Magyar
Easter – Hímestojás
HÍMESTOJÁS Hungarian Decorated Easter Eggs Emese Kerkay The cult of the decorated egg is one of the most ancient religious customs of humanity, and goes back thousands of years. The …
Easter – Hímestojás Read MoreHungarian Lace
HUNGARIAN LACE Emese Kerkay LACE! To the woman of today it is a fine, flower-like material, in which there are parts left out, and in which holes and gaps are …
Hungarian Lace Read MoreHungarian Folk Instruments
Hungarian Folk Musical Instruments Emese Kerkay INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC Kodály Zoltán wrote: „The Hungarians are not especially instrumental music-lovers. Even poor people rather listen to music, than play with their own …
Hungarian Folk Instruments Read MoreKosbor István
ISTVÁN KOSBOR Artist’s Statement When my friend Kálmán Magyar invited me to have a show at the American Hungarian Museum, I thought it would be a good occasion to present …
Kosbor István Read MoreVaskó László
LÁSZLÓ VASKÓ Vaskó László was born in Nyíregyháza, Hungary, in 1971. At age eleven he moved to the USA with his family. His heritage and feelings towards his mother country …
Vaskó László Read MoreOriental Christianity
CHRISTIANITY IN INDIA My Lord and my God! (John 20,28) This is what Apostle Thomas said to Jesus when he recognized the resurrected Jesus and made his confession. This sentence became …
Oriental Christianity Read MoreMagyar Dress / Attire
Origin and History of the Hungarian Dress Emese Kerkay The culture and history of a nation can be deduced through its national and folk attire. The Hungarian national costume truly …
Magyar Dress / Attire Read MoreLyre / koboz
LYRE (koboz) It is an ancient Hungarian minstrel instrument of Central Asian origin. Minstrel song (énekmondás) is an inner process and there are persons in Hungary who still live and practice this form …
Lyre / koboz Read MoreTurkish Pipe / töröksíp
OBOE-LIKE SHAWM, TURKISH PIPE (töröksíp) It has an oboe-like double-tongued pipe, and is made of maple. The töröksíp was probably made known to Hungarians by the Turks. However it is known to …
Turkish Pipe / töröksíp Read MoreShepherd’s Pipe / tilinkó
SHEPHERD’S PIPE (tilinkó) It is a 70-80 cm long pipe made of willow bark, wood or metal. It has no openings. The different sounds are made with the tongue and with …
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Hurdy-Gurdy / tekerő
HURDY-GURDY, REVOLVING LUTE (tekerő) It was developed in the 13th century and spread from Spain. In Hungary it is mentioned and illustrated in the kuruc era (17th century) for the first time. The resonance …
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Shawm / tárogató
OBOE-LIKE SHAWM (tárogató) A Hungarian double reed instrument made of wood. It was used by the military as a signaling and guiding device. It was a favorite of Rákóczi’s freedom fighters (1703-1711). Therefore …
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Shepherd’s Pipe / sípok
SHEPHERD’S PIPE (sípok) Pipes, together with drums, are ancient instruments recalling old beliefs of Hungarians. Pipes are made of reed, bone and wood. Their size and number of holes vary. Some …
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Bugle / kürt
BUGLE, SHEPHERD’S HORN (kürt, pásztortülök) Ancient Hungarians used the horn as a signaling device and also as a symbol of dignity. The swineherd’s horn was made from the 80 cm long horn of …
Bugle / kürt Read MoreJughorn / köcsögduda
JUGHORN, JUGPIPE (köcsögduda) Leather or parchment is tightened to the top of a large pottery or wooden jug. A reed or horse hair is fastened to the cover. The one with …
Jughorn / köcsögduda Read MoreRattle / kereplő
RATTLE (kereplő) The simple ripped rattle is made of three pieces of wood. It can be a toy, an instrument in a symphony orchestra and a tool to scare off the birds when …
Rattle / kereplő Read MoreCorn Stalk Violin / kukoricahegedű
CORN STALK VIOLIN (kukoricahegedű) It consists of two equally structured pieces: one is the violin, and the other is the bow. If the pieces are not completely dry, rubbed together they give a scraping …
Corn Stalk Violin / kukoricahegedű Read MoreSunflower Stalk Violin / kóróhegedű
SUNFLOWER STALK VIOLIN (kóróhegedű) The body is made of 40-50 cm long sunflower stalks, the two keys are a piece of twig, the bow is a bent rod, the strings and …
Sunflower Stalk Violin / kóróhegedű Read MoreViolin / hegedű
VIOLIN (hegedű) The most popular and widespread instrument among Hungarians is the violin. It was made popular by the violinist minstrels in the Middle Ages. In the 1500-s, a traveler reports, …
Violin / hegedű Read MoreGardon / ütőgardon
HIT GARDON, PERCUSSIVE CELLO (ütőgardon) The gardon is an ancient stringed percussion instrument of the Székelys of Csík and Csángós of Gyimes. Gauged like a trough from one piece of beech, …
Gardon / ütőgardon Read More
Recorder / furulya
RECORDER, FLUTE (furulya) Two kinds of shepherd’s flutes or recorders are used: the long-woo dwind-flute (hosszú furugla), made of elderberry, is nearly one meter long and has five holes at the end. The …
Recorder / furulya Read MoreBagpipe / duda
BAGPIPE, BELLOWS PIPE (duda) This ancient and significant instrument of the Hungarians has its origins in the Near East in antiquity. Up to the 16th century it was the military instrument …
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Trump / doromb
TRUMP, JAW HARP, JEW’S HARP (doromb) The Hungarians brought the ‘trump-song’ from Asia. The instrument can be found every where in the world. A narrow vibrating metal tongue is soldered to the lute-formed metal …
Trump / doromb Read MoreDrum / dob
DRUM (dob) It was a significant instrument of the ancient Hungarians, symbolizing the universe. The single bottom drum is mentioned in many children’s rhymes which refer to our ancient beliefs. The double kettle drum used …
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Cymbalom / cimbalom
CYMBALOM, HAMMER-DULCIMER (cimbalom) This relative of the zither originated in 13th century Persia and became known in Hungary in the 16th century. The instrument is used to make dance music together with …
Cymbalom / cimbalom Read MoreZither / citera
ZITHER (citera) The zither is the most widely used folk instrument since ancient times. Every herdsman and farmer was able to construct one. Anybody could learn to play it. There are …
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Whizzer / búgattyú
WHIZZER, THUNDERSTICK (búgattyú) The whizzer still plays a role in the ceremonies of nature peoples. A piece of wood or shingle is tied to a string and while twirled it makes …
Whizzer / búgattyú Read MoreHungarian Folk Dance in Hungary and America
HUNGARIAN FOLK DANCES in HUNGARY and AMERICA by Kálmán and Judith Magyar Contrary to the popular belief, not only in America, but also in other parts of the world, including …
Hungarian Folk Dance in Hungary and America Read MoreBusójárás
BUSÓJÁRÁS An old tradition in Hungary By Oliver Valu The following piece is about traditional Hungarian folk customs, which are extremely fascinating, imaginative, and amusing, specifically: Hungarian carnival season …
Busójárás Read MorePhotos
Scratch-carved egg The Scratch-carved eggs, dyed with onion skin, were decorated by Emese Kerkay Fotó: Kerkay László
Photos Read MoreFolk Painting
HUNGARIAN FOLK PAINTING AND SCULPTURE Primitivism as an art form was discovered at the turn of the 20th century. The thinkers suddenly realized that there are values beyond antique and …
Folk Painting Read More