Novákné Plesovszki Zsuzsanna: Felekezetiség - Iskola - Interkulturalitás. A mezőberényi szlovák evangélikus népoktatás 1723-1890 között - A Békés Megyei Múzeumok Közleményei 37. (Békéscsaba, 2012)
Confesionalism - School - Interculturalism
Interkulturalitás. Kulturális és szellemi kölcsönhatások Confesionalism - School - Interculturalism Resume The thesis demonstrateshow the Slovakswho migrated from Upper Northern Hungary (Felvidék) to Mezőberény in several wawes in 1723 organised their lives, founded schools and church. Furtheron, the thesis esxplains what changes ensuedin the organisation of the mother tounge, culture and community. It is an important question to investigate why and how the Slovakian community - which amounted to 40% of the total of inhabitants and which had had indepentend, well organized schools - had continuously lost the use of their mother tongue by 1880. In Mezőberény there lived several nationalities together, though, in ethnical separation. However, inspite of the differences in mother tangues at church schools the investigations have detected such spiritual and cultural connections, which reflect the multi-coloruedness of the 19th century and its cultural history very well. At the time of the settlement Mezőberény consisted, in the first place, of Slovakian, German and Hungarian nationalities. The census in 1850 mentioned also Rumenian, Serbian and Gipsy citizens, as well as a growing Jewish community. As for denominations, besides Lutherans and Calvinists there were Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, Greek Ortdox, Unitarians, and Israelites. Teachers from Upper Northern Hungary (from the contuies of Zólyom, Hont-Kishont, and Túróc) worked at Slovakian elementary schools. They attended the secendary grammar schools there,they spoke Slovakian,German and Latin very well and they transmitted the educationalculture of that place.The pastors at the two Lutheran churches in Mezőberény were mostly of Slovakian origin. However, also the Reformed Hungarian teachers had connections the Slovakian teachers because of the place they came from. German elementary schools, as well, as Hungarian and Latin at Reformed Hungarian elementary schools. The langauges of theaching were latin, Hungarian and ethnic languagesas auxiliary langauges. Also Old Greek and Hebrew were taught at secondary gramar schools. The Slovakian students were familiar also with the Biblical Chech from 1863 the use of the Hungarian langauge was getting steadily conspicous at secondary gramar schools, overshadowing the original intention.i.e., multilingualism. The Slovaks in Mezőberény - thus also the students of the Slovakian schools -have a hheterogeneous fol-language education. It is import to emphasize that atelementary schools the language of teaching has always been the mother tongue of the given nationality from the very beginning. InMezőberény teaching has become bilingual at Slovakian elementary school since 1825. In the beginning the use of Biblical Czech language was characteristic. The use of the low Slovakian literary langauge was introduced by coursebooks from the 19th century. Students and teach301
