Székelys
Hungarian subgroup in Romania / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Székelys (pronounced [ˈseːkɛj], Székely runes: 𐳥𐳋𐳓𐳉𐳗), also referred to as Szeklers,[lower-alpha 2] are a Hungarian subgroup [5][6] living mostly in the Székely Land in Romania. In addition to their native villages in Suceava County in Bukovina, a significant population descending from the Székelys of Bukovina currently lives in Tolna and Baranya counties in Hungary and certain districts of Vojvodina, Serbia.
Total population | |
---|---|
est. 500,000–700,000[lower-alpha 1][2][3][4] | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Romania (Harghita, Covasna, parts of Mureș as well as some villages in Suceava County, Bukovina), Hungary (Tolna and Baranya), Serbia (Vojvodina) | |
Languages | |
Hungarian | |
Religion | |
Roman Catholic (majority) Hungarian Reformed, Unitarian | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Hungarians, Csángós, Jasz |
In the Middle Ages, the Székelys played a role in the defense of the Kingdom of Hungary against the Ottomans[7][8] in their posture as guards of the eastern border. With the Treaty of Trianon of 1920, Transylvania (including the Székely Land) became part of Romania, and the Székely population was a target of Romanianization efforts.[9] In 1952, during the communist rule of Romania, the former counties with the highest concentration of Székely population – Mureș, Odorhei, Ciuc, and Trei Scaune – were legally designated as the Magyar Autonomous Region. It was superseded in 1960 by the Mureș-Magyar Autonomous Region, itself divided in 1968 into two non-autonomous counties, Harghita and Mureș.[10] In post-Cold War Romania, where the Székelys form roughly half of the ethnic Hungarian population, members of the group have been among the most vocal of Hungarians seeking an autonomous Székely region in Transylvania.[11] They were estimated to number about 860,000 in the 1970s and are officially recognized as a distinct minority group by the Romanian government.[10]
Today's Székely Land roughly corresponds to the Romanian counties of Harghita, Covasna, and central and eastern Mureș where they currently make up roughly 80% of the population. Based on the official 2011 Romanian census, 1,227,623[12] ethnic Hungarians live in Romania, mostly in the region of Transylvania, making up 19.6% of the population of this region. Of these, 609,033 live in the counties of Harghita, Covasna, and Mureș, which taken together have a Hungarian majority (58%).[13] The Hungarians in Székely Land, therefore, account for half (49.41%) of the Hungarians in Romania. When given the choice on the 2011 Romanian census between ethnically identifying as Székely or as Hungarian, the overwhelming majority of the Székelys chose the latter – only 532 persons declared themselves as ethnic Székely.[1]