Székely region

Harghita, Covasna, and Mureş Counties within Romania.

Ethnic map of Harghita, Covasna, and Mureş Counties (2002 data).

Székely Land (Hungarian: Székelyföld; Latin: Terra Siculorum; Romanian: Ţinutul Secuiesc) refers to the territories inhabited by the Székely, a Hungarian minority living in the centre of Romania. They live in the valleys and hills of the Eastern Carpathian Mountains, corresponding to the present-day Harghita, Covasna, and parts of Mureş Counties in Romania.

Originally, the name Székely Land, or Szekler Land denoted an autonomous region within Transylvania. It existed as a legal entity since medieval times until the 19th century.

Population

There are approximately 670,000 Székelys living in Székely Land, or 59% of the populations of Harghita, Covasna and Mureş counties. The percentage of Székelys is higher in Harghita and Covasna (84.6% and 73.8% respectively), and lower in Mureş county, which was not entirely part of the traditional region (39.3%).

Geography

Historically centred in the town of Odorheiu Secuiesc (Székelyudvarhely), other important centers of Székely Land are Miercurea Ciuc (Csíkszereda), Sfântu Gheorghe (Sepsiszentgyörgy), and Târgu-Mureş (Marosvásárhely).

History

From the 12th and 13th centuries until 1876, the Székely Land enjoyed a considerable but varying amount of autonomy, first as a part of the Kingdom of Hungary, then inside the Principality of Transylvania, and finally as a part of the Habsburg Empire. The autonomy was largely due to the military service the Székely provided until the beginning of the 18th century. Medieval Székely Land was an alliance of the seven autonomous Székely Seats of Udvarhely, Csík, Maros, Sepsi, Kézdi, Orbai and Aranyos. The number of seats later decreased to five, when Sepsi, Kézdi and Orbai Seats were united into one territorial unit called Háromszék (literally Three Seats).
As a result of the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, Transylvania became again part of the Kingdom of Hungary within Austria-Hungary and ceased to exist as a separate legal or administrative entity. In 1876, a general administrative reform abolished all the autonomous areas in the Kingdom of Hungary and created a unified system of counties. As a result, the autonomy of the Székely Land came to an end as well. Four counties were created in its place: Udvarhely, Háromszék, Csík, and Maros-Torda. (Only half of the territory of Maros-Torda originally belonged to Székely Land.) The isolated Aranyosszék became a district of Torda-Aranyos county.
In the Treaty of Trianon of 1920 following World War I, the Kingdom of Romania acquired Transylvania. The Romanian language officially replaced Hungarian in Székely Land, but Székely county boundaries were preserved, and Székely districts were able to elect their own officials at local level and to preserve a Hungarian-language education.
In 1940, Romania was forced to cede Northern Transylvania to Hungary in the Second Vienna Award; this territory included most of the historical Székely areas. Hungarian authorities subsequently restored the pre-Trianon structure with slight modifications.

File:Székely village.jpg

A Székely village in Covasna County, with the Southern Carpathians in the background

Following the territory's return to Romania after World War II, a Hungarian Autonomous Region was created in 1952, which encompassed most of the land inhabited by the Székely. This region lasted until 1968 when the administrative reform divided Romania into the current counties. Roughly speaking, present-day Harghita County encompasses the former Udvarhely and Csík; Covasna County covers more or less the territory Háromszék; and what used to be Maros-Torda is part of present-day Mureş County. The former Aranyosszék is today divided between Cluj and Alba Counties.
After the fall of Communism, many hoped that the former Hungarian Autonomous Region, abolished by the Ceausescu Regime, would soon be restored again. This has not come true, however, there are Székely autonomy initiatives and further efforts from Székely organisations to reach a higher level of self-governance for Székely Land within Romania.