József Pusztai (originally József Pozderecz, sl, Jožef Pustai; January 26, 1864 – February 13, 1934) was a Slovene writer, poet, journalist, teacher, and cantor in

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 ...

. He was also known under the pen name ''Tibor Andorhegyi.'' Born in Bellatincz, Muravidék, in

Zala County Zala ( hu, Zala megye, ; ; ) is an administrative county (comitatus or ''megye'') in south-western Hungary. It is named after the Zala River. It shares borders with Croatia ( Koprivnica–Križevci and Međimurje Counties) and Slovenia (Lendava ...

of the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

(present-day

Beltinci Beltinci (; Prekmurje Slovene: ''Böltinci'', hu, Belatinc or ''Belatincz'', ger, (Alt)Fellsdorf) is a town in the Prekmurje region of northeastern Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Beltinci. Črnec Creek, a tributary of the Ledav ...

Prekmurje Prekmurje (; dialectically: ''Prèkmürsko'' or ''Prèkmüre''; hu, Muravidék) is a geographically, linguistically, culturally and ethnically defined region of Slovenia, settled by Slovenes and a Hungarian minority, lying between the Mur Ri ...

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

), his parents were János Pozderecz and Franciska Nemecz. His surname was modified to ''Pusztai'' because he thought of himself as a Hungarian and felt it was the duty of ethnic Slovenes to assimilate. In Csáktornya (present-day

Čakovec Čakovec (; hu, Csáktornya; la, Aquama; german: Tschakathurn) is a city in northern Croatia, located around north of Zagreb, the Croatian capital. Čakovec is both the county seat and the largest city of Međimurje County, the northernmost, sm ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

) and

Pécs Pécs ( , ; hr, Pečuh; german: Fünfkirchen, ; also known by other #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the countr ...

he studied to be a teacher, graduating in 1883. After first having worked in Szőce (in the Őrség region), in 1889 he returned to Muravidék (Prekmurje). From 1889 until 1919 he worked in Mártonhely, near Muraszombat (present-day

Martjanci Martjanci (; hu, Mártonhely) is a village between Murska Sobota and Moravske Toplice in the Prekmurje region of Slovenia. It is known for its parish church dedicated to Martin of Tours, Saint Martin, from which the village gets its name. It is a ...

, near

Murska Sobota Murska Sobota (, Slovenian abbreviation: ''MS'' ; german: Olsnitz;''Radkersburg und Luttenberg'' (map, 1:75,000). 1894. Vienna: K.u.k. Militärgeographisches Institut. hu, Muraszombat) is a town in northeastern Slovenia. It is the centre of the ...

) where he wrote the first

hymnal A hymnal or hymnary is a collection of hymns, usually in the form of a book, called a hymnbook (or hymn book). Hymnals are used in congregational singing. A hymnal may contain only hymn texts (normal for most hymnals for most centuries of Chri ...

Prekmurje Slovene Prekmurje Slovene, also known as the Prekmurje dialect, East Slovene, or Wendish ( sl, prekmurščina, prekmursko narečje, hu, vend nyelv, muravidéki nyelv, Prekmurje dialect: ''prekmürski jezik, prekmürščina, prekmörščina, prekmör ...

. He wrote articles for ''Muraszombat és Vidéke'' (Murska Sobota and District), for ''Értesítő'' in

Szombathely Szombathely (; german: Steinamanger, ; see also other alternative names) is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas county in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria. Szombathely lies by t ...

, and for ''Dober pajdás'' (Good Friend) in

Szentgotthárd Szentgotthárd ( sl, Monošter; german: St. Gotthard) is the westernmost town of Hungary. It is situated on the Rába River near the Austrian border. History The town took its name from, and grew up round, the Cistercian Szentgotthárd Abbey, fo ...

. In 1919 he returned to his hometown of

Works

* ''Krcsánszko katholicsanszko pesmi z iz potrejbnimi molitvami i vnógimi vogrszkimi peszmami / Kersztény katholikus egyházi énekek a legszükségesebb imákkal és több magyar énekkel'' (Catholic Hymnal with Essential Prayers, Prekmurje Slovene and Hungarian text) * ''Dober pajdás'' (1899, 1900, 1901) * ''Mála molitvena kniga z potrejbnimi molitvani i vnó gimi peszmami za katholicsanszko mladézen / Kis imakönyv a legszükségesebb imákkal és énekekkel a kath. ifjúság számára'' (Small Prayer-Book with Essential Prayers for Catholic Youth; Hungarian and Prekmurje Slovene text)

References

Muravidéki Életrajzi Lexikon

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pusztai, Jozsef 1864 births 1934 deaths People from Beltinci Slovenian writers and poets in Hungary Hungarian writers Hungarian journalists Slovenian journalists

Works

See also

References