A Complete Guide Hungary

Előszó

Hungary is situated in Central Europe at approximately an equal distance from the Equator and the North Pole and lies between 16° and 23° longitude East and 45° 48' and 48° 40' latitude North. Occupying an area of 93,032 sq.km, Hungary makes up less than 1% of all Europe and ranks sixteenth in size among the European countries. It extends 528 km from east to west and 268 km from north to south. SURFACEOFTHELAND Almost two-thirds of the territory of Hungary consists of fertile plains no more than 200 m above sea level, and barely 2% of the land lies 400 m above sea level. The country's highest peak, Kékestető (1,015 m), is in the Mátra Mountains, the lowest point (78 m) is near Szeged. Hungary is divided into three large regions: Transdanubia (Dunántúl), the Great Plain (Alföld) and Northern Hungary. The Danube Bend (Duna-kanyar) is situated atthe point where the three large regions of Hungary meet, forming a harmonious unity. HYDROGRAPHY Hungary belongs to the drainage basin of Europe's second longest river, the Danube. The 417 km long Hungárián section ofthe river iscompletely navigable (140 kilometres of this section form part of the Hungarian-Czechoslovak bordér). The 579 km Hungárián section ofthe Tisza is likewise mostly navigable. Spreading over an area of 596 sq. km, Laké Balaton is the largest laké of Central and Western Europe. Its length is 77 km, its average width is 5 km, and its maximum width is 14 km, the narrowest section, between Tihany and Szántód, is only 1.5 km. Its average depth is between 2 and 3 m, and its deepest point is 12.4m. Laké Velence,the country's second largest laké (27 sq. km), lies between Budapest and the Balaton. Hungary is rich in mineral and medicinái waters. Today there are about 500 natural springs and newer ones are continually being discovered and put into use. CLIMATE Hungary is situated in the temperate zone, with both moderate maritime and mildMediterraneanaircurrentsinfluencingitsclimate.Temperaturesabove30°C may occur in July and August but generally do not last very long. The average temperature during these months is between 20° and 21°C. January is the coldest month, but eventhen the average temperaturedoes not fali below-1°C. Hungary has a rather low rainfall, which exceeds an annual average of 600 mm only in Transdanubia. Nevertheless, sudden downpours and storms are frequent during the summer. The number of sunny hours is high, exceeding 2,000 hours per annum in somé regions of the country. July and August are the two sunniest months, with almost 300 hours of sunshine. PLÁNT AND ANIMAL LIFE There are 2,165 flowering-plant species in Hungary. Field crops cover much of the land, 13.6% of which is forests, mostly oak and beech (only 6% are coniferous). There are 32,000 animal species in Hungary, including 450 vertebrates. POPULATION The population of Hungary is 10,590,000. Hungary is one of the more densely populated countries ofthe Continent with 114 people per sq.km. The population ofthe capital is 2,115,000. There are eight cities besides Budapest with a population of over 100,000 (Miskolc, Debrecen, Szeged, Pécs, Győr, Nyíregyháza, Kecskemét and Székesfehérvár). In addition to the Hungárián population, Germán, Slovak, South Slav and Vissza