Facts About Hungary

Fast Facts

Population: 10,086,000

Capital: Budapest; 1,708,000

Area: 93,030 square kilometers (35,919 square miles)

Language: Hungarian

Religion: Roman Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran

Currency: Forint

Life Expectancy: 72

GDP per Capita: U.S. $13,300

Literacy Percent: 99%

 Background: 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. In 2011, Hungary assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the EU for the first time.