top of pageBackground: Hungary became a Christian kingdom in A.D. 1000 and for many centuries served as a bulwark against Ottoman Turkish expansion in Europe. The kingdom eventually became part of the polyglot Austro-Hungarian Empire, which collapsed during World War I. The country fell under communist rule following World War II. In 1956, a revolt and an announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact were met with a massive military intervention by Moscow. Under the leadership of Janos KADAR in 1968, Hungary began liberalizing its economy, introducing so-called 'Goulash Communism.' Hungary held its first multiparty elections in 1990 and initiated a free market economy. It joined NATO in 1999 and the EU five years later.
Climate: temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers
Terrain: mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border
Major riversBy length in km: Danube (shared with Germany [s], Austria, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania [m]) - 2,888 km
GeographyNote: landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin; the north-south flowing Duna (Danube) and Tisza Rivers divide the country into three large regions
top of pageEthnic groups: Hungarian 85.6%, Romani 3.2%, German 1.9%, other 2.6%, unspecified 14.1% (2011 est.)
Note: percentages add up to more than 100% because respondents were able to identify more than one ethnic group; Romani populations are usually underestimated in official statistics and may represent 5-10% of Hungary's population
Languages: Hungarian (official) 99.6%, English 16%, German 11.2%, Russian 1.6%, Romanian 1.3%, French 1.2%, other 4.2%; note - shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; Hungarian is the mother tongue of 98.9% of Hungarian speakers (2011 est.)
Major language samples:A Gheos World Guide nélkülözhetetlen forrása az alapvetÅ‘ információnak. (Hungarian)
The Gheos World Guide, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions: Roman Catholic 37.2%, Calvinist 11.6%, Lutheran 2.2%, Greek Catholic 1.8%, other 1.9%, none 18.2%, no response 27.2% (2011 est.)
Age structure0-14 years: 14.54% (male 731,542/female 689,739)
15-24 years: 10.43% (male 526,933/female 492,388)
25-54 years: 42.17% (male 2,075,763/female 2,044,664)
55-64 years: 12.17% (male 552,876/female 636,107)
65 years and over: 20.69% (male 773,157/female 1,248,658) (2020 est.)
Birth rate: 8.72 births/1000 population (2021 est.)
Death rate: 12.88 deaths/1000 population (2021 est.)
Population distribution: a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger and denser populations
EnvironmentCurrent issues: air and water pollution are some of Hungary's most serious environmental problems; water quality in the Hungarian part of the Danube has improved but is still plagued by pollutants from industry and large-scale agriculture; soil pollution
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protection
top of pageCountry nameConventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Hungary
Local long form: none
Local short form: Magyarorszag
Former: Kingdom of Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic, Hungarian Soviet Republic, Hungarian Republic
Etymology: the Byzantine Greeks refered to the tribes that arrived on the steppes of Eastern Europe in the 9th century as the 'Oungroi,' a name that was later Latinized to 'Ungri' and which became 'Hungari'; the name originally meant an '[alliance of] ten tribes'; the Hungarian name 'Magyarorszag' means 'Country of the Magyars'; the term may derive from the most prominent of the Hungarian tribes, the Megyer
CapitalName: BudapestGeographic coordinates: 47 30 N, 19 05 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Etymology: the Hungarian capital city was formed in 1873 from the merger of three cities on opposite banks of the Danube: Buda and Obuda (Old Buda) on the western shore and Pest on the eastern; the origins of the original names are obscure, but according to the second century A.D. geographer, Ptolemy, the settlement that would become Pest was called 'Pession' in ancient times; 'Buda' may derive from either a Slavic or Turkic personal name
Administrative divisions: 19 counties (megyek, singular - megye), 23 cities with county rights (megyei jogu varosok, singular - megyei jogu varos), and 1 capital city (fovaros)
Independence: 16 November 1918 (republic proclaimed); notable earlier dates: 25 December 1000 (crowning of King STEPHEN I, traditional founding date); 30 March 1867 (Austro-Hungarian dual monarchy established)
National holiday: Saint Stephen's Day, 20 August (1083); note - commemorates his canonization and the transfer of his remains to Buda (now Budapest) in 1083
ConstitutionHistory: previous 1949 (heavily amended in 1989 following the collapse of communism); latest approved 18 April 2011, signed 25 April 2011, effective 1 January 2012
Amendments: proposed by the president of the republic, by the government, by parliamentary committee, or by Parliament members; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Parliament members and approval by the president; amended several times, last in 2018
Legal system: civil legal system influenced by the German model
Suffrage: 18 years of age, 16 if married and marriage is registered in Hungary; universal
Executive branchChief of state: President Janos ADER (since 10 May 2012)
Head of government: Prime Minister Viktor ORBAN (since 29 May 2010)
Cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers proposed by the prime minister and appointed by the president
Elections and appointments: president indirectly elected by the National Assembly with two-thirds majority vote in first round or simple majority vote in second round for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 13 March 2017 (next to be held spring 2022); prime minister elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president; election last held on 10 May 2018 (next to be held in April or May 2022)
Election results: Janos ADER (Fidesz) reelected president; National Assembly vote - 131 to 39; Viktor ORBAN (Fidesz) reelected prime minister; National Assembly vote - 134 to 28
Legislative branchDescription: unicameral National Assembly or Orszaggyules (199 seats; 106 members directly elected in single-member constituencies by simple majority vote and 93 members directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)
Elections: last held on 8 April 2018 (next to be held in April 2022)
Election results: percent of vote by party list - Fidesz-KDNP 49.3%, Jobbik 19.1%, MSZP-PM 11.9%, LMP 7.1%, DK 5.4%, Momentum Movement 3.1%, Together 0.7%, LdU 0.5%, other 2.9%; seats by party - Fidesz 117, Jobbik 26, KDNP 16, MSZP 15, DK 9, LMP 8, PM 5, Together 1, LdU 1, independent 1; composition (as of October 2021) - men 173, women 26, percent of women 13.1%
Judicial branchHighest courts: Curia or Supreme Judicial Court (consists of the president, vice president, department heads, and has a maximum of 113 judges, and is organized into civil, criminal, and administrative-labor departments; Constitutional Court (consists of 15 judges, including the court president and vice president)
Judge selection and term of office: Curia president elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president of the republic; other Curia judges appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the National Judicial Council, a separate 15-member administrative body; judge tenure based on interim evaluations until normal retirement at age 62; Constitutional Court judges, including the president of the court, elected by the National Assembly; court vice president elected by the court itself; members serve 12-year terms with mandatory retirement at age 62
Subordinate courts: 5 regional courts of appeal; 19 regional or county courts (including Budapest Metropolitan Court); 20 administrative-labor courts; 111 district or local courts
Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic People's Party or KDNP [Zsolt SEMJEN]
Democratic Coalition or DK [Ferenc GYURCSANY]
Dialogue for Hungary (Parbeszed) or PM [Gergely KARACSONY, Timea SZABO]
Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Alliance or Fidesz [Viktor ORBAN]
Hungarian Socialist Party or MSZP [Bertalan TOTH]
Momentum Movement (Momentum Mozgalom) [Andras FEKETE-GYOR]
Movement for a Better Hungary or Jobbik [Tamas SNEIDER]
National Self-Government of Germans in Hungary or LdU [Olivia SCHUBERT]
Politics Can Be Different or LMP [Marta DEMETER, Laszlo LORANT-KERESZTES]
Together (Egyutt)
International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CD, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, ESA (cooperating state), EU, FAO, G-9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINURSO, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representationIn the us chief of mission: Ambassador Szabolcs Ferenc TAKACS (since 23 December 2020)
In the us chancery: 3,910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 362-6,730
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 966-8,135
In the us email address and website:From the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Marc DILLARD (since 30 October 2020)
From the us embassy: Szabadsag ter 12, H-1054 Budapest
From the us mailing address: 5,270 Budapest Place, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20,521-5,270
From the us telephone: [36] (1) 475-4,400
From the us FAX: [36] (1) 475-4,248
From the us email address and website: Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green; the flag dates to the national movement of the 18th and 19th centuries, and fuses the medieval colors of the Hungarian coat of arms with the revolutionary tricolor form of the French flag; folklore attributes virtues to the colors: red for strength, white for faithfulness, and green for hope; alternatively, the red is seen as being for the blood spilled in defense of the land, white for freedom, and green for the pasturelands that make up so much of the country
National symbols: Holy Crown of Hungary (Crown of Saint Stephen); national colors: red, white, green
top of pageReal gdp purchasing power parity:
$302.32 billion - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2020 est.)
$318.09 billion - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2019 est.)
$303.98 billion - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2018 est.)
Note: data are in 2010 dollars
Real gdp per capita:
$31,000 - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2020 est.)
$32,600 - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2019 est.)
$31,100 - note: data are in 2017 dollars (2018 est.)
Note: data are in 2010 dollars
Agriculture products: maize, wheat, milk, sunflower seed, barley, rapeseed, sugar beet, apples, pork, grapes
Industries: mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), motor vehicles
BudgetRevenues: $61.98 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: $64.7 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: $-2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit note: Hungary has been under the EU Excessive Deficit Procedure since it joined the EU in 2004; in March 2012, the EU elevated its Excessive Deficit Procedure against Hungary and proposed freezing 30% of the country's Cohesion Funds because 2011 deficit reductions were not achieved in a sustainable manner; in June 2012, the EU lifted the freeze, recognizing that steps had been taken to reduce the deficit; the Hungarian deficit increased above 3% both in 2013 and in 2014 due to sluggish growth and the government's fiscal tightening
Public debt: 73.6% of GDP (2017 est.)
Note: general government gross debt is defined in the Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities: currency and deposits, securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives, and national, state, and local government and social security funds.
Exports: $123.83 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2020 est.)
$134.55 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2019 est.)
$134.66 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2018 est.)
Partners: Germany 27%, Romania 5%, Italy 5%, Slovakia 5% (2019)
Commodities: cars and vehicle parts, packaged medicines, spark-ignition engines, video displays, broadcasting equipment (2019)
Imports: $120.25 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2020 est.)
$129.9 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2019 est.)
$127.52 billion note: data are in current year dollars (2018 est.)
Partners: Germany 25%, China 6%, Poland 6%, Austria 6%, Czechia 5%, Slovakia 5%, Italy 5%, Netherlands 5% (2019)
Commodities: cars and vehicle parts, integrated circuits, packaged medicines, broadcasting equipment, crude petroleum (2019)
Debt external: $123.256 billion (2019 est.)
$125.29 billion (2018 est.)
Exchange rates:
forints (HUF) per US dollar
295.3276 (2020 est.)
299.4939 (2019 est.)
283.5923 (2018 est.)
279.33 (2014 est.)
232.6 (2013 est.)
top of pagetop of pageBroadcast media: mixed system of state-supported public service broadcast media and private broadcasters; the 5 publicly owned TV channels and the 2 main privately owned TV stations are the major national broadcasters; a large number of special interest channels; highly developed market for satellite and cable TV services with about two-thirds of viewers utilizing their services; 4 state-supported public-service radio networks; a large number of local stations including commercial, public service, nonprofit, and community radio stations; digital transition completed at the end of 2013; government-linked businesses have greatly consolidated ownership in broadcast and print media
top of pageMilitary expenditures: 1.85% of GDP (2020 est.)
1.25% of GDP (2019)
1.01% of GDP (2018)
1.19% of GDP (2017)
1% of GDP (2016)
Military and security forces: the Hungarian Defense Forces are a unified force (Joint Force Command) with Land Forces, Air Forces, and Logistics components (2021)
top of pagePipelines: 5,874 km gas (high-pressure transmission system), 83,732 km gas (low-pressure distribution network), 850 km oil, 1200 km refined products (2016)
Waterways: 1,622 km (most on Danube River) (2011)
Hungary - Transnational issues 2021
top of pageDisputes international: bilateral government, legal, technical and economic working group negotiations continue in 2006 with Slovakia over Hungary's failure to complete its portion of the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Hungary has implemented the strict Schengen border rules
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and cannabis and for South American cocaine destined for Western Europe; limited producer of precursor chemicals, particularly for amphetamine and methamphetamine; efforts to counter money laundering, related to organized crime and drug trafficking are improving but remain vulnerable; significant consumer of ecstasy
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