VILLAGE RESEARCH MOVEMENT, MONOGRAPHS, AND SOCIOGRAPHIES IN SOPRON COUNTY IN THE 1930S AND 1940S

Abstract

The aim of the scientific, sociographic, and artistic movement of Hungarian village research in the 1930s was, on the one hand, to present the traditional, yet unex- plored artistic, customary, and other traditional values of villages and rural areas and, on the other hand, to raise awareness of their glaring social backwardness and bring about change. This nationwide movement found great resonance in the cul- turally prominent county of Sopron. In my study, I provide a comprehensive overview of the objectives and achieve- ments of the village research movement in Sopron County, without claiming to be exhaustive. This is because there are manuscripts about which it is not yet possible to say with certainty whether they have survived the vicissitudes of the past 80-90 years, and if so, where they might be found. However, based on the sources cur- rently available, it can be concluded that village research played a prominent role in Sopron County in the 1930s and 1940s. In the 1930s and 1940s, there was a serious discourse in the columns of the Soproni Szemle on the timeliness, methodology, and implementation of local his- tory research, in which young historians also participated. The Sopron Village Seminar, initiated by Dr. János Udvardi Lakos, a young teacher stationed in Sopron, was also of great importance, as it sought to transplant progressive efforts to uncover reality into the villages of Sopron County, winning over the rural intel- ligentsia to the folk movement. In addition to teachers and pastors, scout troops and the National Council of Catholic Agricultural Youth Associations (KALOT), which drew on Christian Hungarian traditions and fought for the advancement of villages, played an important role. The history of several villages was written down at this time, and sociographic records were made of the population. During this period, the history of the town of Sopron and the county came to the fore once again. The initiative and movement, which are worthy of further investigation, have had a lasting impact.