Hungary, part 3
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Continued from Hungary and Hungary, part 2, continued at Hungary, part 4
Contents |
Politics
The President of the Republic, elected by the Parliament every five years, has a largely ceremonial role, for example choosing the dates of elections, and ratifying laws.
The Prime Minister is elected by Parliament and can only be removed by a constructive vote of no confidence. The prime minister selects Cabinet ministers and has the exclusive right to dismiss them. Each Cabinet nominee appears before one or more parliamentary committees in open hearings and must be formally approved by the President.
A unicameral, 386-member National Assembly (the Országgyűlés) is the highest organ of state authority and initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the Prime Minister. National Parliamentary elections are held every four years; the next are due to be held in 2010.
An 11-member Constitutional Court has power to challenge legislation on grounds of unconstitutionality.
Regions, counties, and subregions
- See also List of historic counties of Hungary
Administratively, Hungary is divided into 19 counties. In addition, the capital city (főváros), Budapest, is independent of any county government. The counties and the capital are the 20 NUTS third-level units of Hungary.
The counties are further subdivided into 173 subregions (kistérségek), and Budapest is its own subregion. Since 1996, the counties and City of Budapest have been grouped into 7 regions for statistical and development purposes. These seven regions constitute NUTS' second-level units of Hungary.
There are also 23 towns with county rights (singular megyei jogú város), sometimes known as "urban counties" in English (although there is no such term in Hungarian). The local authorities of these towns have extended powers, but these towns belong to the territory of the respective county instead of being independent territorial units.
Economy
Hungary held its first multi-party elections in 1990, following four decades of Communist rule, and has succeeded in transforming its centrally planned economy into a market economy. Both foreign ownership of and foreign investment in Hungarian firms are widespread. The governing coalition, comprising the Hungarian Socialist Party and the liberal Alliance of Free Democrats, prevailed in the April 2006 general election. Hungary needs to reduce government spending and further reform its economy in order to meet the 2012–2013 target date for accession to the euro zone.
Hungary has continued to demonstrate economic growth as one of the newest member countries of the European Union (since 2004). The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP. Hungary gets nearly one third of all foreign direct investment flowing into Central Europe, with cumulative foreign direct investment totaling more than US$185 billion since 1989. It enjoys strong trade, fiscal, monetary, investment, business, and labor freedoms. The top income tax rate is fairly high, but corporate taxes are low. Inflation is low, it was on the rise in the past few years, but it is now starting to regulate. Investment in Hungary is easy, although it is subject to government licensing in security-sensitive areas. Foreign capital enjoys virtually the same protections and privileges as domestic capital. The rule of law is strong, a professional judiciary protects property rights, and the level of corruption is low.
Total government spending is high. Many state-owned enterprises have not been privatized. Business licensing is a problem, as regulations are not applied consistently.[1] According to the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation, Hungary's economy was 67.2 percent "free" in 2008,[1] which makes it the world's 43rd-freest economy. Its overall score is 1 percent lower than last year, partially reflecting new methodological detail. Hungary is ranked 25th out of 41 countries in the European region, and its overall score is slightly lower than the regional average.[1] Economic reform measures such as health care reform, tax reform, and local government financing are being addressed by the present government.
Geography
- See also: List of national parks of Hungary
Landscape
Slightly more than one half of Hungary's landscape consists of flat to rolling plains of the Pannonian Basin: the most important plain regions include the Little Hungarian Plain in the west, and the Great Hungarian Plain in the southeast. The highest elevation above sea level on the latter is only 183 metres.
Transdanubia is a primarily hilly region with a terrain varied by low mountains. These include the very eastern stretch of the Alps, Alpokalja, in the west of the country, the Transdanubian Medium Mountains, in the central region of Transdanubia, and the Mecsek Mountains and Villány Mountains in the south. The highest point of the area is the Írott-kő in the Alps, at 882 metres.
The highest mountains of the country are located in the Carpathians: these lie in the northern parts, in a wide band along the Slovakian border (highest point: the Kékes at 1,014 m (3327 ft)).
Hungary is divided in two by its main waterway, the Danube (Duna); other large rivers include the Tisza and Dráva, while Transdanubia contains Lake Balaton, a major body of water. The largest thermal lake in the world, Lake Hévíz (Hévíz Spa), is located in Hungary. The second largest lake in the Pannonian Basin is the artificial Lake Tisza (Tisza-tó).
Phytogeographically, Hungary belongs to the Central European province of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. According to the WWF, the territory of Hungary belongs to the ecoregion of Pannonian mixed forests.
Climate
Hungary has a Continental climate,[2] with hot summers with low overall humidity levels but frequent rainshowers and frigid to cold snowy winters. Average annual temperature is 9.7 °C (49.5 °F). Temperature extremes are about 42 °C (110 °F) in the summer and −29 °C (−20 °F) in the winter. Average temperature in the summer is 27 to 35 °C (81 to 95 °F), and in the winter it is 0 to −15 °C (32 to 5 °F). The average yearly rainfall is approximately 600 millimeters (24 in). A small, southern region of the country near Pécs enjoys a reputation for a Mediterranean climate, but in reality it is only slightly warmer than the rest of the country and still receives snow during the winter.
Military
The Military of Hungary, or "Hungarian Armed Forces" currently has two branches, the "Hungarian Ground Force" and the "Hungarian Air Force." The Hungarian Ground Force (or Army) is known as the "Corps of Homeland Defenders" (Honvédség). This term was originally used to refer to the revolutionary army established by Lajos Kossuth and the National Defence Committee of the Revolutionary Hungarian Diet in September 1848 during the Hungarian Revolution.The term Honvédség is the name of the military of Hungary since 1848 referring to its purpose (véd in Honvéd) of defending the country. The Hungarian Army is called Magyar Honvédség. The rank equal to a Private is a Honvéd. The Hungarian Air Force is the air force branch of the Hungarian Army.
Black Army of Hungary: The Black Army (Black Legion or Host) - named after their black armor panoply - is in historigraphy the common name given to the excellent quality of diverse and polyglot military forces serving under the reign of King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary. It is recognized as the first standing continental European fighting force not under conscription and with regular pay since the Roman Empire. Hungary's Black Army traditionally encompasses the years from 1458 to 1490.
Hussar: A type of irregular light horsemen was already well established by the 15th century in medieval Hungary.Hussar refers to a number of types of light cavalry created in Hungary[3] in the 15th century and used throughout Europe and even in America since the 18th century. Some modern military units retain the title 'hussar' for reasons of tradition.
Demographics
| Ethnic composition of Hungary (census 2001) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hungarian | 94.4% | |||
| Roma | 2.02% | |||
| German | 1.18% | |||
| Slovak | 0.38% | |||
| Other | 2.02% | |||
For 95% of the population, the mother language is Hungarian, a Finno-Ugric language distantly related to Finnish and Estonian. The largest minority groups are are the Roma (2.1%) and the Germans (1.2%). Other groups include: Slovaks (0.4%), Croats and Bunjevcis(0.2%), Romanians (0.1%), Ukrainians (0.1%), and Serbs (0.1%).[4] Roma make up as much as 10% of the population in Hungary (unofficial estimation).[5] For historical reasons (see Treaty of Trianon), significant Hungarian minority populations can be found in the surrounding countries, most of them in Romania (in Transylvania), Slovakia, Serbia (in Vojvodina). Sizable minorities live also in Ukraine (in Transcarpathia), Croatia (mainly Slavonia) and Austria (in Burgenland). Slovenia is also host to a number of ethnic Hungarians, and Hungarian language has an official status in parts of the Prekmurje region.
Germans
The largest wave of German-speaking immigrants into Hungary occurred after the Treaty of Karlowitz. Between 1700 and 1750, German-speaking settlers immigrated to the regions of Pannonia, Banat, and Bačka, which had been depopulated by the Ottoman wars. Prior to World War II, approximately 1.5 million Danube Swabians lived in Hungary, Romania and Yugoslavia.[6] In 2001, 62,105 people declared to be German in Hungary.[7]
Religion in Hungary
| Denominations | Population | % of total |
|---|---|---|
| Christianity | 7,584,115 | 74.4 |
| Catholicism | 5,558,901 | 54.5 |
| Roman Catholics | 5,289,521 | 51.9 |
| Greek Catholics | 268,935 | 2.6 |
| Protestantism | 1,985,576 | 19.5 |
| Calvinists | 1,622,796 | 15.9 |
| Lutherans | 304,705 | 3.0 |
| Baptists | 17,705 | 0.2 |
| Unitarians | 6,541 | 0.1 |
| Other Protestants | 33,829 | 0.3 |
| Orthodox Christianity | 15,298 | 0.1 |
| Other Christians | 24,340 | 0.2 |
| Judaism | 12,871 | 0.1 |
| Other religions | 13,567 | 0.1 |
| Total religions | 7,610,553 | 74.6 |
| No religion | 1,483,369 | 14.5 |
| Did not wish to answer | 1,034,767 | 10.1 |
| Unknown | 69,566 | 0.7 |
| total | 10,198,315 | 100.00 |
Religious history
The majority of Hungarian people became Christian in the 10th century. Hungary's first king, Saint Stephen I, took up Western Christianity, although his mother, Sarolt, was baptized in the eastern rite. Hungary remained predominantly Catholic until the 16th century, when the Reformation took place and, as a result, first Lutheranism, then soon afterwards Calvinism became the religion of almost the entire population. In the second half of the 16th century, however, Jesuits led a successful campaign of counterreformation among the Hungarians. The Jesuits founded educational institutions, including Péter Pázmány, the oldest university that still exists in Hungary, but organized so-called missions too in order to promote popular piety. By the 17th century, Hungary had once again become predominantly Catholic. Some of the eastern parts of the country, however, especially around Debrecen ("the Calvinist Rome"), still have significant Protestant communities. Orthodox Christianity in Hungary has been the religion mainly of some national minorities in the country, notably, Romanians, Rusyns and Ukrainians, Serbs.
Hungary has been the home of a sizable Armenian community as well. They still worship according to the Armenian Rite, but they have reunited with the Catholic Church (Armenian Catholics) under the primacy of the Pope. According to the same pattern, a significant number of Orthodox Christians became re-united with the rest of the Catholic world (Greek Catholics).
Faith Church, one of Europe's largest pentecostal churches is also located in Hungary. Faith Church accepts the results and spiritual, moral values of both early Christianity and the Reformation, as well as other revival movements serving the progress of the Christian faith. Based on the 1% tax designation to churches, Faith Church is the fourth most supported church in Hungary. The weekly Sunday service of the Church is regularly broadcasted in live television.
Jewish Hungarians
Hungary has historically been home to a significant Jewish community, especially since the 19th century when many Jews, persecuted in Russia, found refuge in the Kingdom of Hungary. The largest synagogue in Europe is located in Budapest. In the Revolution of 1848 the Jews supported the Hungarians against the Austrians, and more than 20 000 Jewish fought for Hungary, in World War I Jews were among the greatest soldiers of the country. The census of January 1941 found that 6.2% of the population, i.e. 846,000 people, were considered Jewish according to the racial laws of that time. From this number, 725,000 were Jewish by religion.[9] Some Hungarian Jews were able to escape the Holocaust during World War II with the help of Romanians via Transylvania, although many were either deported to concentration camps or simply executed by the Hungarian Arrow Cross fascists.
Culture
Architecture
- See also: List of Hungarian architects
Hungary is home to the largest synagogue in Europe (Great Synagogue), the largest medicinal bath in Europe (Széchenyi Medicinal Bath), the third largest church in Europe (Esztergom Basilica), the second largest territorial abbey in the world (Pannonhalma Archabbey), the second largest Baroque castle in the world (Gödöllő), and the largest Early Christian Necropolis outside Italy (Pécs).
Music
The music of Hungary consists mainly of traditional Hungarian folk music and music by prominent composers such as Liszt, Dohnányi, Bartók, Kodály, and Rózsa. Hungarian traditional music tends to have a strong dactylic rhythm, as the language is invariably stressed on the first syllable of each word. Hungary also has a number of internationally renowned composers of contemporary classical music, György Ligeti, György Kurtág, Péter Eötvös and Zoltán Jeney among them.
Hungary has made many contributions to the fields of folk, popular and classical music. Hungarian folk music is a prominent part of the national identity and continues to play a major part in Hungarian music. Hungarian folk music has been influential in neighboring areas such as Romania, Slovakia, southern Poland and especially in southern Slovakia and the Romanian region of Transylvania, both home to significant numbers of Hungarians.
Broughton claims that Hungary's "infectious sound has been surprisingly influential on neighbouring countries (thanks perhaps to the common Austro-Hungarian history) and it's not uncommon to hear Hungarian-sounding tunes in Romania, Slovakia and southern Poland".</ref>[10] It is also strong in the Szabolcs-Szatmár area and in the southwest part of Transdanubia, near the border with Croatia. The Busójárás carnival in Mohács is a major Hungarian folk music event, formerly featuring the long-established and well-regarded Bogyiszló orchestra.[11]
Hungarian classical music has long been an "experiment, made from Hungarian antedecents and on Hungarian soil, to create a conscious musical culture [using the] musical world of the folk song".[12] Although the Hungarian upper class has long had cultural and political connections with the rest of Europe, leading to an influx of European musical ideas, the rural peasants maintained their own traditions such that by the end of the 19th century Hungarian composers could draw on rural peasant music to (re)create a Hungarian classical style.[13] For example, Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály, two of Hungary's most famous composers, are known for using folk themes in their music. Bartók collected folk songs from across Eastern Europe, including Romania and Slovakia, whilst Kodály was more interested in creating a distinctively Hungarian musical style.
During the era of Communist rule in Hungary (1944–1989) a Song Committee scoured and censored popular music for traces of subversion and ideological impurity. Since then, however, the Hungarian music industry has begun to recover, producing successful performers in the fields of jazz such as trumpeter Rudolf Tomsits, pianist-composer Károly Binder and, in a modernized form of Hungarian folk, Ferenc Sebő and Márta Sebestyén. The three giants of Hungarian rock, Illés, Metró and Omega, remain very popular, especially Omega, which has followings in Germany and beyond as well as in Hungary. Older veteran underground bands such as Beatrice from the 1980s also remain popular.
Continued at Hungary, part 4
See also
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Footnotes
- ^ a b c Index of Economic Freedom
- ^ Andrew Speedy. "Hungary". Fao.org. http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/agpc/doc/Counprof/Hungary/hungary.htm. Retrieved on 2008-11-21.
- ^ "Hussar". Encyclopædia Britannica. (2008). Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.. Retrieved on 2008-08-15.
- ^ "Population Census 2001 – National and county data – Summary Data". Nepszamlalas.hu. http://www.nepszamlalas.hu/eng/volumes/06/00/tabeng/1/load01_10_0.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-21.
- ^ In Hungary, Roma get art show, not a hug, International Herald Tribune, February 7, 2008
- ^ "History of German Settlements in Southern Hungary" by Sue Clarkson
- ^ 18. Demographic data – Hungarian Central Statistical Office
- ^ "18. Demographic data – Hungarian Central Statistical Office". Nepszamlalas.hu. http://www.nepszamlalas.hu/eng/volumes/18/tables/load1_26.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-21.
- ^ Volume 3, p.979, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1982
- ^ Szalipszki, pg.12
Refers to the country as "widely considered" to be a "home of music". - ^ Broughton, pg. 159-167
- ^ Szabolcsi, The Specific Conditions of Hungarian Musical Development
"Every experiment, made from Hungarian antedecents and on Hungarian soil, to create a conscious musical culture (music written by composers, as different from folk music), had instinctively or consciously striven to develop widely and universally the musical world of the folk song. Folk poetry and folk music were deeply embedded in the collective Hungarian people’s culture, and this unity did not cease to be effective even when it was given from and expression by individual creative artists, performers and poets." - ^ Szabolcsi
References
- Miklós Molnár, Anna Magyar (2001). A Concise History of Hungary. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521667364.
- Richard C. Frucht (2005). Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781576078006.
- "A Country Study: Hungary". Federal Research Division. Library of Congress. http://memory.loc.gov/frd/cs/hutoc.html.
External links and further reading
- "In Budapest, a Snapshot of a World Now at Risk" article by Marcus Mabry in The New York Times April 25, 2009
- Official site of the National Assembly
- Chief of State and Cabinet Members
- Hungary entry at The World Factbook
- Hungary at UCB Libraries GovPubs
- Hungary, part 3 at the Open Directory Project
- Wikimedia Atlas of Hungary
- Hungary,_part_3 travel guide
- magyarorszag.hu
- History of Hungary: Primary Documents
- History of Hungary from The Corvinus Library
- In The Land of Hagar: The Jews of Hungary a virtual exhibition
- Translation of Hungarian literary works database
- Agricultural land use profile
| Historical development of Hungary | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← Austro-Hungarian Monarchy (1867–1918) |  | – |
| Hungary | ||
| Geographical locale | ||||||
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| This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Hungary. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. The text of this Wikinfo article is available under the GNU Free Documentation License and the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 license. |
