A Délvidék településeinek nemzetiségi (anyanyelvi) adatai 1880–1941 (1998)

ELŐSZÓ

PREFACE With the assistance of the National Scientific Research Fund - and in accordance with new approaches - it bacame possible to present the population structure by mother tongue and nationality of the localities of historical Hungary on the basis of population census data, in publications containing time series. So was first published in 1991 the volume of 634 pages on the Distribution of localities in Transylvania by nationality (mother tongue) (1850-1941), followed by those on the Distribution of the population of the localities of Upper Northern Hungary (Felvidék) by nationality (mother tongue) (1880-1941), on 656 pages, and on Nationality (mother tongue) data of localities of the Subcarpathia (1880-1941), on 263 pages. As the first volume on Transylvania did not contain percentage distributions, this gap was completed by the ulterior publication of a separate volume, and all subsequent publications have contained percentage data, too. The present volume constitutes a continuation of this series, presenting the ethnicity composition of the localities of historical Southern Hungary on the basis of nationality and mother tongue data of former population censuses. This was the area of the southern "Borders", which had to become again an inhabited region owing to organized and spontaneous resettlements after having been devastated by the Turks. The next volume of the series will deal with nationality and mother tongue data of the localities of Burgenland. The series presenting the nationality and mother tongue composition of the historical Hungary will be completed by a volume containing the relevant data of localities of the present area of Hungary. The volume contains the data from three Hungárián - 1880, 1910 and 1941 - and two Yugoslav - 1921 and 1931 - population censuses. The correct and unbiased understanding and use of the data require at least a short summary of main conceptual, content and organizational characteristics of population censuses, as several problems related to different definitions, modified locality names, administrative changes and bordér rearrangements had to be surmounted in this work. It is to be noted that the compilation of the present volume was the most problematic one in this series, thus we deemed it necessary to include a separate methodologic chapter. It makes an overview of the following topics: 9