Békés (, , ro, Județul Bichiș) is an administrative division (

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

or ''megye'') in south-eastern

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, on the border with

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties

Csongrád Csongrád ( ro, Ciongrad; tr, Conğrad sr, Чонград, Čongrad, archaically also ''Црноград/Crnograd'') is a town in Csongrád County in southern Hungary. History At the time of the Hungarian Conquest (the end of 9th century) the ...

, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, and Hajdú-Bihar. The capital of Békés county is

Békéscsaba Békéscsaba (; sk, Békešská Čaba; see also #Name, other alternative names) is a City with county rights, city with county rights in southeast Hungary, the capital of Békés County. Geography Békéscsaba is located in the Great Hungarian ...

. The county is also part of the Danube-Kris-Mures-Tisa euroregion.

Etymology

In Slovak, it is known as ''Békešská župa'' and in

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

as ''Județul Bichiș''. After Hungarians conquered the area, Békés and its surroundings were the property of the '' Csolt'' clan. Békés (the name means "peaceful") was originally the name of the castle which gave its name to the comitatus, and, like many castles, was possibly named after its first steward.

Geography

This county has a total area of – 6.05% of Hungary. Békés County lies on the

Pannonian Plain The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only the ...

(Great Plain) and is a flat area with good soil. The average rainfall is 645 mm per year. One-fifth of the natural gas resources of Hungary can be found in Békés. The river

Körös The Körös () or Criș () ( German: ''Kreisch'') is a river in eastern Hungary and western Romania. Its length is from the confluence of its two source rivers Fehér-Körös ('' Crișul Alb'') and Fekete-Körös ('' Crișul Negru'') to its out ...

runs through the county.

Neighbours

Hajdú-Bihar County Hajdú-Bihar ( hu, Hajdú-Bihar megye, ) is an administrative county (comitatus or megye) in eastern Hungary, on the border with Romania. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Jász-Nag ...

on the north. * on the east and south – Counties of Arad and Bihor. * Csongrád-Csanád and

Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok ( hu, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok megye, ) is the name of an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), comitatus or ''megye'') in Hungary. It lies in central Hungary and shares borders with the Hungarian counties Pest ...

on the west.

History

The area has been inhabited since 5000-4000 BC. Before the arrival of the

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...

several other tribes lived in the area. The castle of Gyula was built in the early 15th century. Gyula was the most significant town of the county at that time, and became the county seat under Matthias I. It was an important fortress during the

Ottoman wars in Europe A series of military conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and various European states took place from the Late Middle Ages up through the early 20th century. The earliest conflicts began during the Byzantine–Ottoman wars, waged in Anatolia in ...

but it was captured in 1566. During this time, several towns were destroyed in the area. In the early 18th century, after the Ottomans were expelled, the county was repopulated, not only with Hungarians, but with

Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovak. In Slovakia, 4.4 mi ...

(in the towns Békéscsaba, Endrőd, Szarvas, Tótkomlós),

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

(Battonya),

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

(Németgyula, Elek), and

Romanians The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Culture of Romania, Romanian culture and Cultural heritage, ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they l ...

(Kétegyháza). Most of the non-Magyar population was assimilated by the mid-19th century. The agricultural importance of the county and the new railway line between Pest and Békéscsaba (finished in 1858) brought development, which was quickened when Hungary lost its southern territories to Romania after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and Békéscsaba had to take over the role of the lost cities. The population growth peaked in 1950 (472,000), in the same year when Békéscsaba became the county seat. During the following years, the county was industrialized, like most of Hungary, and the population of the cities and towns grew.

Demographics

In 2015, it had a population of 351,148 and the

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 62/km².
More than 60% of the population lives in towns.

Ethnicity

Besides the Hungarian majority, the main minorities are the Roma (approx. 9,500), Slovak (7,500), Romanian (5,000), German (2,500) and Serb (500). Total population (2011 census): 359,948
Ethnic groups (2011 census): Identified themselves: 325,597 persons: *

: 300,213 (92.20%) *

Gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

: 9,290 (2.85%) *

: 7,267 (2.23%) *

: 5,137 (1.58%) *Others and indefinable: 3,690 (1.13%) Approx. 53,000 persons in Békés County did not declare their ethnic group at the 2011 census.

Religion

Religious adherence in the county according to 2011 census: *Catholic – 70,307 (

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

– 69,478;

Greek Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

– 809); * Reformed – 46,366; *

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

– 27,870; *

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

– 3,491; *Other religions – 6,936; *

Non-religious Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and ant ...

– 113,094; *

Atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...

– 4,150; *''Undeclared'' – 87,734.

Regional structure

Politics

County Assembly

The Békés County Council, elected at the 2019 local government elections, is made up of 17 councillors, with the following party composition:

Presidents of the County Assembly

Members of the National Assembly

The following members elected of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

during the 2022 parliamentary election:

Municipalities

Békés County has 1 urban county, 21

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

, 8 large villages and 45 villages. The regional structure of Békés county is typical of the Great Plain: it has a small number of villages, but those are large, both by area and by population. There are several farmsteads as well. 70% of the population lives in cities and towns, while 17% are in the county seat. A large village network is characteristic of the county which currently has 75 administratively independent settlements, of which 19 are cities and 56 are villages. The oldest towns, and with the largest populations, are: Békéscsaba, the county seat - a city carrying a rank of county right, Orosháza, Gyula, Békés, and Szarvas. ;City with county rights (ordered by population, as of 2011

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

) *

(62,050) – county seat ;Towns * Gyula (31,067) *

Orosháza Orosháza is a city situated in the westernmost part of Békés county, Hungary, on the Békés ridge bordered by the rivers Maros and Körös. Orosháza is an important cultural, educational and recreational centre of the region. Main sigh ...

(29,081) * Békés (20,088) *

Szarvas Szarvas (; sk, Sarvaš; german: Sarwasch) is a town in Békés County, Hungary. Name Placename Szarvas originated from the old Hungarian word ''szarvas'', which means deer. Deer also can be found in the coat of arms of the town. Locati ...

(16,956) *

Gyomaendrőd Gyomaendrőd is a town in Békés county, Hungary. The city covers an area of 303.98 km2 with 15,095 residents. The approach to the town is excellent both by road and railway, as the city is crossed by highway number 46 and the Budapest-Szolnok-B� ...

(13,680) *

Mezőberény Mezőberény (; german: Maisbrünn; sk, Poľný Berinčok) is a town in Békés county, Hungary. Location Mezőberény is located in the Great Hungarian Plain, 200 km southeast from Budapest. Highway 46, 47 and Budapest- Szolnok- Bék� ...

(10,632) * Sarkad (10,020) *

Szeghalom Szeghalom is a town in Békés county, in southeastern Hungary. History The jewish community In the 19th and 20th centuries, a Jewish community with hundreds of members lived in the village. On March 19, 1944, after the German army entered Hungar ...

(9,290) *

Dévaványa Dévaványa is a town in northern Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 216.73 km² and has a population of 8273 people (2008). Twin towns – sister cities Dévaványa is Twin towns a ...

(7,899) *

Vésztő Vésztő is a town in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 125.76 km² and has a population of 6855 people (2015). The town is situated in the Tisza plain. History North of ...

(6,986) *

Mezőkovácsháza Mezőkovácsháza is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of and has a population of 6945 people (2002). Notable residents * György Simonka (1974-), politician * Józ ...

(6,177) *

Battonya Battonya ( ro, Bătania; sr, Батања, Batanja) is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Residents are Magyars, with minority of Serbs and Romanians. Geography It covers an area of 145.77 km ...

(6,042) *

Tótkomlós Tótkomlós ( sk, Slovenský Komlóš) is a town in Békés County, Hungary. Name ''Komlós'' means "(place) with hops" in Hungarian, while prefix ''Tót'' is the word for Slovaks in old Hungarian. Hops also can be found in the coat of arms of ...

(6,016) *

Füzesgyarmat Füzesgyarmat is a town in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. History The jewish community A Jewish community lived in the village from the beginning of the 19th century until it was destroyed by the Nazis d ...

(5,734) *

Mezőhegyes Mezőhegyes is a town in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. It is home to the Hungarian State Stud ( hu, italic=no, Mezőhegyesi Állami Ménes), founded in 1784 and famous for its Nonius, Furioso-North Sta ...

(5,712) *

Kondoros Kondoros ( sk, Kondoroš) is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Jews lived in Kondorosh at the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century, the local Jewish community was subo ...

(5,228) *

Újkígyós Újkígyós is a large town in Békés County in the Southern Great Plain region of southeast Hungary. Geography It covers an area of and as of 2002, it had a population of 5,723. Although the "prefix" "új", meaning "new," seems to suggest th ...

(5,196) *

Csorvás Csorvás ( ro, Ciorvaş) is a town in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 90.18 km² and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a ...

(5,060) *

Elek Elek (, ) is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Jews lived in the city as early as the 19th century and in 1944 many of them were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust. Geography The town cover ...

(4,927) * Körösladány (4,674) *

Medgyesegyháza Medgyesegyháza ( sk, Medeš) is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 64.32 km2 and has a population of 3558 people (2015). History The Jews in the city Th ...

(3,698) ;Villages * Almáskamarás * Békéssámson *

Békésszentandrás Békésszentandrás is a village in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography Békésszentandrás, the western gate of Békés county, lies along the left bank of the Hármas-Körös River. The territory ...

* Bélmegyer * Biharugra * Bucsa *

Csabacsűd Csabacsűd is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 66.88 km2 and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, wh ...

* Csabaszabadi * Csanádapáca * Csárdaszállás * Doboz Red pog

* Dombegyház Red pog

Dombiratos Dombiratos is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. In the 19th century, a small Jewish community lived in the village, many of whose members were murdered in the Holocaust Geography It covers ...

* Ecsegfalva *

Gádoros Gádoros, known until 1901 as Bánfalva, is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 38.13 km² and has a population of 4095 people (2002). Photos from the villa ...

Gerendás Gerendás is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. The nearest city is Csorvás. It covers an area of 40.78 km2 and has a population of 1576 people (2002). References

Populated pla ...

* Geszt *

Hunya Hunya is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 32.59 km2 and has a population of 649 people (2015). References

Populated places in Békés County ...

Kamut Khorasan wheat or Oriental wheat (''Triticum turgidum'' ssp. ''turanicum'' also called ''Triticum turanicum''), commercially known as Kamut, is a tetraploid wheat species. The grain is twice the size of modern-day wheat, and has a rich, nutty ...

Kardos Kardos is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 42.79 km2 and has a population of 632 people (2015). References

Populated places in Békés Count ...

* Kardoskút *

Kaszaper Kaszaper is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. In the 19th century, a small Jewish community lived in the village, many of whose members were murdered in the Holocaust Geography It covers an ...

* Kertészsziget * Kevermes Red pog

Kétegyháza Kétegyháza (; ro, Chitighaz) is a large village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. It is one of the main centres of Hungary's Romanian minority. Jews lived in the village in the 19th century and in 1 ...

* Kétsoprony * Kisdombegyház * Körösnagyharsány * Köröstarcsa * Körösújfalu * Kötegyán *

Kunágota Kunágota is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. On St David’s Day 1 March 2021 a heartfelt gesture was inspired by the people of Kunágota, branded Hungary’s "Welshest" village, to honour ...

* Lőkösháza *

Magyarbánhegyes Magyarbánhegyes is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. In the 19th century, a small Jewish community lived in the village, many of whose members were murdered in the Holocaust, also the villa ...

Magyardombegyház Magyardombegyház is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. In the 19th century, a small Jewish community lived in the village, many of whose members were murdered in the Holocaust, Geography It ...

Medgyesbodzás Medgyesbodzás is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography) ...

Mezőgyán Mezőgyán is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. It covers an area of 59.9 km2 and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it ...

* Méhkerék *

Murony Murony is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered ...

Nagybánhegyes Nagybánhegyes (, ) is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 42.26 km² and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a sin ...

Nagykamarás Nagykamarás (Romanian: Camarasu Mare) is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, C ...

Nagyszénás Nagyszénás is a large village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Main sights * "Park" Bath of Nagyszénás * Kiss György Observatory * the Evangelist Church * the Our Lady Catholic Church Geography I ...

* Okány * Örménykút * Pusztaföldvár *

Pusztaottlaka Pusztaottlaka (''Puszta-Ott·lak·a''; ro, Otlaca-Pustă) is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 18.88 km² and has a population of 471 people (2002). Popul ...

* Sarkadkeresztúr * Szabadkígyós * Tarhos * Telekgerendás *

Újszalonta Újszalonta is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of southeast Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 20.84 km2 and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, ...

Végegyháza Végegyháza is a village in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. Geography It covers an area of 28.95 km² and has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single ar ...

* Zsadány

municipalities are ''large'' villages.

Gallery

File:Békéscsaba városháza.JPG,

, the capital of the county File:Vár (2485. számú műemlék) 2.jpg, Gyula Castle File:Szabadkigyós, castle.jpg, ''Wenckheim Mansion'' in Szabadkígyós File:Virginiai mocsárciprusok a szarvasi Holt-Körös partján.jpg, Taxodium in the River Körös File:Batthyány-Geist-vadászkastély parkja (16258. számú műemlék).jpg, ''Batthyány Mansions park in

File:Kondorosi csárda (2495. számú műemlék).jpg, Tavern in

File:Szarvas arborétum4.jpg, Arboretum in

File:Békéscsaba kat templom.JPG, Roman Catholic Church of

Notable people

Natives of the county include:

International relations

Békés County has a

partnership A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments o ...

relationship with:

References

External links

Official site
in Hungarian, German, English, Slovak and Romanian
Békés Megyei Hírlap (beol.hu) - The county portalHungary at GeoHive
*Roaming in Békés County free guide 2010 Published by Békés County Government Text by Barát Tünde {{DEFAULTSORT:Bekes Counties of Hungary