Magyar News, 1999. szeptember-2000. augusztus (10. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2000-03-01 / 7. szám
tools and processes used in viniculture, place names and road names (e.g. Borostyánkő út - Amber Way) are very ancient and indicate a close contact between the descendants of the former Pannonian inhabitants and the conquering Hungarians. Pécs (Sopianae in Roman times) was one of the centers of early Christian culture. In Fenékpuszta (Valcum in Roman times), near Láke Balaton, the archaeologists discovered an early Christian basilica. The agriculturists living in this area were assimilated and carried over viniculture from the Romans to the Hungarians. Of the approximately 130 Latin place names of ancient Pannónia relatively few survived the age of the great migrations since the Huns and Avars who settled here spoke no Latia But even so, Danuvius = Danube, Dravus = Drava, Savus = Szava, Arrabo = Raba, Mursella = Marcal, Salta = Zala, Granua = Garam did survive. The similarity between the Pannonian name Vindobona and the current Austrian name Wien for the same city is striking. The city of Paks, lying along the Danubian border and “boasting” Hungary's first and only atomic power plant, appears in some very early writings as Pax and Paxi, after "peace", which suggests that this was a Latin name as well. Several other Pannonian towns had their old name revived again and a number of them are used quite regularly in present day Hungary: Győr = Arrabona, Sopron = Scarbantia, Szombathely = Savaria (with the famous Isis-shrine), Pécs = Sopianae, Szöny = Brigetio, Óbuda = Aquincum, Tác = Gorsium, etc. The Latin traditions of the area contributed to the partial Latinization (Indo- Europeanization) of the Hungarian language from the 10th century onward. The Hungarian Language in the World The approximately six billion people living on our planet speak at least 3,000 different languages. The ten most widely spoken languages, used by about half of the world's population, are: Chinese, English, Hindi, Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, Portuguese, Indonesian, Japanese and Russian. There are another 48 languages which may be classified as major, since they are spoken by more than 10 million people. Considering that about 15 million people speak Hungarian, this puts the language among the top 50 and, according to one calculation it is the 47th. In Europe today, between the Atlantic Ocean and the Urals, 67 languages are spoken and among these Hungarian ranks 12th on the basis of the number of people for whom it is the native language. Of the 22 so-called national languages, Hungarian stands again 12th. The rankorder of the European languages, based on the number of people who speak the language, is: German, Russian' English, Italian, French, Ukrainian, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese and Hungarian. Veiy close behind Hungarian are Serbian, Bielorussian, Greek and Bulgarian. This obviously does not mean that the number of people speaking a language, in any way determine the relative importance of that language or of the people speaking it. In Europe there are a number of “small languages” which constitute a European “linguistic museum”. Were they to die out, the world would be the poorer for it. The position of the Hungarian language is a very peculiar one because the 1920 Trianon Peace Treaty (imposed by the Great Powers) dismembered Hungary and today in East-Central-Europe (i.e., in the eastern part of Central Europe), Hungarian is spoken in eight countries in addition to Hungary. One of the largest national blocks lives in Romania- the Transylvanian Hungarians. These nationalities are usually referred to as minorities, although in this case in sizable areas the Hungarians make up a significant majority over the representatives of the so-called national state. According to the most conservative estimates, the number of Hungarians living in Romania is put at 2 million. In Slovakia, reasonably accurate estimates put the number at 750,000. There is a significant Hungarian population in the Ukraine (Kárpátalja), Lesser Yugoslavia (Vajdaság), fewer in Croatia (Slavónia and the Szerémség), Slovenia, Austria and very few in the Czech Republic. This means that in the areas adjacent to present-day Hungary, Hungarian is spoken in the cities and villages, or, rather, that Hungarian is spoken there as well. To this number we must add the mixed marriages where after some time the marriage partner is likely to know at least some Hungarian. There are numerous statistics about the number of Hungarians. It is extremely difficult to cite a precise number, since numbering techniques vary, national belonging may change and there may be major population shifts. Because of Romanian domestic politics, tens of thousands of Transylvanian Hungarians fled to Hungary during the 1980s. During the fighting in Yugoslavia (1992-1995) more than ten thousand Hungarians settled permanently or temporarily in Hungary. There is a well-known story from Kárpátalja, near the Hungarian-Ukrainian border: A Hungarian in the Kárpátalja was asked how many different countries he had seen during his life. He thought for a moment and then said: "Five. And all of them without leaving my city." Until 1920, the Kárpátalja belonged to Hungary (Austro- Hungarian Monarchy), until 1938 to Czechoslovakia, then again to Hungary, one part to the independent Slovakia, and from 1947 to the Soviet Union. Since 1990 and at the present time it belongs to the Ukraine. The Hungarians living beyond Hungary proudly say: “We have not crossed the border, the border has crossed us”. Géza Balázs is a linguist, ethnographer, and professor at ELTE (Budapest University). This article is taken from his book The Story of Hungarian that was. published by Corvina Book, Budapest. You may order it at: Blue Danube, 217 East 86 St., Suite 244, New York, NY 10028. PETER A. PENCZER ATTORNEY REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER 1375 KINGS HIGHWAY EAST FAIRFIELD, CT 06430 Phone: 203-331-9691 Fax: 203-331-8259 ©©lűíPIITfQtö rsGift§iiltr@[p)§ir [L©yp|<f[iefan Call Steve Miko AMSCO. Tel :203-331 -0466 Hungarian Community Club 147 Ward Street, Wallingford, CT P.O. Box 1816;Tel.:203-639-0511 Contact Kati Kovács Available for cultural and social events. Hall, kitchen, bar, stage and ample parking please note: Our address is the same as it was, only the zip-code changed. It is: Magyar News, 60 Tyrone Place, Stratford, CT 06614-4756 Page 7
