Árpád was the head of the confederation of the Magyar tribes at the turn of the 9th and 10th centuries. He might have been either the sacred ruler or kende of the Hungarians, or their military leader or gyula, although most details of his life are debated by historians, because different sources contain contradictory information. Despite this, many Hungarians refer to him as the "founder of our country", and Árpád's preeminent role in the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin has been emphasized by some later chronicles. The dynasty descending from Árpád ruled the Kingdom of Hungary until 1301.
Ferenc Kazinczy, was a Hungarian author, poet, translator, neologist, an agent in the regeneration of the Hungarian language and literature at the turn of the 19th century. Today his name is connected with the extensive Language Reform of the 19th century, when thousands of words were coined or revived, enabling the Hungarian language to keep up with scientific progress and become an official language of the nation in 1844. For his linguistic and literary works he is regarded as one of the cultural founders of the Hungarian Reform Era along with Dávid Baróti Szabó, Ferenc Verseghy, György Bessenyei, Mátyás Rát and János Kis.
Hungarian culture is characterized by its distinctive cuisine, folk traditions, poetry, theatre, religious customs, music and traditional embroidered garments. Hungarian folklore traditions include tales, music, dance, decorated pottery, carvings and embroidery. Historically, Hungarian music has largely consisted of folk music and classical and baroque pieces. Hungary shares cultural similarities with its neighbouring countries as well as with Turkic nations in Asia, the latter stemming from a history of interaction between Hungarians and Turkic peoples. Noted Hungarian authors include Sándor Márai, Imre Kertész, Péter Esterházy, Magda Szabó and János Kodolányi. Imre Kertész is particularly noteworthy for having won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2002.
The Chronicon Pictum or Illuminated Chronicle is a medieval illustrated chronicle from the Kingdom of Hungary from the 14th century. It represents the artistic style of the royal court of King Louis I of Hungary. The codex is a unique source of art, medieval and cultural history.
The Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum is a medieval chronicle written mainly by Simon of Kéza around 1282–1285. It is one of the sources of early Hungarian history. It is also known as the Gesta Hungarorum (II), the "(II)" indicating its status as an expansion of the original Gesta Hungarorum.
Chronica Hungarorum, also known as the Thuróczy Chronicle, is the title of a 15th-century Latin-language Hungarian chronicle written by Johannes de Thurocz by compiling several earlier works in 1488. It served as the primary source for the history of medieval Hungary for centuries.
The Buda Chronicle is a 15th-century chronicle treating the early and medieval Hungarian history. While its original name is Chronica Hungarorum, the chronicle is better known as the "Buda Chronicle" since the 19th century. Its text is eponymous part of the so-called Buda Chronicle family. The Buda Chronicle was printed in the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary in Buda by András Hess in 1473, becoming the first book printed in Hungary. With printing, the Buda Chronicle was not forgotten for centuries long as its predecessor Hungarian medieval chronicles, which were in manuscript codices, however the content of the Buda Chronicle soon became obsolete due to the more extensive Hungarian history of the Thuróczy Chronicle, which was published in 1488, which also bears the same title "Chronica Hungarorum".
János Arany was a Hungarian poet, writer, translator and journalist. He is often said to be the "Shakespeare of ballads" – he wrote more than 102 ballads that have been translated into over 50 languages, as well as the Toldi trilogy.
Ügyek, also known as Ugek or Ugec, was – according to the chronicler Anonymus – the father of Álmos, the first Grand Prince of the Hungarians. However, according to a conflicting source, Simon of Kéza, Előd was the father of Álmos, while the chronicler referred to Ügyek as Álmos's grandfather. He is the earliest known ancestor of the Árpád dynasty. He was said to be a Scythian, i.e. to be from Dentumoger, the homeland of the Magyars, which the chroniclers identify with Scythia, and use to refer both to the land and its inhabitants.
János Baranyai Decsi or János Csimor Baranyai Decsi is a Hungarian Renaissance writer who lived in the 16th century. He lived in the Transylvanian court of Báthory Zsigmond.
János Kemény was a Hungarian aristocrat, writer and prince of Transylvania.
The Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award is a European award for literature presented in Budapest since 1997. The native form of this name is Balassi Bálint-emlékkard. This award commemorates the 16th century Hungarian poet Bálint Balassi. The memorial sword is presented annually to an outstanding Hungarian poet, and to a foreign poet for excellence in translation of Hungarian literature, including the works of Balassi. The sword itself is a replica of those sabres that the 16th century Hungarian cavalry wore during the sieges of fortresses. They are the work of a contemporary swordsmith. This award is presented each year on Bálint's (Valentine's) Day, February 14, in the city of Buda. The celebration venue is traditionally the Hotel Gellért.
George Gomori is a Hungarian-born poet, writer and academic. He has lived in England since 1956, after fleeing Budapest after the Hungarian Revolution, in which he played a pivotal role. He writes poems in Hungarian, many of which have been translated into English and Polish, and other writings across all three languages. He is a regular contributor to British newspaper The Guardian and to The Times Literary Supplement.
Johannes de Thurocz, was a Hungarian historian and the author of the Latin Chronica Hungarorum, the most extensive 15th-century work on Hungary, and the first chronicle of Hungary written by a layman.
The Battle of Olšava was an engagement of Bohemian and Hungarian troops near the Olšava River along the frontier of the two realms in May 1116. The event started as a peaceful meeting between the young Stephen II of Hungary and Vladislaus I of Bohemia, according to Hungarian chronicles. The Czech Cosmas of Prague wrote that the Hungarians came to the border to provocate a war.
Péter Zollman was a Hungarian-born scientist, research physicist, engineer, inventor and translator of literary works.
Nicholas was an 11th-century Hungarian prelate, who served as the first known bishop of Győr under King Andrew I of Hungary. It is possible that the establishing charter of the abbey of Tihany, a document which contains the oldest written words in Hungarian, was composed by Bishop Nicholas. There is also a scholarly theory that Nicholas compiled the Urgesta, the earliest Hungarian chronicle.
The Tarih-i Üngürüs is a 16th-century Ottoman Turkish chronicle treating the history of the Hungarians. Its author Mahmud Tercüman translated it from a Latin chronicle found after the siege of Székesfehérvár in 1543. According to the scientific point of view, this work was a late 15th-century chronicle, Johannes de Thurocz's Chronica Hungarorum. Since it provides different information on Hungarian prehistory compared to the Hungarian chronicles on several points, there is also a fringe theory according to which the author found and translated the lost Urgesta or "ancient gesta", the earliest chronicle of the Hungarians.
