Hungarians
Hungarians, also known as Magyars (/ˈmæɡjɑːrz/ MAG-yarz; Hungarian: [magyarok] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) [ˈmɒɟɒrok]), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Ugric language branch of the Uralic language family.
magyarok | |
|---|---|
| File:Feszty vezerek.jpg The seven Magyar chieftains arriving at the Carpathian Basin. Detail from Árpád Feszty's cyclorama titled the Arrival of the Hungarians. | |
| Total population | |
| c. 14–14.5 million | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| 23x15px Hungary 9,632,744 (2016)[1] | |
| Languages | |
| Hungarian language | |
| Religion | |
| Majority Christianity |
The Hungarian people are believed to be descendants of the Huns, an ethnically Asian-origin group. Although Hungarian is now written using the Latin alphabet, its grammatical structure shares more similarities with Turkic and Mongolic languages, and the language was previously written in an Old Turkic-derived script. the origins of Hungarians are considered to be in the proximity of eastern Siberia and northern Mongolia. The ancestors of the Hungarians are then thought to have migrated westward and lived in what is now the region of Yakutia approximately 4,500 years ago.[2]
Genetic studies have shown that the Hungarian people possess certain Y-DNA haplogroups with links to Asian origins. These include markers such as N3a-L708, C2-M217, and R1a-Z93, which are commonly found among populations in Siberia, Central Asia, and regions historically inhabited by nomadic peoples. Such genetic traits support theories that the ancestors of Hungarians migrated westward from areas in or near present-day Siberia, eventually settling in the Carpathian Basin. While Hungary is geographically European, its genetic and linguistic heritage also reflect deep connections to Eurasian steppe cultures.[3]
Several smaller ethnic groups of Hungarian descent can be found around the world. One such group is the Magyarabs of Nubia, Egypt, who have resided in the region since 1517. The Székelys are Hungarians who settled in the Carpathian Basin prior to the 9th-century Hungarian conquest, and they continue to preserve elements of ancient Hungarian culture, including the use of the traditional Hungarian runic script (rovásírás).[4]
Hungarians Media
- Migration of Hungarians.jpg
Map of the presumptive Hungarian prehistory
- Kalandozasok.jpg
Hungarian raids in the 9–10th century
Traditional Hungarian costumes from Jassic- Cuman area, 1822
- Nagy Géza-Nemes Mihály A magyar viseletek története 1900.jpg
Traditional clothing in Hungary, around late 18th century and early 19th century
- Magyars 900-1980.png
Population growth of Hungarians (900–1980)
- Hungarians in Hungary (1890).png
Magyars (Hungarians) in Hungary, 1890 census
- Magyarorszag 1920.png
The Treaty of Trianon: Kingdom of Hungary lost 72% of its land and 3.3 million people of Hungarian ethnicity.
- Origin of Hungarians according to Kinga Ery.png
The place of origin for the regional groups of Hungarians in the conquest period, according to Kinga Éry.
- Population structure of Uralic-speaking populations.png
Population structure of Uralic-speaking populations inferred from ADMIXTURE analysis on autosomal SNPs in Eurasian context. Ugric-ancestry is represented by the Khanty and Mansi people.
References
- ↑ Vukovich, Gabriella (2018). Mikrocenzus 2016 - 12. Nemzetiségi adatok [2016 microcensus - 12. Ethnic data] (PDF). Hungarian Central Statistical Office (in magyar). Budapest. ISBN 978-963-235-542-9. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
- ↑ DeSmith, Christy (2025-07-16). "Ancient DNA solves mystery of Hungarian, Finnish language origins". Harvard Gazette. Retrieved 2025-07-29.
- ↑ Zeng, Tian Chen; Vyazov, Leonid A.; Kim, Alexander; Flegontov, Pavel; Sirak, Kendra; Maier, Robert; Lazaridis, Iosif; Akbari, Ali; Frachetti, Michael; Tishkin, Alexey A.; Ryabogina, Natalia E. (2025-07-02). "Ancient DNA reveals the prehistory of the Uralic and Yeniseian peoples". Nature: 1–11. doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09189-3. ISSN 1476-4687.
- ↑ Fernández, Jorge Álvarez (2016-06-25). "Magyarabs, el pueblo nubio que procede de húngaros del siglo XVI". La Brújula Verde (in español). Retrieved 2025-07-29.
