Hungarian Studies Newsletter, 1975 (3. évfolyam, 6-8. szám)
1975 / 8. szám
ARTICLES (Continued) Czigany, L.G. “Hungarianness: The origin of the pseudolinguistic concept,” Slavonic and East European Review 52 (July 1974) 325-336. “Hungarianness” or magyarság is considered by Prof. Czigany to be a spurious linguistic term invented to account for the isolation of the Hungarian language. It glorified the népnyelv, reemerging in the second half of the 19th century “and soon became an ideological weapon for a few normative linguists." Inasmuch as it contributed to provincialism and hindered the standardization of language, its ill effects can still be felt. To come to these conclusions, Czigany traces the development of words related to “Hungarianness” and shows that the term was used not to describe any of the peculiarities of their own language, but rather anything that was considered Hungarian or traditional: dress, food, behavior, and so on. □ Dombi, Erzsébet P. “Synaesthesia and Poetry," Poetics 11 (1974) 23-44. Dombi attempts to give “a comprehensive view about the synaesthesia characteristic of a literary school or a certain period.” In accomplishing this, she relies on the study of the Hungarian impressionsits: Babits, Kosztolányi, Juhász, Toth and Lőrinc Szabó'. The article concentrates on the linguistic aspects of synaesthesia, and makes no attempt to study the work of the poets mentioned directly. □ Gál István, "Jenő Pivány, Historian of American Hungarian Relations and his Bibliography,” Hungarian Studies in English VIII (1974) 67-76. Jenó'Pivány (1873-1946), who spent over fifteen years in the U.S. and was an American citizen, was a “Pioneer researcher of Hungarian-American historical relations.” He also had a large library of English-language Hungarica. Asa newspaper correspondent in World War I, he knew the Hungarian leaders and was an outside consultant to the Hungarian Ministry of Interior. After his return to the U.S. in 1919, he continued to be consulted by the State Department and others concerned with U.S. foreign policy. He unsuccessfully advocated U.S. support in retaining Hungary’s historical frontiers. / / Gal’s acquaintance with Pivany stems from 1939 when he started using the large collection of English Hungarica in the latter’s library. The collection was destroyed during World War II, and only notes on the library remained. The article concludes with a list of some 83 works and articles written by Piva'ny and dealing with American-Hungarian relations and written between 1905 and 1944. The Hungarian Studies in English is published by the English Department of the U. of Debrecen. □ Satmarescu, G.D. “The Changing Demographic Structure of the Population of Transylvania," East European Quarterly VIII (Winter 1974) 425-439. According to the 1966 census, a one-sixth minority exists in Romania and this is chiefly concentrated in Transylvania. Here, one third of the population is Hungarian, German or Southern Slav. However, this is a significant change from 1910 when the Hungarian population alonecomprisedovera third of the total. The decline of the German and Jewish population has been even more dramatic. Satmarescu assesses the results of recent statistics in an effort to pinpoint the significant demographic differences of these groups and to shed some light on the current demographic situation. He concludes that, Transylvania “is as distinct demographically from the Regat as it is in geography, history, culture, and economy.” The region is still ethnically complex, and the Hungarians “still remain dominant in many cities” and “little impact has been made on their relative strength in Székelyföld.” □ Pastor, Peter. “The Diplomatic Fiasco of the Modern World’s First Woman Ambassador, Rozsa Bedy-Schwimmer,” East European Quarterly VIII (Fall 1974) 273-282. The efforts of the pro-western revolutionary government of Count Mihály Károlyi to present its case to the Allied representatives failed primarily because these nations refused to recognize a woman ambassador. Rozsa Be'dy- Schwimmer’s credentials as a pacifist and suffragette were well established by 1918. She warned Lloyd George of the possible consequences of the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and assisted President Woodrow Wilson in his efforts to stop the carnage in Europe, thus she acquired some credentials for her appointment as the Hungarian ambassador to the conference of the Allies after World War I. The Swiss (the conferences were held in Bern) refused to accept her because she was a woman. The Americans objected to the fact that she was “a bourgeois Magyar of Jewish background”. The New York Times published a virulent attack on both, her pacifism and her sex. But it was the French who used these prejudices to the greatest advantage. Ironically, the result was that the Karolyi government fell, though it did recall Be'dy-Schwimmer, and the very thing feared by the Allies came to pass: a bolshevist take-over within three months. Prof. Pastor is at Montclair State Coll., N.J. □ Tőkés, Rudolf L. “East European Studies in the United States," East European Quarterly VIII (Fall 1974) 337-352. In the field of political science the conditions for the study of Eastern Europe have never been better with regard to the availability of research material, the quality of research training, and student interest. Tőkés suggests several unexplored areas for study such as normative theory, historical studies, political institutions, political processes, groups and elites, east European international relations. □ Sociology in Hungary; Recent Issues and Trends, a supplement to Szociolo'gia 5(1974) was prepared for the Vlllth World Congress of Sociology and contains 18 articles and reports on the four major research centers, as well as a selected bibliography for the years 1970-1974. The articles are written by prominent Hungarian sociologists. The preface, in French, is by Béla Köpeczi and, after a brief review of the history of sociological studies in Hungary, he places these in the context of national priorities. Zsuzsa Ferge’s “Main Approaches to the Study of Social Structures” concludes that, “since the abolition of private ownership entails fundamental social consequences,” society becomes transitory in character, and sociology, too, has become flexible. Tibor Huszár’s “Research on the Intelligentsia and on Professional Groups,” examines the historical development of these groups and their post-1945 status. The final paper in this section, “The Interdisciplinary Characterof 6 NO. 8 1975 HUNGARIAN STUDIES NEWSLETTER
