Ethnic Hungarian Minorities in East Central Europe
Where Are They?
Approximately 2 Million Ethnic Hungarians live in the seven countries surrounding Hungary. The communities range in size from 6,500 in Slovenia to more than 1 million in Romania. Collectively, they comprise the largest national minority in Central Europe. These are autochthonous communities who have continuously lived in the region, their homelands, for the past 1,100 years. It was due to the 1920 Treaty of Trianon following World War I that approximately 3.3 million ethnic Hungarians became minorities in the newly formed states. In every country, their numbers have significantly declined over the ensuing 100 years.
During this period the borders between Hungary and the countries where Hungarian minorities live have shifted numerous times; states have been dissolved and new ones created. These communities have been subject to war, varying degrees and tactics to eliminate, disenfranchise, or forcibly assimilate them, speckled with periods of relative calm. The extent of the devastation wrought on ethnic Hungarians can be partially understood by census numbers. Violence inflicted through killing, deportation, emigration, or forceful resettlements (called “ethnic cleansing” today) explain the current population numbers from less than 100 years ago. This decline would not have been possible under normal demographic development.
Romania. The largest Hungarian community is in Romania, by now merely numbering just over 1 million, lives foremost in Transylvania, the northwestern region of the country. In certain counties, for example, Covasna and Harghita (Kovászna and Hargita in Hungarian), the proportion of the Hungarian population reaches up to 70 and 80 per cent, respectively. A large segment of Hungarians in Romania are historically called Székelys, and the afore-mentioned Covasna and Harghita counties, along with Maros/Mures county, are called Székelyföld (Székely Region).
Since the fall of communism in 1989, the largest and most significant political party that represents Hungarians in Romania is the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, also known as Romániai Magyar Demokrata Szövetség in Hungarian, or RMDSZ. Until recently, RMDSZ was part of the country’s governing coalition, as it has been at times in the past 30 years. However, being politically aligned with an ethnic minority party is still considered a liability by the majority and RMDSZ was pushed out of power sharing in June 2023.
Slovakia. The second largest Hungarian community resides in the southern parts of Slovakia, historically called Felvidék. There are an estimated 420,000 Hungarians living in Slovakia, with their political party being the Alliance (or Szövetség in Hungarian), which is the electoral alliance of the three leading Hungarian parties in the country.
Serbia. The next country with the highest native Hungarian population is Serbia, with 185,000 people. This is a 27 percent decrease compared to the 254,000 officially recorded in the last 2011 census. Hungarians in Serbia live almost exclusively in the Vajdaság (Vojvodina in Serbian) autonomous province, which has its own legislative assembly. The largest Hungarian party is the Alliance of Hungarians in Vojvodina (Vajdasági Magyar Szövetség, VMSZ for short), which as of 2022 holds six seats in the National Parliament, and 11 seats in the provincial assembly as of 2020.
Ukraine. According to the last 2001 census conducted in Ukraine, there were 160,000 ethnic Hungarians residing in the country’s westernmost region called Transcarpathia, or Kárpátalja (in Hungarian). The community is represented by the Cultural Alliance of Hungarians in Transcarpathia (Kárpátaljai Magyarok Kulturális Szövetsége, KMKSZ), but only at the local government level. The minority lost any national-level representation, in the Rada, in July 2019 with redistricting. The ethnic Hungarian minority in Ukraine has faced various challenges and disruptions due to the current war, including displacement, economic instability, and social unrest, all of which have directly affected the population numbers in this region as well.
Croatia has around 10,315 Hungarian residents, mostly living in its northern regions, close to the Hungarian border. The most important political party representing Hungarians in Croatia is the Democratic Union of Hungarians of Croatia (Horvátországi Magyarok Demokratikus Közössége, HMDK).
Slovenia and Austria have the smallest autochthonous Hungarian communities, with 6,300 and 7,500 people, respectively. The last Slovene census was held in 2002. The Hungarian minority is guaranteed, by law, to have one seat in the National Assembly each during election cycle. In November 2022, the Hungarian National Community Self-Governing Council of Muravidék (Muravidéki Magyar Önkormányzati Nemzeti Közösség Tanácsa) was established to represent the minority living in their native region.
In Austria, no such guaranteed representation exists at the national level, but there are ‘ethnic advisory councils’ in place for each large ethnic group, and this council is the most important institution for political representation for the native Hungarian community living in the Burgenland region.
1 As of 2022, approximately 95,000 Hungarians live in Austria outside of the historically Hungarian area called Burgenland that was ceded to the country after WWI.
