Székelys

The Siculi, Székely [se ː k ] or Székler, rarely Székely (Hungarian singular székely, plural székelyek; romanian singular secui, plural secui ) are a Hungarian Székely dialect -speaking population group in eastern Transylvania in central Romania. 2002 there were on the floor of the historical Székely Land roughly 670,000 Hungary - most of them Székely - and about 407,000 Romanians, including members of several minority groups such as Roma, Jews and Armenian origin Romanian citizens.

Designation

The term most commonly used in the German technical and popular literature of the ethnic group is " Székely ". In addition, the form " Székely " in use in the derivation of the Hungarian noun szék (, chair ', here in the importance chair district ', see below) is underlined. Chance is also the more Germanized form " Székely " to be found.

History

The origin of the Székely is not entirely clear. Theories about their alleged Avar, Hunnish, Gepid or Romanian origin are considered for decades on the part of science as ahistorical. Lange also Pechenegs ( of Turkish origin ) and Cumans were ( of Turkish origin ) held for ancestors of the Székely. There is no evidence that the Székely language each other spoke as the Hungarian.

In historical sources, the term Siculi first appears in 1116.

The Székely have been rather reshaped after its relocation from the western and southern Transylvania in the central and eastern Transylvania by a legal community in the medieval sense to a specific Magyar ethnographic group. In the banns of Hungarian kings and princes of Transylvania Szeklerkontingente have been active since the late Middle Ages. Also in the armies of the Wallachian and Moldavian princes Székely were frequently, even in the army of Michael the Brave ( Vitez Mihaly ) fought against the Székely Hungarian nobleman Andrei Bathory.

Between the 12-13. Century and 1867 had the right -territorial community of the Székely comparable with the Transylvanian Saxons internal autonomy in many areas of life. Until the early 18th century they acted in their assigned parts of the Kingdom of Hungary as " border guards ". Until the late 18th century, the Székely had their own legal system, which differed from the Hungarian.

A group of the Székely people living in the surroundings of the town of Turda, which is isolated from the rest of Székely land. Here was located in the Middle Ages the settlement Szeklerstuhl, today Aranyosszék. Even today, living here 10,000 to 15,000 Székely.

Language

The conquering Székely were probably partly Hungarian and turksprachig. The Hungarian language prevailed until the High Middle Ages in the Carpathian Basin in relation to other language groups. The Székely people speak their own dialect within the Hungarian language with a higher proportion turksprachiger terms as in the dialects of Hungary.

Identity

Since the Székely possessed as border guards of the Hungarian Gyepűsystems since the Middle Ages, guaranteed by the Hungarian royal privileges, she always emphasized their own Székely identity. They were next to the Magyar nobility and the Saxons one of the three constituent nations of Transylvania in the late Middle Ages ( Unio Trium Nationum 1438 ). Since the 19th century and the " national awakening" of the Magyars, the Székely people began to see themselves as part of the Magyars.

After the Treaty of Trianon was Transylvania and the Partium - including the entire settlement area of ​​the Székely ( Székely ) - ceded by Hungary to Romania. In Romania, since there is the possibility censuses as a nationality not only " Magyar " (Romanian maghiar ), but also " Székely " (Romanian secui ) indicated.

Location

The Székely Land was seven " chair districts " or " chairs ", ie cantons, divided: Marosszék, Aranyosszék, Csíkszék, Udvarhelyszék and the three chairs of Háromszék ( Three Chairs ' ), namely Kézdiszék, Orbaíszék and Sepsiszék - and five " sub- chairs " - Gyergyó and Kászon in Csík, Keresztúr and Bardóc in Udvarhely, Miklósvár in Háromszék. The Székely are partly Roman Catholic ( Csík with Gyergyó and Kászon, northern parts of Udvarhely and Kézdiszék ), Calvinist ( Marosszék, Orbaíszék, parts of Aranyosszék, Udvarhelyszék, Háromszék ) and Unitarian denomination ( Udvarhely, Sepsi, Aranyosszék ).

Since the 18th century migrated Székely in greater numbers in the Moldova ( Tschango ) to Bucharest, Cluj and Budapest.

1867 Transylvania lost its internal autonomy and became an integral part of the Hungarian half of the empire of the Habsburg Dual Monarchy.

For his participation in the First World War, Romania had demanded in the subsequent peace negotiations, Transylvania - and with it the Székely Land - separate from the previous Hungary and strike its own territory. This was confirmed by the Treaty of Trianon in 1920. The now beginning Rumänisierungspolitik result was the establishment of a significant number of Romanians; A limited number of Romanians, however, had settled in the Székely land since the 17th century.

After the Second Vienna Award of 30 August 1940, the Székely Land was re- annexed by Hungary, but in 1944 conquered the Soviet Red Army and in its wake the Romanian army the country back.