</td>
 +
</td></tr></table>
 +
 +
==Economy==
 +
[[Image:Mnb hu.jpg|left|thumb|200px|[[Hungarian National Bank]]]]
 +
[[Image:HUF 500 1998 obverse.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Hungarian Forint]] (obverse)]]
 +
[[Image:HUF 500 1998 reverse.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Hungarian Forint (reverse)]]
 +
{{main|Economy of Hungary}}
 +
Hungary continues to demonstrate [[economic growth]] as one of the newest member countries of the European Union (since 2004). The private sector accounts for over 80% of [[Gross Domestic Product|GDP]]. Hungary gets nearly one third of all [[foreign direct investment]] flowing in to Central Europe. [[Foreign ownership]] of and investment in Hungarian firms are widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totalling more than US$23 billion since 1989. The Hungarian sovereign debt's [[credit rating]] is BBB+ [[As of 2006|as of July 2006]], making Hungary the only other country in the EU apart from Poland not to enjoy an A grade score. [[Inflation]] and [[unemployment]] have been on the rise in the past few years, and they are expected to rise further. Foreign investors' trust in the Hungarian economy has declined, as they deem that the stringency measures planned in the second half of 2006 are not satisfactory, their focus being mainly on increasing the income side rather than curbing government spendings. Economic reform measures such as [[health care reform]], [[tax reform]], and [[local government]] financing are being addressed by the present government.
 +
 +
The Hungarian government has expressed a desire to adopt the [[euro]] currency between 2010 and 2014<ref>[http://vg.hu/index.php?apps=cikk&cikk=164181 "Gyurcsány modifies date"], [[Világgazdaság]]</ref>. However, foreign analysts widely criticised that date (2010) as highly unrealistic given the current shape of the economy in relation to the [[Maastricht criteria]]; their assessments suggest that a date of 2013-2014 for Euro adoption is more realistic.
 +
 +
==Geography==
 +
[[Image:Hortobágy.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Hortobágy]] on the [[Great Hungarian Plain]] with [[Racka]] sheep]]
 +
[[Image:Kekesteto1.JPG|thumb|200px|[[Kékes]], the highest mountain in Hungary.]]
 +
{{main|Geography of Hungary}}
 +
 +
===Landscape===
 +
Approximately slightly more than one half of Hungary's landscape consists of flat to rolling plains of the [[Carpathian Basin]]: the most important plain regions include the [[Little Hungarian Plain]] in the west, and the [[Great Hungarian Plain]] in the southeast. The highest elevation above sea level on the latter is only 183 metres.
 +
 +
[[Transdanubia]] is a primarily hilly region with a terrain varied by low mountains. These include the very eastern stretch of the [[Alps]], [[Alpokalja]], in the west of the country,  the [[Transdanubian Medium Mountains]], in the cental region of Transdanubia, and the [[Mecsek]] Mountains and [[Villány Mountains]] in the south. The highest point of the area is the [[Írott-kő]] in the Alps, at 882 metres.
 +
 +
The highest mountains of the country are located in the [[Carpathians]]: these lie in the [[Northern Medium Mountains (Hungary)|northern parts]], in a wide band along the [[Slovakia]]n border (highest point: the [[Kékes]] at 3,327&nbsp;[[Foot (unit of length)|ft]]; 1,014&nbsp;m).
 +
 +
Hungary is divided in two by its main waterway, the [[Danube]] (Duna); other large rivers include the [[Tisza]] and [[Dráva]], while Transdanubia contains [[Lake Balaton]], a major body of water. The largest thermal lake in the world, [[Lake Hévíz]] ([[Hévíz Spa]]), is located in Hungary. The second largest lake in the [[Carpathian Basin]] is the artificial [[Lake Tisza]] (''Tisza-tó'').
 +
 +
===Climate===
 +
Hungary has a [[continental climate]], with cold, cloudy, humid [[winter]]s and warm to hot [[summer]]s. Average annual temperature is 9.7&nbsp;°[[Celsius|C]] (49.5&nbsp;°[[Fahrenheit|F]]). Temperature extremes are about 42&nbsp;°C (110&nbsp;°F) in the summer and &minus;29&nbsp;°C (&minus;20&nbsp;°F) in the winter. Average temperature in the summer is 27 to 35&nbsp;°C (81 to 95&nbsp;°F), and in the winter it is 0 to &minus;15&nbsp;°C (32 to 5&nbsp;°F). The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 millimetres (24&nbsp;[[inch|in]]). A small, southern region of the country near [[Pécs]] enjoys a reputation for a [[Mediterranean climate]], but in reality it is only slightly warmer than the rest of the country and still receives snow during the winter.
 +
<!--
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The following section is not cited, and "according to popular opinion" possibly not encyclopedic in content. Until someone looks after this, please keep it hidden:
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 +
The relative isolation of the Carpathian Basin makes it susceptible to [[drought]]s and the effects of [[global warming]] have already been felt. According to popular opinion and many scientists, the country became drier in recent decades, as droughts have become quite common. Summers became hotter and winters became milder. For these reasons, snow has become much rarer than before. Popular opinion also states that the four-season system became a two-season system as [[spring (season)|spring]] and [[autumn]] are getting shorter and shorter, even vanishing some years. This supposed tendency unexpectedly was reversed in 2006 when Hungary's two main rivers, the [[Danube]] and the [[Tisza]], flooded at the same time. It made hundreds of homes uninhabitable despite the hard work of the defenders who reinforced most sections of the rivers with sandbags (with the help of university students and the army of Hungary ("[[Honvédség]]")).
 +
 +
Most of Hungary is covered by agricultural plains; there are but few remnants of its original forests, mainly in the mountain regions and national parks. -->
 +
 +
==Demographics==
 +
{{main|Demographics of Hungary}}
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{{bar box
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|width=300px
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|float=right
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|title=Ethnic composition of Hungary
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|titlebar=#ddd
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|bars=
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{{bar percent|Hungarian|green|94}}
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{{bar percent|Roma|teal|2}}
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{{bar percent|German|lightgreen|1.2}}
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{{bar percent|Slovak|orange|0.4}}
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{{bar percent|other|gray|2.3}}
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}}
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For 95% of the population, mostly [[Hungarians]], the mother tongue is [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]], a [[Finno-Ugric]] language unrelated to any neighbouring language and distantly related to [[Finnish language|Finnish]] and [[Estonian language|Estonian]]. Several [[Minority group|ethnic minorities]] exist: [[Roma (people)|Roma]] (2,1%), [[ethnic German|German]]s (1.2%), [[Slovaks]] (0.4%), [[Croats]] (0.2%), [[Romanians]] (0.1%),[[Serbs]] (0.1%) and [[Ukrainians]] (0.1%).
 +
 +
According to census data, the largest religion in Hungary is [[Latin Rite|Roman Catholicism]] (50% of the population [http://www.nepszamlalas.hu/eng/volumes/18/tables/load1_26.html]), with a significant [[Calvinist]] minority (16% of the population) and smaller [[Lutheran]] (3%) and [[Hungarian Byzantine Catholic Church|Greek Catholic]] (3%) minorities. However, these census figures are representative of religious affiliation rather than practice; an estimated 10-14% of Hungarians attend religious services at least once a week and fewer than 50% at least once a year, while 30% of Hungarians do not believe in God [http://www.worldvaluessurvey.com][http://www.demos.hu/audit].
 +
 +
For historical reasons, significant [[Magyars|Hungarian]] minority populations can be found in the surrounding countries, notably in [[Romania]] (in [[Transylvania]]), [[Slovakia]], [[Serbia]] (in [[Vojvodina]]), [[Ukraine]] (in [[Carpathian Ruthenia|Transcarpathia]]), [[Croatia]] (mainly [[Slavonia]]) and [[Austria]] (in [[Burgenland]]); [[Slovenia]] is also host to a number of ethnic Magyars, where Hungarian language has an official status.
 +
 +
====The Roma minority====
 +
{{main|Roma People}}
 +
The real number of [[Roma people]], known colloquially as "Gypsies", in Hungary is a disputed question. In the 2001 census, only 190,000 people called themselves Roma, but experts and Roma organisations estimate that there are between 450,000 and 600,000 Roma living in Hungary [http://www.demos.hu/Audit]. Since [[World War II]], the size of the Roma population has increased rapidly. Today every fifth or sixth newborn Hungarian child belongs to the Roma minority{{Fact|date=February 2007}}. Estimates based on current demographic trends claim that in 2050 15-20 percent of the population (1.2 million people) will be Roma.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
 +
 +
Romas (called ''cigányok'' or ''romák'' in Hungarian) suffer particular problems in Hungary. School segregation is an especially acute one, with many Roma children sent to classes for pupils with learning disabilities. Currently slightly more than 80% of Roma children complete primary education, but only one third continue studies into the intermediate (secondary) level. This is far lower than the more than 90% proportion of children of non-Roma families who continue studies at an intermediate level. The situation is made still worse by the fact that a large proportion of young Roma are qualified in subjects that provide them only limited chances for employment. Less than 1% of Roma hold higher educational certificates. Their low status on the job market and higher unemployment rates cause poverty, widespread social problems and crime.{{Fact|date=April 2007}}
 +
 +
==Culture==
 +
[[Image:Liszt-1870.jpg|thumb|right|130px|[[Franz Liszt]], the prominent Hungarian [[composer]], [[piano]] [[virtuoso]] and contemporary of [[Ferenc Erkel]].]]
 +
{{main|Culture of Hungary}}
 +
 +
=== Music ===
 +
 +
The [[music of Hungary]] consists mainly of traditional Hungarian [[folk music]] and music by prominent composers such as [[Franz Liszt]], [[Béla Bartók]] and [[Zoltán Kodály]]. Hungarian traditional music tends to have a strong [[Dactyl (poetry)|dactylic]] [[rhythm]], just as the language is invariably stressed on the first syllable of each word.
 +
 +
=== Cuisine ===
 +
 +
[[Cuisine of Hungary|Hungarian cuisine]] is also a prominent feature of Hungarian culture, with traditional dishes such as [[goulash]] (''gulyás'' or ''gulyásleves'') a main feature of the Hungarian [[diet (nutrition)|diet]]. Dishes are often flavoured with [[paprika]]. [[Stew]]s are often to be found with typical elements such as [[pork]] or [[beef]], for example as used in [[pörkölt]].
 +
 +
=== Science ===
 +
 +
Hungary is famous for its excellent [[mathematics education]] which has trained numerous outstanding scientists. Famous Hungarian mathematicians include [[Paul Erdős]], famed for publishing in over forty languages and whose [[Erdős number]]s are still tracked; [[János Bolyai|János (John) Bolyai]], designer of [[non-Euclidian geometry|non-Euclidean]] (or "absolute") [[geometry]] in [[1831]];<ref name="HunInvent">[http://www.hungemb.com/damascus/hungarians_to_universal_culture.htm ''The Contribution of Hungarians to Universal Culture''] (includes inventors), Embassy of the Republic of Hungary, [[Damascus, Syria]], 2006.</ref>
 +
[[John von Neumann]], a pioneer of [[digital computing]]; [[Eugene Wigner]]; and many others. Erdős, von Neumann, and Wigner, like other Hungarian Jewish scientists, fled rising [[anti-Semitism]] in Europe, and made their most famous contributions in the United States.
 +
 +
Hungarians are very proud of their inventions. These include the noiseless [[match]] ([[János Irinyi|János Irínyi]]), the [[Rubik's cube]], the [[krypton]] electric bulb ([[Imre Bródy]], 1891–1944), and the aforementioned [[non-Euclidian geometry]]. A number of other important inventions, including [[holography]], the [[ballpoint pen]] (invented by the eponymous [[Laszlo Bíró]]), the theory of the [[hydrogen bomb]], and the [[BASIC programming language|BASIC]] [[programming language]],<ref name="HunInvent"/> were invented by Hungarians who fled the country prior to World War II.
 +
 +
=== Literature ===
 +
[[Image:Ferenc kolcsey.jpg|right|thumb|right|130px|[[Ferenc Kölcsey]], author of the lyrics of the Hungarian national anthem.]]
 +
[[Hungarian literature]] has recently gained some renown outside the borders of Hungary (mostly through translations into German, French and English). Some modern Hungarian authors became increasingly popular in Germany and Italy especially [[Sándor Márai]], [[Péter Esterházy]], [[Péter Nádas]] and [[Imre Kertész]]. The latter is a contemporary Jewish writer who survived the Holocaust and won the [[Nobel Prize]] for literature in 2002.
 +
 +
The older classics of Hungarian literature and Hungarian poetry remained almost totally unknown outside Hungary. [[János Arany]], a famous nineteenth century Hungarian poet is still much loved in Hungary (especially his collection of [[Ballads]]), among several other "true classics" like [[Sándor Petőfi]], the poet of the Revolution of 1848, [[Endre Ady]], [[Mihály Babits]], [[Dezső Kosztolányi]], [[Attila József]] and [[János Pilinszky]]. Other well-known Hungarian authors are [[Zsigmond Móricz]], [[Gyula Illyés]], [[Albert Wass]], [[Magda Szabó]] and the [[Nobel Prize]] winner [[Imre Kertész]].
 +
 +
=== Sport ===
 +
One of the most famous Hungarians is the footballer [[Ferenc Puskás]] ([[1927]] – [[2006]]). He scored 84 goals in 85 internationals for [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]],<ref name="international goals"/> and 511 goals in 533 matches in the [[Hungarian League|Hungarian]] and [[La Liga|Spanish]] leagues. Puskás played the  [[1954 FIFA World Cup Final|1954 World Cup final]] against [[West Germany national football team|West Germany]]. In 1958, after the [[Hungarian Revolution of 1956|Hungarian Revolution]], he emigrated to [[Spain]] where he played in the legendary [[Real Madrid]] team that also included [[Alfredo Di Stéfano]], and [[Francisco Gento]].
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 +
Hungarians are also known for their prowess at [[Water sport (recreation)|water sports]], mainly [[swimming]], [[water polo]] and canoeing; this can be said to be surprising at first, due to Hungary being [[landlocked]]. On the other hand, the presence of two major rivers (the [[Danube|Duna]] and the [[Tisza]]) and a major lake ([[Lake Balaton|Balaton]]) give excellent opportunities to practice these sports.
 +
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==See also==
 +
{{HungaryPortal}}
 +
{{columns |width=220px
 +
|col1 =
 +
*[[Communications in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Curse of Turan]]
 +
*[[Foreign relations of Hungary]]
 +
*[[Hungarian American]] organizations
 +
*[[History of the Jews in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Hungarian animals]]
 +
|col2 =
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*[[Hungarian people]]
 +
*[[Cuisine of Hungary|Hungarian cuisine]]
 +
*[[History of Hungary]]
 +
*[[Hungarian jokes]]
 +
*[[Magyar Cserkészszövetség|Hungarian Scout Association]]
 +
*[[Military of Hungary]]
 +
|col3 =
 +
*[[Music of Hungary]]
 +
*[[Name days in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Public holidays in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Transportation in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Castles in Hungary]]
 +
*[[Hungarian Castles and Mansions]]
 +
 +
*[[Old Hungarian script]]
 +
}}
 +
===Lists===
 +
*[[List of cities in Hungary]]
 +
*[[List of Hungarians]]
 +
*[[List of Hungarian rulers]]
 +
*[[List of Hungarian writers]]
 +
*[[List of colleges in Hungary]]
 +
*[[List of universities in Hungary]]
 +
*[[List of most popular family names#Hungary|Common Hungarian surnames]]
 +
*[[List of personal naming conventions#Name order|Eastern name order used in Hungarian personal names]]
 +
 +
==References==
 +
{{reflist}}
 +
 +
==External links==
 +
{{sisterlinks|Hungary}}
 +
* [http://www.parlament.hu/parl_en.htm Official site of the National Assembly]
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* [http://www.keh.hu/index_en.html Official site of the President of Hungary]
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* [http://www.meh.hu/english Official site of the Prime Minister of Hungary]
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* [http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu/index.php/History_of_Hungary:_Primary_Documents History of Hungary: Primary Documents]
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* [http://www.hungarianhistory.com History of Hungary &ndash; The Corvinus Library]
 +
* [http://www.bh.org.il/V-Exh/hungary/index.html In The Land of Hagar - The Jews of Hungary] &ndash; A Virtual Exhibition
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* [http://new.photos.yahoo.com/zsolt_hungary/album/576460762351130695 Budapest Photos]
 +
* [http://www.civertan.hu/legifoto/legifoto.php?page_level=1 Aerial photography: Hungary]
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* [http://www.earth-photography.com/Countries/Hungary Artistic photos of Hungary]
 +
* [http://translations.bookfinder.hu/indexa.htm Translation of Hungarian literary works - a database]
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* {{dmoz|Regional/Europe/Hungary|Hungary}}
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<br/>
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{{Hun-hist-develop
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|before  = ← [[Austro-Hungarian Monarchy]]<br/>(1867-1918)
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|flag    = Flag of Hungary.svg
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|after  = &ndash;
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|current = Hungary
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}}
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{{Template group
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|title = Geographical locale
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|list =
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{{Hungary articles}}
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{{Countries of Europe}}
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}}
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{{Template group
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|title = International membership
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|list  =
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{{EU members}}
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{{Council of Europe members}}
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{{OECD}}
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{{WTO}}
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{{NATO}}
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{{Visegrád Group}}
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{{La Francophonie}}
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{{Finno-Ugric-speaking nations}}
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}}
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<!--Categories-->
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[[Category:Hungary| ]]
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[[Category:European Union member states]]
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[[Category:Republics]]
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[[Category:Landlocked countries]]
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[[Category:European Countries]]
 
[[Category:European Countries]]
 
[[Category:Warsaw Pact members]]
 
[[Category:Warsaw Pact members]]
 
[[Category:EU Members]]
 
[[Category:EU Members]]

Revision as of 10:30, April 24, 2007

Republic of Hungary
250px

Flag of the Republic of Hungary

Capital Budapest
Government
Official Language Hungarian
President László Sólyom
Area 93,030 km² (109th)
Population (2007 estimate) 10,076,581 (79th)
GDP (2007 estimate) $169.875 billion (48th)
GDP per capita (2007 estimate) $16,823[1] (39th)


Hungary, officially the Republic of Hungary is located in Central Europe. Hungary joined the European Union on May 1, 2004. The native people of Hungary are called Magyar. The capital city is Budapest.

Template:Infobox Country or territory

Hungary (Template:Lang-hu; Template:IPA2; Template:Audio), officially in English the Republic of Hungary (Magyar Köztársaság Template:Audio, literally Hungarian Republic), is a landlocked country in Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. Its capital is Budapest.

Hungary has been a member state of the European Union since May 1 2004.

History

File:Arpadfeszty.jpg
The arrival of the Magyars at the Carpathian Basin.

For a more detailed treatment, see History of Hungary.
Template:Seealso In the time of the Roman Empire, the region west of the Danube river was known as Pannonia. After the Western Roman Empire collapsed under the stress of the migration of Germanic tribes and Carpian pressure, the Migration Period continued bringing many invaders to Europe. Among the first to arrive were the Huns, who built up a powerful empire under Attila. It is presently believed that the origin of the name "Hungary" does not come from the Central Asian nomadic invaders called the Huns, but rather originated from a later, seventh century Bulgar alliance called On-Ogour, which in Old Turkish meant "(the) Ten Arrows"[1][2].

After Hunnish rule faded, the Lombards and the Gepids ruled in Pannonia for about 100 years, during which the Slavic tribes began migrating into the region. In the 560s, the Slavs were supplanted by the Avars, who maintained their supremacy of the land for more than two centuries. The Franks under Charlemagne from the west and the Bulgars from the southeast managed to overthrow the Avars in the early ninth century. However, the Franks soon retreated, and the Slavonic kingdom of Great Moravia and the Balaton Principality assumed control of much of Pannonia until the end of the century. The Magyars migrated to Hungary in the late ninth century.

Magyar tradition holds that the Country of the Magyars (Magyarország) was founded by Árpád, who led the Magyars into the Pannonian plain in 896 AD. The "Ten Arrows" mentioned above referred to ten tribes, the alliance of which was the foundation of the army of the invading Magyars.

Stephen I of Hungary

The Kingdom of Hungary was established in 1000 by King Saint Stephen. Originally named Vajk, Stephen was a direct descendant of Árpád, and was baptised as a child. He married Giselle of Bavaria, the daughter of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria in 996, and after the death of his father Prince Géza in 997, he assumed the mantle of ruler and became the first Christian king of Hungary.

File:Saint Stephen Crown.jpg
The crown of Saint Stephen.

St. Stephen I received his crown from Pope Silvester II in 1000. As a Christian king, he established the Hungarian Church with ten dioceses and the royal administration of the country that was divided into counties (comitatus or vármegye). Hungary became a patrimonial kingdom where the majority of the land was the private property of the ruler. In 1083, he was canonized along with his son, Imre of Hungary.

Initially, Hungarian history and politics developed in close association with that of Poland and Bohemia, driven by the interventions of various Popes and Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Between 1241–1242, under King Béla IV, Hungary was devastated, suffering great loss of life at the hands of the Mongol (Tatar) armies of Batu Khan who defeated the Hungarians at the Battle of Muhi. Despite the victory, the Mongols did not occupy Hungary, but withdrew shortly after upon the news of the death of Ögedei Khan, leaving behind a country in ruins. The famous "Bent Cross" atop the crown has become a symbol of Hungary. Originally the cross was upright but was bent when the crown was stolen in the eleventh century.

Árpáds

Gradually, under the rule of the dynasty of the Árpáds and even before it (since the ninth century), Hungary joined the greater West European civilizations. Ruled by the Angevins since 1308, the Kingdom of Hungary slowly lost control over territories later called Wallachia (1330) and Moldavia (1359).

János Hunyadi, the Regent of Hungary, fought defensive wars against the invading Ottoman Empire. The custom of sounding the noon bell is closely related to an important battle against the Ottomans that took place on June 29, 1456, at Nándorfehérvár.

János's son, King Matthias Corvinus, ruled the Kingdom of Hungary from 1458 to 1490. He strengthened Hungary and its government: under his rule, Hungary became an important artistic and cultural centre of Europe during the Renaissance. Matthias, whose wife was Italian, imported artisans from Italy and France. Likewise, Hungarian culture influenced others--for example, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. King Matthias Corvinus was also successful in many battles against the Ottoman Empire.

Template:History of Hungary

Ottomans

The forthcoming two centuries were dominated by constant warfare against the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans gained a decisive victory over the Hungarian army at the battle of Mohács in 1526. The next decades were characterised by political chaos; the divided Hungarian nobility elected two kings simultaneously, Ferdinand Habsburg (1526-1540) and János Szapolyai (1526-1540), whose armed conflicts weakened the country further. After the conquest of Buda by the Ottomans in 1541, the Kingdom of Hungary came to be divided into three parts: one third of Hungary fell under Ottoman rule; one third (in the West) remained under Habsburg rule Kings of Hungary); and the third part, in the east (originally supporting János Szapolyai), remained independent (the Principality of Transylvania) and subsequently become a semi-independent, vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. It was only more than 150 years later, at the end of the seventeenth century, that Austria and its Christian allies regained the territories of the Kingdom from the Ottoman Empire.

Austro-Hungarian empire

File:Francisc rakoczi.jpg
Ferenc II Rákóczi, painted by Ádám Mányoki.

After the final retreat of the Ottomans, struggle began between the Hungarian nation and the Habsburg kings for the protection of noblemen' rights (thus guarding the autonomy of Hungary). The fight against Austrian absolutism resulted in an unsuccessful revolt for popular freedom between 1703 and 1711, led by a Transylvanian nobleman, Ferenc II Rákóczi. The revolution and war of 1848–1849 eliminated serfdom and secured civil rights. The Austrians were finally able to prevail, but only with Russian help.

Thanks to the victories against Austria by the French-Italian coalition (the Battle of Solferino, 1859) and Prussia (Battle of Königgrätz, 1866), Hungary would eventually, in 1867, manage to become a theoretically equal half of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (see Ausgleich). Having achieved this, the Hungarian government made an effort to nationally unify the kingdom by Magyarisation of the various other nationalities. This lasted until the end of World War I, when the Austro-Hungarian empire collapsed.

On November 16, 1918, an independent Hungarian Republic was proclaimed. This was Hungary's first republic.

Interwar era

Following World War I, Romania took control over Transylvania and eastern Hungary, Czechoslovakia took control over the northern parts of the Kingdom of Hungary (also known as Upper Hungary), and a joint Serbian and French army took control over the southern parts. These territories had a majority population of the respective occupying nations, however each had significant Hungarian population as well. The post-War Entente backed the subsequent annexations of these territories.

In March 1919, the Communists took power in Hungary. In April, Béla Kun proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic. But Kun's government, like its immediate predecessor, proved to be short-lived. This was despite some initial military successes against the Czechoslovakian Army.

On 13 June1919, the Versailles Peace Conference ordered Hungary to evacuate the northern territories and Romania to leave Tiszántúl. Hungary fulfilled its part of the order by 30 June 1919. But the Romanian army refused to leave Tiszántúl.

The ensuing war between Hungary and Romania led to the defeat of the Hungarian Red Army. By August 1919, more than half of present-day Hungary, including Budapest, was occupied by Romania. The Romanian occupation lasted until November 1919 when the Romanian army departed.

Rightist Hungarian military forces, led by the former Austro-Hungarian Admiral Miklós Horthy, entered Budapest in the wake of the Romanian army's departure and filled the vacuum of state power. In January 1920, elections were held for a unicameral assembly. Admiral Horthy was elected Regent, thereby formally restoring the monarchy to Hungary. However, there would be no more "Kings of Hungary" despite attempts by the former Habsburg ruler to return to his former seat of power. Horthy ruled as Regent until 16 October 1944. Hungary remained a parliamentary democracy. But, after 1932, autocratic tendencies gradually returned as a result of Nazi influence and the Great Depression.

File:Kingdom of Hungary counties.svg
Map of the counties in the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen (the Kingdom of Hungary proper and Croatia-Slavonia) around 1880.

On June 4, 1920, the Treaty of Trianon was signed, establishing Hungary's new borders. Compared with the pre-war Kingdom, post-Trianon Hungary had 71% less territory and 66% less population. About one-third of the Magyar population became minorities in neighbouring countries. Hungary also lost its only sea port at Fiume (today Rijeka). Therefore, Hungarian politics and culture of the interwar period was dominated by irredentism ( the restoration of historical "Greater Hungary").

World War II

For a more detailed treatment, see Hungary during the Second World War.
The country became allied with Nazi Germany in the 1930s. The Hungarians allied themselves with the Germans in the hope that the territorial loss by the Treaty of Trianon could be reversed. Initially the alliance with Germany paid off. Some lost territories were returned to Hungary in the two Vienna Awards. In 1941, Hungary belatedly assisted the Germans with the invasion of Yugoslavia. Hungary then occupied the Backa. On 22 June 1941, the Germans invaded the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). The Hungarians soon followed the Germans and entered World War II as a member of the Axis. In late 1941, the Hungarian troops on the Eastern Front experienced success at the Battle of Uman. By 1943, after the Hungarian Second Army suffered extremely heavy losses at the Battle of Stalingrad, the Hungarian government sought to negotiate a surrender with the Allies. On 19 March 1944, as a result of this duplicity, German troops quietly occupied Hungary in what was known as Operation Margarethe. But, by now it was clear that the Hungarians were Germany's "unwilling satellite". On 15 October 1944, the pro-West Horthy again ran afoul of the Germans. This time the Germans launched Operation Panzerfaust and Horthy was replaced by a puppet government under the pro-German Prime Minister Ferenc Szálasi. Szálasi and his pro-Nazi Arrow Cross Party remained loyal to the Germans until the end of the war. In late 1944, Hungarian troops on the Eastern Front again experienced success at the Battle of Debrecen. But this was followed immediately by the Soviet invasion of Hungary and the Battle of Budapest. On 28 December 1944, a "provisional government" was formed in Hungary under acting Prime Minister Béla Miklós. While the Miklós government immediately ousted Prime Minister Ferenc Szálasi's government, the Germans and pro-German Hungarians loyal to Szálasi fought on in Hungary. On 20 January 1945, representatives of the Hungarian "provisional government" went to Moscow and agreed to complete Hungarian capitulation. Again, the Germans and pro-German Hungarians loyal to Szálasi fought on in Hungary. On 13 February 1945, the Hungarian capital city surrendered unconditionally. On 8 May 1945, World War II in Europe officially ended.

Holocaust

Hungary was the first modern nation to pass distinctly anti-Semitic laws. The "numerus clausus" laws of the early 1920s restricted Jewish access to higher education. In the late 1930s, more specifically anti-Semitic laws followed. Though massacres of Jews by Hungarian forces took place during the early part of the Second World War, Hungary initially resisted large scale deportation of its Jewish population. Ultimately, however, during the German occupation in May-June 1944, the Arrow Cross Party and Hungarian police deported nearly 440,000 Jews, mostly to Auschwitz.[3] Over 400,000 Hungarian Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, as well as tens of thousands of Roma people. Hundreds of Hungarian people were also executed by the Arrow Cross Party for sheltering Jews, among them Sister Sára Salkaházi. Foreign heads of states and diplomats who helped save many lives included Cardinal Roncalli, later Pope John XXIII, Raoul Wallenberg, and Carl Lutz. Italian businessman Giorgio Perlasca posed as a Spanish diplomat in order to issue forged visas and establish safe houses, including one for Jewish children. When Soviet forces liberated Budapest in February 1945, more than 100,000 Jews remained.[3]

Soviet era

File:Mock&Horn.jpg
The fall of the Iron Curtain, 1989: the foreign ministers of Austria and Hungary, Alois Mock and Gyula Horn, ceremoniously cut through the border defences separating their countries.

Following the fall of Nazi Germany, Hungary became a communist satellite state of the Soviet Union. This followed a brief interval of democracy from 1946 to 1947 when the Hungarians proclaimed their second republic. After 1948, Communist leader Mátyás Rákosi established Stalinist rule in the country. The rule of the Rákosi government was nearly unbearable for Hungary's war-torn citizens. This led to the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and Hungary's temporary withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact. The Soviets retaliated massively with military force, sending in over 150,000 troops and 2,500 tanks[4]. Nearly a quarter of a million people left the country during the brief time that the borders were open in 1956. From the 1960s through the late 1980s, Hungary was often satirically referred to as "the happiest barrack" within the Eastern bloc. This was under the autocratic rule of its controversial communist leader, János Kádár.


Third Hungarian Republic

In the late 1980s, Hungary led the movement to dissolve the Warsaw Pact and shifted toward multi-candidate democracy. This means that even though there were several candiates, the communist party, MSZMP, was not out for dispute. However, independent candidates were elected as protest against the party. At this time, there were increasing presures for reform within the party. They also moved towards a market-oriented economy. On October 23 1989, Mátyás Szűrös declared the Third Hungarian Republic and became interim President. Hungary's first free elections were held in 1990. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Hungary developed closer ties with Western Europe as well as with other Central European countries. It became a member of the Visegrad Group in 1991, joined NATO in 1999, and became a member of the European Union on May 1, 2004.

Politics

File:Hungarian Parlament.jpg
The Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest.

For a more detailed treatment, see Politics of Hungary.
The President of the Republic, elected by the Parliament every five years, has a largely ceremonial role, choosing the dates of the parliamentary elections.

The prime minister selects Cabinet ministers and has the exclusive right to dismiss them. Each Cabinet nominee appears before one or more parliamentary committees in open hearings and must be formally approved by the President.

A unicameral, 386-member National Assembly (the Országgyűlés) is the highest organ of state authority and initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the Prime Minister. National Parliamentary elections are held every four years; the next are due to be held in 2010.

An 11-member Constitutional Court has power to challenge legislation on grounds of unconstitutionality.

Counties and regions

File:HU NUTS 3.png
Counties of Hungary in 2007
File:HU NUTS 2.png
Regions of Hungary

For more detailed treatments, see Counties of Hungary and Regions of Hungary.

See also List of historic counties of Hungary

Administratively, Hungary is divided into nineteen counties. The capital city (főváros), Budapest, is independent of any county government. The counties and the capital are the twenty NUTS third-level units of Hungary.

Since 1996, these twenty administrative units have been grouped into seven regions for statistical and development purposes. These seven regions constitute NUTS' second-level units of Hungary.

There are also twenty-three towns with county rights (singular megyei jogú város), sometimes known as "urban counties" in English (although there is no such term in Hungarian). The local authorities of these towns have extended powers, but these towns belong to the territory of the respective county instead of being independent territorial units.

Counties (County Capital)Regions

Economy

File:Mnb hu.jpg
Hungarian National Bank
File:HUF 500 1998 obverse.jpg
Hungarian Forint (obverse)
File:HUF 500 1998 reverse.jpg
Hungarian Forint (reverse)

For a more detailed treatment, see Economy of Hungary.
Hungary continues to demonstrate economic growth as one of the newest member countries of the European Union (since 2004). The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP. Hungary gets nearly one third of all foreign direct investment flowing in to Central Europe. Foreign ownership of and investment in Hungarian firms are widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totalling more than US$23 billion since 1989. The Hungarian sovereign debt's credit rating is BBB+ as of July 2006, making Hungary the only other country in the EU apart from Poland not to enjoy an A grade score. Inflation and unemployment have been on the rise in the past few years, and they are expected to rise further. Foreign investors' trust in the Hungarian economy has declined, as they deem that the stringency measures planned in the second half of 2006 are not satisfactory, their focus being mainly on increasing the income side rather than curbing government spendings. Economic reform measures such as health care reform, tax reform, and local government financing are being addressed by the present government.

The Hungarian government has expressed a desire to adopt the euro currency between 2010 and 2014[5]. However, foreign analysts widely criticised that date (2010) as highly unrealistic given the current shape of the economy in relation to the Maastricht criteria; their assessments suggest that a date of 2013-2014 for Euro adoption is more realistic.

Geography

File:Hortobágy.jpg
Hortobágy on the Great Hungarian Plain with Racka sheep
File:Kekesteto1.JPG
Kékes, the highest mountain in Hungary.

For a more detailed treatment, see Geography of Hungary.

Landscape

Approximately slightly more than one half of Hungary's landscape consists of flat to rolling plains of the Carpathian Basin: the most important plain regions include the Little Hungarian Plain in the west, and the Great Hungarian Plain in the southeast. The highest elevation above sea level on the latter is only 183 metres.

Transdanubia is a primarily hilly region with a terrain varied by low mountains. These include the very eastern stretch of the Alps, Alpokalja, in the west of the country, the Transdanubian Medium Mountains, in the cental region of Transdanubia, and the Mecsek Mountains and Villány Mountains in the south. The highest point of the area is the Írott-kő in the Alps, at 882 metres.

The highest mountains of the country are located in the Carpathians: these lie in the northern parts, in a wide band along the Slovakian border (highest point: the Kékes at 3,327 ft; 1,014 m).

Hungary is divided in two by its main waterway, the Danube (Duna); other large rivers include the Tisza and Dráva, while Transdanubia contains Lake Balaton, a major body of water. The largest thermal lake in the world, Lake Hévíz (Hévíz Spa), is located in Hungary. The second largest lake in the Carpathian Basin is the artificial Lake Tisza (Tisza-tó).

Climate

Hungary has a continental climate, with cold, cloudy, humid winters and warm to hot summers. Average annual temperature is 9.7 °C (49.5 °F). Temperature extremes are about 42 °C (110 °F) in the summer and −29 °C (−20 °F) in the winter. Average temperature in the summer is 27 to 35 °C (81 to 95 °F), and in the winter it is 0 to −15 °C (32 to 5 °F). The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 millimetres (24 in). A small, southern region of the country near Pécs enjoys a reputation for a Mediterranean climate, but in reality it is only slightly warmer than the rest of the country and still receives snow during the winter.

Demographics

For a more detailed treatment, see Demographics of Hungary.
Template:Bar box For 95% of the population, mostly Hungarians, the mother tongue is Hungarian, a Finno-Ugric language unrelated to any neighbouring language and distantly related to Finnish and Estonian. Several ethnic minorities exist: Roma (2,1%), Germans (1.2%), Slovaks (0.4%), Croats (0.2%), Romanians (0.1%),Serbs (0.1%) and Ukrainians (0.1%).

According to census data, the largest religion in Hungary is Roman Catholicism (50% of the population [1]), with a significant Calvinist minority (16% of the population) and smaller Lutheran (3%) and Greek Catholic (3%) minorities. However, these census figures are representative of religious affiliation rather than practice; an estimated 10-14% of Hungarians attend religious services at least once a week and fewer than 50% at least once a year, while 30% of Hungarians do not believe in God [2][3].

For historical reasons, significant Hungarian minority populations can be found in the surrounding countries, notably in Romania (in Transylvania), Slovakia, Serbia (in Vojvodina), Ukraine (in Transcarpathia), Croatia (mainly Slavonia) and Austria (in Burgenland); Slovenia is also host to a number of ethnic Magyars, where Hungarian language has an official status.

The Roma minority

For a more detailed treatment, see Roma People.
The real number of Roma people, known colloquially as "Gypsies", in Hungary is a disputed question. In the 2001 census, only 190,000 people called themselves Roma, but experts and Roma organisations estimate that there are between 450,000 and 600,000 Roma living in Hungary [4]. Since World War II, the size of the Roma population has increased rapidly. Today every fifth or sixth newborn Hungarian child belongs to the Roma minority[Citation Needed]. Estimates based on current demographic trends claim that in 2050 15-20 percent of the population (1.2 million people) will be Roma.[Citation Needed]

Romas (called cigányok or romák in Hungarian) suffer particular problems in Hungary. School segregation is an especially acute one, with many Roma children sent to classes for pupils with learning disabilities. Currently slightly more than 80% of Roma children complete primary education, but only one third continue studies into the intermediate (secondary) level. This is far lower than the more than 90% proportion of children of non-Roma families who continue studies at an intermediate level. The situation is made still worse by the fact that a large proportion of young Roma are qualified in subjects that provide them only limited chances for employment. Less than 1% of Roma hold higher educational certificates. Their low status on the job market and higher unemployment rates cause poverty, widespread social problems and crime.[Citation Needed]

Culture

Franz Liszt, the prominent Hungarian composer, piano virtuoso and contemporary of Ferenc Erkel.

For a more detailed treatment, see Culture of Hungary.

Music

The music of Hungary consists mainly of traditional Hungarian folk music and music by prominent composers such as Franz Liszt, Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály. Hungarian traditional music tends to have a strong dactylic rhythm, just as the language is invariably stressed on the first syllable of each word.

Cuisine

Hungarian cuisine is also a prominent feature of Hungarian culture, with traditional dishes such as goulash (gulyás or gulyásleves) a main feature of the Hungarian diet. Dishes are often flavoured with paprika. Stews are often to be found with typical elements such as pork or beef, for example as used in pörkölt.

Science

Hungary is famous for its excellent mathematics education which has trained numerous outstanding scientists. Famous Hungarian mathematicians include Paul Erdős, famed for publishing in over forty languages and whose Erdős numbers are still tracked; János (John) Bolyai, designer of non-Euclidean (or "absolute") geometry in 1831;[6] John von Neumann, a pioneer of digital computing; Eugene Wigner; and many others. Erdős, von Neumann, and Wigner, like other Hungarian Jewish scientists, fled rising anti-Semitism in Europe, and made their most famous contributions in the United States.

Hungarians are very proud of their inventions. These include the noiseless match (János Irínyi), the Rubik's cube, the krypton electric bulb (Imre Bródy, 1891–1944), and the aforementioned non-Euclidian geometry. A number of other important inventions, including holography, the ballpoint pen (invented by the eponymous Laszlo Bíró), the theory of the hydrogen bomb, and the BASIC programming language,[6] were invented by Hungarians who fled the country prior to World War II.

Literature

File:Ferenc kolcsey.jpg
Ferenc Kölcsey, author of the lyrics of the Hungarian national anthem.

Hungarian literature has recently gained some renown outside the borders of Hungary (mostly through translations into German, French and English). Some modern Hungarian authors became increasingly popular in Germany and Italy especially Sándor Márai, Péter Esterházy, Péter Nádas and Imre Kertész. The latter is a contemporary Jewish writer who survived the Holocaust and won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2002.

The older classics of Hungarian literature and Hungarian poetry remained almost totally unknown outside Hungary. János Arany, a famous nineteenth century Hungarian poet is still much loved in Hungary (especially his collection of Ballads), among several other "true classics" like Sándor Petőfi, the poet of the Revolution of 1848, Endre Ady, Mihály Babits, Dezső Kosztolányi, Attila József and János Pilinszky. Other well-known Hungarian authors are Zsigmond Móricz, Gyula Illyés, Albert Wass, Magda Szabó and the Nobel Prize winner Imre Kertész.

Sport

One of the most famous Hungarians is the footballer Ferenc Puskás (1927 – 2006). He scored 84 goals in 85 internationals for Hungary,[7] and 511 goals in 533 matches in the Hungarian and Spanish leagues. Puskás played the 1954 World Cup final against West Germany. In 1958, after the Hungarian Revolution, he emigrated to Spain where he played in the legendary Real Madrid team that also included Alfredo Di Stéfano, and Francisco Gento.

Hungarians are also known for their prowess at water sports, mainly swimming, water polo and canoeing; this can be said to be surprising at first, due to Hungary being landlocked. On the other hand, the presence of two major rivers (the Duna and the Tisza) and a major lake (Balaton) give excellent opportunities to practice these sports.

See also

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Lists

References

  1. ↑ OSZK.
  2. ↑ Hungary, Encyclopædia Britannica.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Holocaust Encyclopedia
  4. ↑ Findley, Carter V., and John Rothney. Twentieth Century World. sixth ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. 278.
  5. ↑ "Gyurcsány modifies date", Világgazdaság
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Contribution of Hungarians to Universal Culture (includes inventors), Embassy of the Republic of Hungary, Damascus, Syria, 2006.
  7. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named international goals

External links

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