Károly Molter (; 2 December 1890 – 30 November 1981) was a Hungarian novelist, dramatist, literary critic, journalist and academic. He spent most of his life in the region of

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

, being successively a national of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and Romania.

Biography

Born in Óverbász (Vrbas),

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Војводина}), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to the south by the national capital ...

region, Molter was from an

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

(

Danube Swabian The Danube Swabians (german: Donauschwaben ) is a collective term for the ethnic German-speaking population who lived in various countries of central-eastern Europe, especially in the Danube River valley, first in the 12th century, and in grea ...

) family, but adopted Hungarian as his language. Lucian Nastasă, Levente Salat (eds.)
''Maghiarii din România şi etica minoritară (1920-1940)''
p.236, at th
Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center. Open Society Foundation Romania
retrieved September 2, 2007 He studied at the College of

Kecskemét Kecskemét ( , sk, Kečkemét) is a city with county rights central part Hungary. It is the eighth-largest city in the country, and the county seat of Bács-Kiskun. Kecskemét lies halfway between the capital Budapest and the country's third ...

, and then at the

University of Budapest A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

Faculty of Philosophy in Letter (the Hungarian-German section). In 1913, he moved to Transylvania, settling down in Marosvásárhely (Târgu Mureş). Between 1913 and 1945, he was a teacher in the Bolyai Gymnasium, a

Reformed Church Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...

college in the city. In the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...

, after the

union of Transylvania with Romania The union of Transylvania with Romania was declared on by the assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia. The Great Union Day (also called ''Unification Day''), celebrated on 1 December, is a national holiday in Romani ...

, he became a member of the ''

Erdélyi Helikon Erdélyi is a word of Hungarian origin, meaning “related to Transylvania”. * Arthur Erdélyi (1908–1977) — Hungarian-born British mathematician * János Erdélyi (1814–1868) — Hungarian poet, critic, author, philosopher and ethnographi ...

'' group in Marosvécs (Brâncoveneşti), as well as sitting on the editorial staff of ''Zord Idő'' magazine. In 1937, he published one of his most successful works, the novel ''Tibold Márton'', which depicted a Swabian family in the process of adopting

Hungarian culture Hungarian culture is characterised by its distinctive cuisine, folk traditions, poetry, theatre, religious customs, music and traditional embroidered garments. Hungarian folk traditions range from embroidery, decorated pottery and carvings to ...

, as well as the problems faced by ethnic minorities in their relation to the majority. After 1945, Molter was employed by the Bolyai faculty in

Cluj ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...

, where he lectured in German language and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

. Retiring in 1950, he moved back to Târgu Mureș, and died there 31 years later.

Works

* ''F. m. Melánia R. T.'' (1929) * ''Tibold Márton'' (1937) * ''Bolond kisváros'' ("Foolish Little Town", 1942) * ''Reformáció és magyar műveltség'' ("Reformation and the Hungarian Culture", 1944) * ''Harci mosolyok'' ("Martial Smiles", 1956; short stories) * ''Iparkodj kisfiam!'' ("Struggle, My Little Son!", 1964) * ''Szellemi belháború'' ("The Intellectual Interwar", 1968) * ''Komor korunk derűje'' ("The Brightness in Our Somber Times", 1971; anecdotes) * ''Örökmozgó'' ("Perpetual Motion", 1974; plays) * ''Buborékharc'' ("Bubble War", 1980; essays)

Biography

Works

References

Further reading