Romániai magyarok | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 1,002,151[1] (2021 census) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Harghita County | 232,157 (79.51%) |
 Covasna County | 133,444 (66.71%) |
 Mureș County | 165,014 (31.84%) |
 Satu Mare County | 93,491 (28.27%) |
 Bihor County | 112,387 (20.39%) |
 Cluj County | 78,455 (11.55%) |
| Languages | |
| PrimarilyHungarian andRomanian | |
| Religion | |
| Calvinism (45.3%),Roman Catholicism (40.4%),Unitarianism (4.6%) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Hungarian diaspora as well asHungarians in Serbia andHungarians in Slovakia | |
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TheHungarian minority of Romania (Hungarian:romániai magyarok,pronounced[ˈromaːnijɒjiˈmɒɟɒrok];Romanian:maghiarii din România) is the largestethnic minority in Romania. As per the2021 Romanian census, 1,002,151 people (6% of respondents) declared themselves Hungarian, while 1,038,806 people (6.3% of respondents) stated thatHungarian was their mother tongue.[1]
Mostethnic Hungarians ofRomania live in areas that were parts of Hungary before theTreaty of Trianon of 1920. Encompassed in a region known asTransylvania, the most prominent of these areas is known generally asSzékely Land (Romanian:Ținutul Secuiesc; Hungarian:Székelyföld), where Hungarians comprise the majority of the population.[2] Transylvania, in the larger sense, also includes the historic regions ofBanat,Crișana andMaramureș. There are forty-onecounties of Romania; Hungarians form a large majority of the population in the counties ofHarghita (85.21%) andCovasna (73.74%), and a large percentage inMureș (38.09%),Satu Mare (34.65%),Bihor (25.27%),Sălaj (23.35%), andCluj (15.93%) counties.
There also is a community of Hungarians living mostly inMoldavia, known as theCsángós. These live in the so-called region ofCsángó Land in Moldavia but also in parts of Transylvania and in a village ofNorthern Dobruja known asOituz. In addition, sparse populations ofSzékelys are to be found across southernBukovina, inhabiting several villages and communes inSuceava County. Aside from the aforementionedhistorical regions of Romania,Bucharest was also home in the past and still is to a sizable Hungarian-Romanian community.
TheHungarian tribes originated in the vicinity of theUral Mountains and arrived in the territory formed by present-day Romania during the 9th century fromEtelköz orAtelkuzu (roughly the space occupied by the present day SouthernUkraine, theRepublic of Moldova and the Romanian province ofMoldavia).[3] Due to various circumstances (seeHonfoglalás), the Magyar tribes crossed theCarpathians around 895 AD and occupied theCarpathian Basin (including present-dayTransylvania) without significant resistance from the local populace.[4] The precise date of the conquest of Transylvania is not known; the earliest Magyar artifacts found in the region are dated to the first half of the 10th century.
In 1526, at theBattle of Mohács, the forces of theOttoman Empire annihilated the Hungarian army and in 1571 Transylvania became an autonomous state, under the Ottomansuzerainty. ThePrincipality of Transylvania was governed by its princes and its parliament (Diet). The Transylvanian Diet consisted of three Estates (Unio Trium Nationum): the Hungarian nobility (largely ethnic Hungarian nobility and clergy); the leaders ofTransylvanian Saxons-German burghers; and the freeSzékely Hungarians.
With the defeat of the Ottomans at theBattle of Vienna in 1683, theHabsburg monarchy gradually began to impose their rule on the formerly autonomous Transylvania. From 1711 onward, after the conclusion ofRákóczi's War for Independence, Habsburg control over Transylvania was consolidated, and the princes of Transylvania were replaced with Habsburg imperial governors.[5] In 1765 theGrand Principality of Transylvania was proclaimed, consolidating the special separate status of Transylvania within the Habsburg Empire, established by theDiploma Leopoldinum in 1691.[6] The Hungarian historiography sees this as a mere formality.[7] Within the Habsburg Empire, Transylvania was administratively part ofKingdom of Hungary.[5]
After theAustro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, Transylvania became an integral part of theKingdom of Hungary again, with Hungarian becoming the official language andMagyarization being introduced in the region not soon after.
Following defeat inWorld War I, Austria-Hungary disintegrated. Theethnic Romanian elected representatives of Transylvania, Banat, Crișana, and Maramureș proclaimedUnion with Romania on 1 December 1918. With the conclusion of World War I and theHungarian–Romanian War (1918–1919), theTreaty of Trianon (signed on 4 June 1920) defined the new border between the states ofHungary andRomania. As a result, the more than 1.5 million Hungarian minority of Transylvania found itself becoming a minority group within Romania.[8] Also after World War I, a group ofCsángó families founded a village in Northern Dobruja known asOituz, where Hungarians still live today.[9]
In August 1940, during the Second World War, the northern half of Transylvania was returned to Hungary by the secondSecond Vienna Award. HistorianKeith Hitchins[10] summarizes the situation created by the award:Some 1,150,000 to 1,300,000 Romanians, or 48 per cent to over 50 per cent of the population of the ceded territory, depending upon whose statistics are used, remained north of the new frontier, while about 500,000 Hungarians (other Hungarian estimates go as high as 800,000, Romanian as low as 363,000) continued to reside in the south. In September–October 1944,Northern Transylvania was retaken by the armies of Romania and theSoviet Union; the territory remained under Soviet military administration until 9 March 1945, after which it became again part of Romania. TheTreaty of Paris (1947) overturned the Vienna Award and recognized the territory of northern Transylvania as being part of Romania.
After the war, in 1952, aMagyar Autonomous Region was created in Romania by the communist authorities. The region was dissolved in 1968, when a new administrative organization of the country (still in effect today) replaced regions with counties. The communist authorities, and especially afterNicolae Ceaușescu's regime came to power, restarted the policy ofRomanianization.
Today, "Transylvania proper" (bright yellow on the accompanying map) is included within the Romanian counties (județe) ofAlba,Bistrița-Năsăud,Brașov,Cluj,Covasna,Harghita,Hunedoara,Mureș,Sălaj (partially) andSibiu. In addition to "Transylvania proper", modern Transylvania includesCrișana and part of theBanat; these regions (dark yellow on the map) are in the counties ofArad,Bihor,Caraș-Severin,Maramureș,Sălaj (partially),Satu Mare, andTimiș.
In the aftermath of theRomanian Revolution of 1989, ethnic-based political parties were constituted by both the Hungarians, who founded theDemocratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, and by the Romanian Transylvanians, who founded theRomanian National Unity Party. Ethnic conflicts, however, never occurred on a significant scale, even though some violent clashes, such as theTârgu Mureș events of March 1990, did take place shortly after thefall of Ceaușescu regime.
In 1995, a basic treaty on the relations between Hungary and Romania was signed. In the treaty, Hungary renounced all territorial claims to Transylvania, and Romania reiterated its respect for the rights of its minorities. Relations between the two countries improved asfirst Hungary,then Romania, becameEU members in the 2000s.
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TheDemocratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR/RMDSZ) is the major representative of Hungarians in Romania, and is a member of theUnrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization. The aim of the UDMR is to achieve local government, cultural and territorial autonomy and the right to self-determination for Hungarians. UDMR is a member of theEuropean Democrat Union (EDU) and theEuropean People's Party (EPP). Since 1996, the UDMR has been a member or supporter of every governmental coalition.
Political agreements have brought the gradual implementation of Hungarian in everyday life: Public administration Law 215/2002 stipulates "the use of national minority languages in public administration in settlements where minorities exceed 20% of the population"; minority ethnics will receive a copy of the documents in Romanian and a translation in their language; however, official documents are preserved by the local administration in Romanian only; local administration will provide inscriptions for the names of localities and public institutions under their authority, and display public interest announcements in the native language of the citizens of the respective ethnic minority under the same 20% rule.
Even though Romania co-signed the European laws for protecting minorities' rights, the implementation has not proved satisfactory to all members of Hungarian community. There is a movement by Hungarians both for an increase in autonomy and distinct cultural development. Initiatives proposed by various Hungarian political organizations include the creation of an "autonomous region" in the counties that form theSzekler region (Székelyföld), roughly corresponding to the territory of the formerHungarian Autonomous Province as well as the historical Szekler land that had been abolished by the Hungarian government in the second half of the 19th century, and the re-establishment of an independent state-funded Hungarian-language university.
However, the situation of the Hungarian minority in Romania has been seen by some as a model of cultural and ethnic diversity in the Balkan area:[11] In an address to the American people,President Clinton asked in the midst of theair war in Kosovo:Who is going to define the future of this part the world...Slobodan Milošević, with his propaganda machine and paramilitary forces which compel people to give up their country, identity, and property, or a state like Romania which has built a democracy respecting the rights of ethnic minorities?[12]
Many ethnic Hungarians[13] have wonOlympic medals for Romania.
The Székely people are Hungarians who mainly live in an area known asSzékely Land (Ținutul Secuiesc inRomanian), and who maintain a different set of traditions and different identity from that of other Hungarians in Romania. Based on the latest Romanian statistics (2011Romanian census, 532 people declared themself "Székelys" rather than "Hungarians.".[36] The three counties of the unofficial Székely Land – Harghita, Covasna, and Mureș – have a combined ethnic Hungarian population of 609,033.
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The Csángós (Romanian:Ceangău, pl. Ceangăi,Hungarian:Csángó, pl. Csángók) are people of Roman Catholic faith, some speaking aHungarian dialect and someRomanian. They live mainly in theBacău,Neamț andIași counties,Moldavia region. Their homeland in Moldavia is known asCsángó Land. Some also live in Transylvania (around theGhimeș-Palanca Pass and in the so-calledSeven Villages) and in Oituz at Northern Dobruja. The Csango settled there between the 13th and 15th centuries and today, they are the only Hungarian-speaking ethnic group living to the east of theCarpathians.[citation needed]
The ethnic background of Csango is nevertheless disputed, since, due to its active connections to the neighboringPolish kingdom and to thePapal States, the Roman Catholic faith persisted inMoldavia throughout medieval times, long afterVlachs living in other Romanian provinces, closer to the Bulgarian Empire, had been completely converted toEastern-Rite Christianity. Some Csango claim having Hungarian ancestry while others claim Romanian ancestry. The Hungarian-speaking Csangos have been subject to some violations of basic minority rights: Hungarian-language schools have been closed down over time, their political rights have been suppressed and they have even been subject to slow, forced nationalisation by various Romanian governments over the years, because the Romanian official institutions deem Csangos as a mere Romanian population that was Magyarized in certain periods of time.[citation needed]
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The number of Hungarian social and cultural organizations in Romania has greatly increased after the fall of communism, with more than 300 being documented a few years ago.[citation needed] There are also several puppet theatres.[citation needed] Professional Hungarian dancing in Romania is represented by theMaros Folk Ensemble (formerly State Szekler Ensemble) inTârgu Mureș, theHargita Ensemble, and thePipacsok Dance Ensemble.[citation needed] Other amateur popular theaters are also very important in preserving the cultural traditions.[citation needed]
While in the past the import of books was hindered, now there are many bookstores selling books written in Hungarian. Two public TV stations,TVR1 andTVR2, broadcast several Hungarian programs with good audiences also from Romanians.[citation needed] This relative scarcity is partially compensated by private Hungarian-language television and radio stations, likeDUNA-TV which is targeted for the Hungarian minorities outside Hungary, particularly Transylvania. A new TV station entitled "Transylvania" is scheduled to start soon,[when?] the project is funded mostly by Hungary but also by Romania and EU and other private associations. There are currently around 60 Hungarian-language press publications receiving state support from the Romanian Government. While their numbers dropped as a consequence of economic liberalisation and competition, there are many others private funded by different Hungarian organizations. TheSzékely Region has many touristic facilities that attract Hungarian and other foreign tourists.
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According to Romania's minority rights law, Hungarians have the right to education in their native language, including as amedium of instruction. In localities where they make up more than 20% of the population they have the right to use their native language with local authorities.
According to the official data of the 1992 Romanian census, 98% of the total ethnic Hungarian population over the age of 12 has had some schooling (primary, secondary or tertiary), ranking them fourth among ethnic groups in Romania and higher than the national average of 95.3%. On the other hand, the ratio of Hungarians graduating from higher education is lower than the national average. The reasons are diverse, including a lack of Hungarian-speaking lecturers, particularly in areas without a significant population of Hungarians.
AtBabeș-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, the largest state-funded tertiary education institution in Romania, more than 30% of courses are held inHungarian. There is currently a proposal by local Hungarians, supported by theDemocratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ), to separate the Hungarian-language department from the institution, and form a new, Hungarian-only Bolyai University. The former Bolyai University was disbanded in 1959 byRomanian Communist authorities and united with the Romanian Babeș University to form the multilingual Babeș-Bolyai University that continues to exist today.
Other universities that offer study programs in Hungarian are theUniversity of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of Târgu Mureș (public),Târgu Mureș University of Arts (public),Sapientia University (private) in Cluj-Napoca, Miercurea Ciuc and Târgu Mureș,Partium Christian University (private) in Oradea andProtestant Theological Institute of Cluj (private).
Many Hungarians living in Transylvania were disconcerted when the referendum held in Hungary in 2004 on the issue of giving dual-citizenship to ethnic Hungarians living abroad failed to receive enough electoral attendance and the vote was uncertain. Some of them complain that when they are in Hungary, they are perceived as half-Romanians, and are considered as having differences in language and behaviour. However, a large proportion of Transylvanian Hungarians currently work or study in Hungary, usually on a temporary basis. After 1996, Hungarian-Romanian economic relations boomed, and Hungary is an important investor in Transylvania, with many cross-border firms employing both Romanians and Hungarians.[citation needed]
A proposal supported by theRMDSZ to grant Hungarian citizenship to Hungarians living in Romania but without meeting Hungarian-law residency requirements was narrowly defeated at a 2004 referendum in Hungary (the referendum failed only because there were not enough votes to make it valid).[37] After the failed vote, the leaders of the Hungarian ethnic parties in the neighboring countries formed theHTMSZF organization in January 2005, as an instrument lobbying for preferential treatment in the granting of Hungarian citizenship.[38]
In 2010 some amendments were passed in Hungarian law facilitating an accelerated naturalization process for ethnic Hungarians living abroad; among other changes, the residency-in-Hungary requirement was waived.[39] According to aRMDSZ poll conducted that year, over 85 percent of Romania's ethnic Hungarians were eager to apply for Hungarian citizenship.[40] Romania's PresidentTraian Băsescu declared in October 2010 that "We have no objections to the adoption by the Hungarian government and parliament of a law making it easier to grant Hungarian citizenship to ethnic Hungarians living abroad."[41]
Between 2011 and 2012, 200,000 applicants took advantage of the new, accelerated naturalization process;[42] there were another 100,000 applications pending in the summer of 2012.[43] As of February 2013, the Hungarian government has granted citizenship to almost 400,000 Hungarians 'beyond the borders'.[44] In April 2013, the Hungarian government announced that 280,000 of these were Romanian citizens.[45]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1930 | 1,425,507 | — |
| 1941 | 407,188 | −71.4% |
| 1948 | 1,499,851 | +268.3% |
| 1956 | 1,587,675 | +5.9% |
| 1966 | 1,619,592 | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 1,713,928 | +5.8% |
| 1992 | 1,620,199 | −5.5% |
| 2002 | 1,431,807 | −11.6% |
| 2011 | 1,227,623 | −14.3% |
| 2022 | 1,002,151 | −18.4% |
| Romanian census data | ||
According to the2011 census,[46] the total population of the ethnic Hungarian community in Romania was as follows:
| County | Hungarians in county | Hungarians as % of total county population | As % of total Hungarians in Romania |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harghita | 257,707 | 85.21% | 20.99% |
| Covasna | 150,468 | 73.74% | 12.25% |
| Mureș | 200,858 | 38.09% | 16.36% |
| Satu Mare | 112,580 | 34.65% | 9.17% |
| Bihor | 138,213 | 25.27% | 11.25% |
| Sălaj | 50,177 | 23.35% | 4.08% |
| Cluj | 103,591 | 15.93% | 8.43% |
| Arad | 36,568 | 9.03% | 2.97% |
| Brașov | 39,661 | 7.69% | 3.23% |
| Maramureș | 32,618 | 7.22% | 2.65% |
| Timiș | 35,295 | 5.57% | 2.87% |
| Bistrița-Năsăud | 14,350 | 5.23% | 1.16% |
| Alba | 14,849 | 4.61% | 1.21% |
| Hunedoara | 15,900 | 4.04% | 1.29% |
| Sibiu | 10,893 | 2.93% | 0.88% |
| Caraș-Severin | 3,276 | 1.19% | 0.26% |
| Bacău | 4,373 | 0.75% | 0.35% |
| Bucharest | 3,463 | 0.21% | 0.28% |
| Total | 1,222,650 | — | 6.1% nationwide |
The remaining 4,973 (0.4%) ethnic Hungarians live in the other counties of Romania, where they make up less than 0.1% of the total population.
In 2002, 46.5% of Romania's Hungarians wereReformed, 41%Roman Catholic, 4.5%Unitarian and 2%Romanian Orthodox. A further 4.7% belonged to various other Christian denominations.[47]
In 2011, 45.9% of Romania's Hungarians wereReformed, 40.8%Roman Catholic, 4.5%Unitarian and 2.1%Romanian Orthodox. A further 5.8% belonged to various other Christian denominations.[48] Around 0.25 percent of the Hungarians wereatheist.
In 2021, 45.3% of Romania's Hungarians were Reformed, 40.4% Roman Catholic, 4.6% Unitarian, 1.9% Romanian Orthodox, 1.2%Greek Catholic, 1.1%Baptist and 1%Lutheran. Adherents of other – predominantly Christian – denominations (e.g.,Adventists,Pentecostals andJehovah's Witnesses) accounted for less than 1% together.[49]
