Romanians in Hungary

History

Historically, a significant part of modern-day Romania was part of the Kingdom of Hungary. The oldest extant documents from Transylvania make reference to Vlachs too. 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. The 'land of Romanians', Terram Blacorum (1222,1280) showed up in Fogaras and this area was mentioned under different name (Olachi) in 1285. The first appearance of a supposed Romanian name 'Ola' in Hungary derives from a charter (1258). They were significant population in Transylvania, Banat, Máramaros (Maramureș) and Partium.

In 1881, Romanian-majority settlements projected to the present-day territory of Hungary were: Bedő, Csengerújfalu, Kétegyháza, Körösszakál, Magyarcsanád, Méhkerék, Mezőpeterd, Pusztaottlaka and Vekerd. Important communities lived in Battonya, Elek, Körösszegapáti, Létavértes, Nyíradony, Pocsaj, Sarkadkeresztúr, and Zsáka.

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. According to Romanian estimates of the region before the arbitration in 1940, there were 1,304,903 Romanians (50.2%) and 978,074 (37.1%) Hungarians.

In 1950, Foaia Românească ("The Romanian Sheet"; then known by another name) was founded in Gyula. It was the first newspaper of the Romanian minority in modern Hungary and currently is the one with longest and widest level of circulation within the country.

Notable people

References

References

1. [http://www.ksh.hu/docs/hun/xftp/idoszaki/nepsz2011/nepsz_09_2011.pdf 2011. ÉVI NÉPSZÁMLÁLÁS]
2. "Population by nationalities, 2001 census (English)".
3. György Fejér, Codex diplomaticus Hungariae ecclesiasticus ac civilis, Volume 7, typis typogr. Regiae Vniversitatis Vngaricae, 1831 [https://books.google.com/books?id=1HnUAAAAMAAJ&dq=olahteluk&pg=RA1-PA100]
4. Tamás Kis, Magyar nyelvjárások, Volumes 18-21, Nyelvtudományi Intézet, Kossuth Lajos Tudományegyetem (University of Kossuth Lajos). Magyar Nyelvtudományi Tanszék, 1972, p. 83 [https://books.google.com/books?id=wGUg0F2FzvgC&q=olah&pg=PA82]
5. Dennis P. Hupchick, Conflict and chaos in Eastern Europe, Palgrave Macmillan, 1995 p. 58 [https://books.google.com/books?id=ycNApODqgRUC&dq=first+appearance+romanians+transylvania&pg=PA58]
6. (November 2023)
7. Heinz Stoob, Die Mittelalterliche Städtebildung im südöstlichen Europa, Böhlau, 1977, p. 204 [https://books.google.com/books?id=wRAiAAAAMAAJ&q=1222+terram+blacorum]
8. "Hungarian 1881 census".
9. link. (2015-04-03)
10. Charles Upson Clark. (1941). "Racial Aspects of Romania's Case". Caxton Press.
11. Iova Șimon, Eva. (2006). "Rolul presei în viața unei minorități. Perspectivă generală cu referire la evoluția în timp a săptămânalului "Foaia Românească"". Studii de Știință și Cultură.
12. Dogot, Cristina Maria. (2008). "Partide politice și minorități naționale din România în secolul XX". Editura Universității "Lucian Blaga".