This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

Hungary - Minorities

Last modified: 2014-04-18 by zoltán horváth
Keywords: hungary | bunjevatses | germany | croatia | slovakia | romania | serbia | slovenia | greece | ukraine | poland | armenia | ruthenia | gipsies | wends | vends |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors




See also:


Overview

The 13 Official Ethnic Minorities of Hungary are:

- Germans
- Slovaks : 25.000 - 100.000 in the Northern Mountains and Békés County
- Romanians : 15.000 in some village near the Romanian border
- Croats
- Serbs : 5.000 in South Hungary
- Slovenians : 5.000 some village near Szentgotthárd, Vas County (see: Wends)
- Bulgarians
- Greeks: in Beloiannis village
- Gipsies : 500.000 - 1.000.000 all over the country
- Ruthenians
- Ukrainian
- Armenian
- Polish

The minorities use their ethnic/country flags
István Molnár, 13 June 2000

Ethnic flags of the thirteen ethnic minorities of Hungary on a square of Budapest XVIII at <www.etnonet.hu>
You can see the following flags:
- Budapest XVIII
- Hungary
- Slovenian
- Gipsy
- German minority in Hungary
- Ruthenian (with Coat of Arms)
- Armanian
- Polish
István Molnár, 2 October 2001


Bulgarians


image by Ivan Marinov, 15 March 2001

First Bulgarians came to Hungary in the 17th century, to the Banat region, now divided between Yugoslavia and Romania. They were Catholic Bulgarians, and developed a new literary version of Bulgarian, written with Latin letters. Now, they are still a few thousands of people in the Romanian part of Banar, who still speak Bulgarian. The greatest wave of Bulgarian emigration to Hungary was at the end of the 19th century and in the first half of the 20th century. Interestingly, 95 % of them came from the Veliko Tarnovo region in the northern part of Bulgaria. Most of them are from two villages in Bulgaria: Draganovo and Polikraishte. The total number of emigrants was 7,000. Now, we have 30-35 thousands of people in Hungary of Bulgarian origin. The major part of them are totally asimilated, and consider themselves only Hungarians. There are only 7-8 thousands people who consider themselves Bulgarians, most of them consider themselves of dual identity, Bulgarian and Hungarian at the same time. Most Bulgarians in Hungary speak better Hungarian, than Bulgarian language.
In the meetings generally three flags are used, the Bulgarian flag, the Hungarian flag with the coat of arms, and the flag of the Union of Bulgarians in Hungary (above) , a cultural organization. The image has not the very best quality, it was made by me, and the central part was scanned from my own membership card.
The number (1914) means the date when the Union was formed. And the stylized tree means the main profession of the Bulgarian emigrants in the past: gardening.
Ivan Marinov, 15 March 2001


Bunjevatses

Bunjevatses (Croatophon people in Hungary, Serbia and Rumania) Bunjevci in Croatian (one would read that approximately as Boonyevtzi). As far as I know, they consider themselves Croatians, and use Croatian flag (or variation without the "crest" and smaller shield often in home made flags).
Jaume Ollé and Željko Heimer , 31 July 1999


Croats

As far as I know, they consider themselves Croatians, and use Croatian flag (or variation without the "crest" and smaller shield often in home made flags), though they may be some local flags. However, such flags would not be the national flags, but the flags of their societies and such. I believe
Željko Heimer 31 July 1999

Croats: 50.000 in West Hungary and near the Hungarian-Croatian border.
István Molnár, 13 June 2000

Today in Hungary Croats have got 5 territorial-ethnical groups. One of them are Bunjevatses (with reach traditions). All the groups use the Croatian tricolour
István Molnár, 12 December 2000

Gradiste is not only the territory in Burgenland. Some villages of Gradiste is in Hungary (Narda, Szentp?terfa-Petrovo Selo etc.). Gradiste is the territory in the formerly West-Hungary (larger part is nowaday Burgenland). Croats settled to this territory (from Bratislava to Nagykanizsa) in the 16-17th centuries. You can find Croatian inhabited villages near Bratislava and in Hungary: Bezenye-Bizonja, Kimle etc.
István Molnár, 13 January 2001

The website for Croats in Hungary (www.croatica.hu) shows the flag for the Republic of Croatia as opposed to a modified flag.
Marko Puljic, 5 June 2001

Horvátlövő is Croatian village in the Vas County, that borders Austria. The Croatian name for the village is Hrvatske Sice.
Marko Puljic, 8 Febuary 2002


Germans


image by István Molnár, 28 November 2000


Vertical Flag
image by Jens Pattke, 29 July 2001 (based on photo by István Molnár)


Coat of Arms
image by István Molnár, 13 June 2000

The coat of arms of the association of the Germans from Hungary is: "divided per fess azure, argent and or, with a village and a cannon sable on the middle fess. On the whole a latin cross argent fimbriated sable".
Pascal Vagnat, 1 August 1999

Germans : 200.000 - 400.000 in West-Hungary, Baranya and Tolna Counties and many villages in the mountains. Above is the Coat of Arms of the German Ethnic Minority of Hungary. The minority uses its country flag (the black-red-yellow).
István Molnár, 13 June 2000

The German minority in Hungary prior to and during WW2 used this flag: White flag with a yellow "sun wheel swastika" enclosed by a red circle.
Source: David Littlejohn - Foreign Legions of the Third Reich
Marcus Wendel, 20 September 2000

I was in Béb in the morning and I saw a small flag on a table in the Office of the Community. This little flag shows the flag of the German Minority in Hungary. In summer I saw a black-and-white photo of this flag. I made two images based on these informations. A vertical and a horizontal one.
István Molnár, 28 November 2000

See also:


Gipsies

Gipsies : 500.000 - 1.000.000 all over the country. The Gipsies of Hungary haven't got own flag, they used the Gipsy flag
From Kata Fris, writer of the Amaro Drom (Gipsy periodical review):
the blue shows the sky,
the white shows the grass
and the red cart-wheel shows the wandering
István Molnár, 13 June 2000

I wanted to report on a flag seen in my recent trip to Budapest. On a hose that was a kind of Rom cultural center (or school maybe) was hoisted together with the Hungarian tricolour a Rom flag that was in one point distinctive to the "usual" Rom flag - namely it was defaced with a yellow thin diagonal stripe. I.e. the flag was light blue over green bicolour with red wheel in the middle and overall a thin golden diagonal strupe from base hoist rising to top fly.
I guess that this is the particular flag of the group or organziation to which the house bellongs. If I have noticed it rightly, it seems that the numerous groups of Roms in Europe (and elsewhere?) use slightly differentiated flags, but on the other hand, it seems that they all recognize the same basic design and the differenciations are either due to non-existance of the unified authority that would prescribe the flag, or to the wish (and need) to express bolonging to a particular organization and not to the nation as a whole only.
Željko Heimer, 2 June 2001

Photo of Hungarian Gipsy flag at <www.romaweb.hu>.
István Molnár, 30 March 2006

Lungo Drom


image by István Molnár, 21 May 2003

Lungo Drom Országos Cigány Érdekvédelmi és Polgári Szövetség (Lungo Drom Nationwide Gipsy Community of Interest and Civic Federation). Lungo Drom means Hosszú Út in Hungarian and Long Drive in English.
The largest gipsy organisation in Hungary. The federation has got 3 members in the parliament and many representatives in the local and ethnic councils. The organisation was in coalition with the Fidesz-MPP on the last election.
Source: Symbol and the description of the flag from the Lungo Drom.
István Molnár, 21 May 2003

See also: Hungary - Political Flags


Greeks


image from <www.c3.hu/~szegmens>, located by István Molnár

This is the symbol of the Greek Ethnic Council in Szeged only. It has got a part of the Szeged's Coat of Arms.
István Molnár, 18 March 2001


Ruthenians


image by István Molnár, 15 June 2000

The Ruthenians of Hungary haven't got own flag but they used the Ruthenian flag of the Ruthenians of the World (Transcarpathia, Slovakia, Hungary and the USA). I got this information from Mrs Jozsefne Csepanyi-Bardos, the president of the Ruhenian Ethnic Minority Council in Budapest Capital.
The Ruthenians are the settlers of Transcarpathia, and they are the majority there.
István Molnár, 15 June 2000

The President of the Ethnic Council of the Ruthenians in Budapest wrote me: "This flag is used by all Ruthenians of the World. She also wrote me: "Ruthenians are not Ukrainians!". In Hungary the Ruthenians have own Ethnic Council and the Ucrainians have another . The Ucrainians use the UA flag.
István Molnár, 21 September 2000

The Homepage of the Ruthenian Minority Autonomy of The Capital is at <www.ruthen.hu>.
István Molnár, 11 March 2001

Coat of Arms

Here is the Coat of Arms of the Ruthenians from <www.comp-press.hu> . This Coat of Arms has some resemblance to the Transcarpathian Coat of Arms.
István Molnár, 15 June 2000


Slovaks


image from <www.c3.hu/~szegmens>, located by István Molnár

This is the symbol of the Slovakian Ethnic Council in Szeged only. It has got a part of the Szeged's Coat of Arms.
István Molnár, 18 March 2001

Symbol of the Slovak Ethnic Minority Council of Tatabanya-Banhida can be seen at <www.kembridge.hu>.
István Molnár, 2 March 2003

Coat of Arms of National Self-Government of Slovaks in Hungary is at <www.slovaknet.hu>.
István Molnár, 25 September 2003


Wends (Vends)

Wends: Slovenian ethnic groups in West Hungary and the neighbouring (former Hungarian) territories in Slovenia. The name "vend" is used by Hungarians and some of the wends.
In the Hungarian censuses:
1850-1910: Vends means Slovenians
1920-1941: Vends or Slovenians
1948-1980: Yugoslavians (Croatians, Serbs, Slovenians)
1990:  Slovenians or Vends
Vends in this region are for some generations already.
István Molnár, 19 September 2000

See also: Sorb People (Germany)