Welcome!

Countless Americans have Hungarian blood running through their veins, even if it might be intermingled with other, more well-known or recognized ethnicities. But although a lot of people know bits and pieces about their Italian, German, or Irish ancestors, not as many people know a whole lot about the Hungarian part of their family tree. Hungary has a rich heritage that stretches back over a thousand years. There is a lot more to it than gypsy music and goulash and paprika. But how many people outside of its borders know this heritage? How many people even know where to find it on the map?

The difficulty and rarity of the Hungarian language is a huge barrier to those who want to know more about their ancestral background. There is not a lot of demand for Hungarian writings to be translated into English - even though it has a rich literary history. So what does the average person do? It's not really as easy as picking up a Hungarian language tutorial at Barnes and Noble and learning it in a weekend. But while there are English-language resources online about Hungary, it's not always easy to find the good ones. Some are very scholarly in nature, and others are mostly to attract tourists to the country. So what's out there for the average person?

This site is meant to introduce a (mainly) American audience to Hungarian culture, and to translate some interesting articles, traditions, etc. into plain English. It is not intended to be a place for scholarly research, although most of the sources used to compile the information are indeed academic in nature. But not all are - and this doesn't bother me. I'm not trained as a historian; I'm merely sharing the results of my research.

I was born in Hungary and moved back and forth from there to the United States for much of my life. As an adult, I have ended up staying in the U.S. to be close to my family, but still consider myself to be a Hungarian. This is my attempt to continue keeping my Hungarian heritage alive, stateside. (And in the process, I'm learning a lot as well!)

Culture is a living thing. It is not supposed to be a dull thing found only in history books or museum displays. For a culture to live on, its stories must be re-told to each new generation, reinterpreted, and made to live on in the imaginations of our young children. Poems and rhymes should be committed to memory effortlessly through nursery rhymes. Songs should be sung, crafts made and enjoyed and displayed.

There are some things might be learned about, but cannot be replicated. Hungarian culture is tied deeply into the land, into the geography, with each region having specific traditions and contributions to the national landscape. This is not something that can be easily replicated in America. But it is not out of the question. There are many Hungarians who live outside of the country's official borders. I'm willing to wager that Americans with Hungarian heritage can be just as connected to one another as other cultural groups living in the U.S. - and just as proud of it. But to be proud of something, one has to first know enough about it to claim it as their own. So... let's start learning. :)