Kovács Zsuzsa: Göcsej Village Museum. Exhibition Guide (Zalaegerszeg, 2008)

Life in Csesztreg in the 1930s stantly soaked the roads which were either under water or very water damaged with rough, potholed surfaces, which made the go in for carts very difficult. According to some explanations Göcsej gets its name from these bumpy roads (goes, göb=bump). Experts cannot tell the exact etymology, but one thing is certain: due to the wilderness and very bad roads this county was developing in isolation. Besides farming and animal husbandry people here lived on forest fare for there were large quantities of edible fungi and much game in the woods and also acorns to feed the pigs. The forest provided wood for the houses, farm buildings, tools and household utensils. Working with wood meant not only work to these people but fun too, everybody was good at it and they liked doing it. Families built their own houses from wood in the small scattered villages. Building a house was very much of a family activity when men went together to the forest to choose the right wood for the house. Felling the timber, shaping the wood, carving and decorating were also communal activities. After finishing the house families always thanked the little community for their help with a little feast. On such occasions some better off families even killed a pig to provide a proper feast for the workmen.