Are you interested in the Hungarian language?
Interested in Central Europe?
Are you perhaps of Hungarian heritage?
Do you need to fulfill a foreign language requirement?
Learn Hungarian, the language of the Magyars, and learn more about Hungarians!

Why Study Hungarian?

By speaking Hungarian, you will earn others’ attention and recognition. Learning Hungarian not only contributes to your personal enrichment and makes you acquainted with a wonderful language and culture, but your job opportunities will also widen where Hungarian is useful or recognized. Cleveland itself has a large Hungarian community with various Hungarian cultural organizations. It is possible that you are connected to the Magyars, but you just do not know it yet!

Just a few among the many reasons to study Hungarian:

• You can learn a special, unique language which is very logical
• Hungary is a country with more than 1000 years of history, rich in natural beauty, traditions and culture.
• Hungarians are welcoming and friendly people with delicious foods and dishes (you may have already heard of gulyás – goulash, halászlé – fisherman's soup, rétes – Hungarian strudel etc.)
• From a diachronic perspective, Hungarian is a Finno-Ugric language like the Finnish and Estonian languages; however, Hungarian has been heavily influenced by Indo-European languages, so even if you are not aware of it yet, you already know quite a bit of Hungarian vocabulary.
• Hungarian has only three verb tenses (one past, one present and one future tense), of which it uses mainly two (past and present), so you do not really have to worry about getting confused with the usage of verb tenses in Hungarian.
• Cleveland has a large Hungarian community, as well as various Hungarian locations (bakeries, restaurants, museum etc.)
• Lots of famous people have Hungarian origins – it is possible that you are also connected to the Magyars, you just do not know it yet.
• By speaking Hungarian you will surely earn others' attention and recognition.
• There are many study opportunities in Hungary that you can choose from: in fact, you can join various short-term and long-term study programs organized by recognized Hungarian universities and institutions (summer schools, semester courses, year-long programs, etc.)
• Once you are in Hungary, the cost of living is very favorable and prices are affordable.
• Learning Hungarian not only contributes to your personal enrichment and makes you acquainted with a wonderful language and culture, but your job opportunities will also widen, and you may be qualified for working at any organization, cultural and educational institution, language school etc. within Hungary or in the world where Hungarian may be useful or required.

Easy to Learn?

Learning Hungarian is easier than you might expect. You already know quite a bit of Hungarian vocabulary, because though Hungarian is a Finno-Ugric language, it has been influenced by Indo-European languages. Also, Hungarian verbs are not too confusing, because the present and past tenses are most commonly used (future tense used less often).

Why Visit Hungary?

There are also many opportunities to visit Hungary to study and improve your Hungarian in a native environment. Hungary is a country with more than one thousand years of history, rich in natural beauty, tradition, and culture. Hungarians are a welcoming and friendly people with delicious foods and dishes; you may have already heard of gulyás (goulash), halászlé (fisherman’s soup), rétes (Hungarian strudel), etc. Once you are in Hungary, the cost of living is very affordable.

Check out the video about the wonders, beauty, and potentials that Hungary can offer:

Further Information

For more information on Hungarian studies at CSU, contact Dr. Krisztina Fehér at 216.523.7170, or the Department of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at 216.687.4645, wlc@csuohio.edu.