Panna Czinka ( hu, Czinka Panna, sk, Panna Cinková) (1711(?) – 1772) was a famous Hungarian-

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist. Czinka was born in Sajógömör,

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 ...

(modern-day Gemer,

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

) to a Romani family of musicians. Her father was a court musician of

Francis II Rákóczi Francis II Rákóczi ( hu, II. Rákóczi Ferenc, ; 27 March 1676 – 8 April 1735) was a Hungarian nobleman and leader of Rákóczi's War of Independence against the Habsburgs in 1703–11 as the prince ( hu, fejedelem) of the Estates Confedera ...

. Her father and brothers are said to be the authors of the

Rákóczi March The "Rákóczi March" ( Hungarian: ''Rákóczi-induló''), sometimes known as the "Hungarian March" was one of the unofficial state anthems of Hungary before Ferenc Kölcsey wrote the Himnusz. It was most likely composed by Nikolaus Scholl in 1820. ...

, etc. She studied music in Rozsnyó (today

Rožňava Rožňava ( hu, Rozsnyó, german: Rosenau, Latin: ''Rosnavia'') is a town in Slovakia, approximately by road from Košice in the Košice Region, and has a population of 19,182. The town is an economic and tourist centre of the Gemer. Rožňava ...

) and married a Romani musician-

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

. Legends claim that she played violin at the age of 9. After 1725 Czinka formed a music band with her husband and brothers-in-law. She designed a uniform of sorts for the band. She became famous for her skill with a violin. She played first violin in this ensemble. The band toured abroad and was invited to perform in noble houses. She also gave birth to four sons and one daughter. Her father and brothers are said by some to be the authors of the

among others. Panna Czinka died in 1772 and was buried on 5 February in Gemer. Her grave has not survived. Many Hungarian writers and composers — such as

Mór Jókai Móric Jókay de Ásva (, known as ''Mór Jókai''; 18 February 1825 – 5 May 1904), outside Hungary also known as Maurus Jokai or Mauritius Jókai, was a Hungarian nobleman, novelist, dramatist and revolutionary. He was an active participant ...

Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (; hu, Kodály Zoltán, ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music ed ...

, and Endre Dózsa — refer to her their works. She was portrayed by

Anna Gurji Anna Luca Biani ( ka, ანა ლუკა ბიანი; born 1 April 1991 as Ana Giorgobiani ( ka, ანა გიორგობიანი;), also known by their stage name Anna Gurji ( ka, ანა გურჯი), is an American fi ...

Dušan Rapoš Dušan Rapoš (born 20 June 1953) is a Slovak film director, screenwriter, and composer who works under the name Sui Generis. He began his career as a journalist and radio editor. The founder of the production company Welcome Film, he is best ...

's biographical film ''Czinka Panna''.

External links

Entry in Magyar Életrajzi Lexikon

Biography in Rombase
1711 births 1772 deaths People from Revúca District Hungarian violinists Romani violinists Hungarian Romani people Hungarian fiddlers Romani fiddlers {{Romani-stub