A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve 19. (1980)

FEJŐS Zoltán: Kivándorlás Amerikába a Zemplén középső vidékéről

KIVÁNDORLÁS AMERIKÁBA A ZEMPLÉN KÖZÉPSŐ VIDÉKÉRŐL 327 emigrants of the territory of Zemplén, as it was generally the practise, settled in the eastern industrial centres of the US, where they went on for jobs which were hard, thus paying much, and didnot need special technical knowledge. There were some people only, who dealt with agricultural work, since permanent settlement was against their original plans. In the newmilieau the emigrants turned inside, and endeavoured to keep the home relations. The mostsignificant help was provided by the different forms of community life. Its most important form was the "burdos" (boarding) system. The societies, religious organisations also had importance helping the everyday life of the emigrants through their well determined ethnical feature. Thus the first generation of the emigrants had no closer connection with the receiving society and its culture. The cultural-social differences were so great that the first generation, especially those, who spent just a short time in America arrived but to the door of theacculturation process, and leaving the process could return with actually unchanged culture. The influence of the emigration movement on the home peasant life can be devided into two great groups. One is the direct material influence, the other is the uncertain, not well, detectable mental influence. The material influence is doublefolded : there were people, who returned without success (or did not return at all), for whom emigration meant more outlet, debt; the majority of those who returned strengthened, more or less, financially, sometimes could save up considerable amount of money. The American money was used for buying land, building houses. The new houses were larger and moderner, and the ones covered with tile were called "amerikás" (American) houses. They modernised agriculture as well, sometimes bought machines. The bravest emigrated more than once (even 10-15 times) to develop their farm. The better life mirrored back on the persons as well, even if only for a short time, in the American suit. Beside money and suits they brought smaller objects, among which generally only the religious ones have been preserved. Thus the material influence of the emigration is the financial increase even if it is not valid for all the emigrants, and did not cause significant financial or social change. The re-adaptation to the home milieau was easier than adaptation to the American circumstances. As they left their peasant life just for a short time the return did not cause break. The mental and cultural change appeared just in minor cases. Returning from the American community life they became independent peasant farmers again. This is the cause why the returners felt themselves free and independent. The American speed of work made them busier. In the everyday connections they showed up the selfestimation of the man that had seen the world. The American atmosphere, being more democratic than the Hungarian one, has been preserved in traces up till now, but its conflict can be felt only in case of children who were burn and educated in America till their return to the mother country. The returners often used English words and idioms, some of which have been preserved. They kept up their interest in the American life, and America became built in the consciousness not only of the emigrants but through them in the countrymen, too. Acculturation changes, according to this, were not significant in time, they reached just some elements of the culture and not the whole system. The weakening of the memory of the emigration was hastened by the 1st World War and the series of changes following it. In the same time the phenomenon of emigration plaid its role, beside other factors, in the disintegration process of the traditional peasant culture. This role is to be considered, but never as the basic factor of the disintegration process. Zoltán Fejős