Romanians in Hungary

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At present, Romanians in Hungary constitute a small minority. According to the most recent Hungarian census of 2011 (based on self-determination),[1] the population of Romanians was 35,641 or 0.3%, a significant increase from 8,482 or 0.1% of 2001. The community is concentrated in towns and villages close to the Romanian border, such as Battonya, Elek, Kétegyháza and Méhkerék, and in the city of Gyula. Romanians also live in the Hungarian capital, Budapest.

History

Romanians in Hungary according to 1890 Census

Historically, a significant part of the modern Romanian lands belonged to Hungarian states.

Regardless of the subject of Romanian presence/non-presence in Transylvania prior to the Hungarian conquest (See Origin of the Romanians), the first written sources about Romanian settlements derive from the 13th century, record was written about Olahteluk village in Bihar county from 1283.[2][3] The 'land of Romanians', Terram Blacorum (1222,1280)[3][4][5][6] showed up in Fogaras and this area was mentioned under different name (Olachi) in 1285.[3] The first appearance of a supposed Romanian name 'Ola' in Hungary derives from a charter (1258).[3] They were significant population in Transylvania, Banat, Maramaros and Partium.

After the Treaty of Trianon, Hungary has become close to homogeneous ethnically, with only 10.4% minorities, of which 6.9% were Germans, and Romanians constituted about 0.3%.

The numbers of Romanians in Hungary increased briefly with the onset of World War II when Hungary annexed parts of Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Yugoslavia. These annexations were affirmed under the Munich Agreement (1938), two Vienna Awards (1938 and 1940). In particular, the population of Northern Transylvania, according to the Hungarian census from 1941 counted 53.5% Hungarians and 39.1% Romanians.[7]

After World War II the ethnic homogeneity of Hungary became even higher than during the interbellum, reaching over 99% by 1980 (see Demographics of Hungary for ethnic composition tables over time).

See also

References

  1. Population by nationalities, 2001 census (English)
  2. György Fejér, Codex diplomaticus Hungariae ecclesiasticus ac civilis, Volume 7, typis typogr. Regiae Vniversitatis Vngaricae, 1831 [1]
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Tamás Kis, Magyar nyelvjárások, Volumes 18-21, Nyelvtudományi Intézet, Kossuth Lajos Tudományegyetem (University of Kossuth Lajos). Magyar Nyelvtudományi Tanszék, 1972, p. 83 [2]
  4. Dennis P. Hupchick, Conflict and chaos in Eastern Europe, Palgrave Macmillan, 1995 p. 58 [3]
  5. István Vásáry, Cumans and Tatars: Oriental military in the pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185-1365, Cambridge University Press, 2005, p. 28 [4]
  6. Heinz Stoob, Die Mittelalterliche Städtebildung im südöstlichen Europa, Böhlau, 1977, p. 204 [5]
  7. Károly Kocsis, Eszter Kocsisné Hodosi, Ethnic Geography of the Hungarian Minorities in the Carpathian Basin, Simon Publications LLC, 1998, p. 116-153 [6]