Fiľakovo (; , , ) is a town in the

Banská Bystrica Region The Banská Bystrica Region (, ; , ) is one of the eight regions of Slovakia. It is the largest of the eight regions by area, and has a lower population density than any other region. The Banská Bystrica Region was established in 1923; its bord ...

of south-central

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, 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 west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

. Historically it was located in

Nógrád County Nógrád (, ; ) is a counties of Hungary, county () of Hungary. It sits on the northern edge of Hungary and borders Slovakia. Description Nógrád county lies in northern Hungary. It shares borders with Slovakia and the Hungarian counties Pest ( ...

, as part of the Nógrád, Novohrad, "Newcastle" region.

Geography

It is located in the Cerová vrchovina hills, in the valley of the ''Belina'' brook, located around from the Hungarian city of

Salgótarján Salgótarján (; , German: ''Schalgau'') is a city with county rights in Hungary, the capital of Nógrád County, north-eastern Hungary, making it the third least populous county capital. The nearby Salgó Castle is a well-known tourist attra ...

, from

Banská Bystrica Banská Bystrica (, also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in central Slovakia, located on the Hron River in a long and wide valley encircled by the mountain chains of the Low Tatras, the Greater Fatra, Veľká Fatra, and t ...

, about from

Košice Košice is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 230,000, Košice is the second-largest cit ...

and around from

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

History

The first written record of the town, along with the

Fiľakovo Castle Fiľakovo (; , , ) is a town in the Banská Bystrica Region of south-central Slovakia. Historically it was located in Nógrád County (former), Nógrád County, as part of the Nógrád, Novohrad, "Newcastle" region. Geography It is located in the ...

is from 1242, where the castle withstood the Mongol invasions. It is mentioned in 1246 as ''Filek''. In 1423 the town received municipal privileges. In 1553 the town with the castle was conquered by the Turks and was the seat of a

sanjak A sanjak or sancak (, , "flag, banner") was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans also sometimes called the sanjak a liva (, ) from the name's calque in Arabic and Persian. Banners were a common organization of nomad ...

until 1593, when it was reconquered by the Imperial troops. However, it was conquered once more by the Ottomans in 1662 and the town along with the castle was burned down in 1682 by troops of

Imre Thököly Imre () is a Hungarian masculine first name, which is also in Estonian use, where the corresponding name day is 10 April. It has been suggested that it relates to the name Emeric, Emmerich or Heinrich. Its English equivalents are Emery and He ...

. It was finally passed to Austrians in 1686. Before the establishment of independent

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

in 1918, it was part of

within the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. It again belonged to Hungary from 1938 to 1945 as a result of the

First Vienna Award The First Vienna Award was a treaty signed on 2 November 1938 pursuant to the Vienna Arbitration, which took place at Vienna's Belvedere Palace. The arbitration and award were direct consequences of the previous month's Munich Agreement, whic ...

Demographics

According to the 2001 census, ethnic groups included 64.40% Hungarians, 30.19% Slovaks, and 4.03% Roma. The religion make-up was as follows: 77.52% Roman Catholic, 11.82% without denomination, 3.21% not specified and others.

Twin towns — sister cities

Fiľakovo is twinned with: *

Bátonyterenye Bátonyterenye is a town in Nógrád County, Hungary, under the Mátra mountain range, beside of the Zagyva river. As of 2022 census, it has a population of 11,296 (see Demographics). The town located beside of the (Nr. 81) Hatvan–Fiľakovo ra ...

, Hungary *

Szécsény Szécsény is a town in Nógrád county, Hungary. Etymology The name comes from the Slavic ''sečь'': cutting (''Sečany''). 1219/1550 ''Scecen''. History The valley of the Ipoly and especially the area of that around Szécsény was inhabite ...

, Hungary *

Szigethalom Szigethalom is a town in Pest county, Hungary. In reference to the 2022 census, the population of the town was at 17, 644, with the female being at 9,060 while the male were at 8,584. Twin towns – sister cities Szigethalom is twinned with: * ...

, Hungary *

Ustrzyki Dolne Ustrzyki Dolne (; , ) is a town in south-eastern Poland, situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999) close to the border with Ukraine. It is the capital of Bieszczady County, with 9,383 inhabitants (02.06.2009). In existence since the ...

, Poland

People

Sándor Büchler Alexander Büchler (, ; 24 September 1869 in Fülek (Fiľakovo), Kingdom of Hungary – July 1944 in Auschwitz) was a Hungarian rabbi and educator. He is a son of the Talmudist rabbi Phineas Büchler of Mór. He was educated at the gymnasiu ...

, rabbi, historian *

Frank Lowy Sir Frank P. Lowy ( ; born 22 October 1930) is an Australian people, Australian-Israeli people, Israeli businessman of Jewish Slovak-Hungarian origins and the former long-time chairman of Westfield Corporation, a global shopping centre company ...

, Australian businessman * Allan Vilhan, musician *

Vica Kerekes Éva "Vica" Kerekes (born 28 March 1981) is a Slovak actress of Hungarian ethnicity. She is active in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. She is often referred to and credited as Vica Kerekésová, Vica Kerekešová, and Kerekes Vica. Sh ...

, actress

Gallery

File:Fulekcivertanlegi.jpg, Aerial photography of the castle File:Fulekcivertanlegi2.jpg File:Fülek_vár.jpg Image:Fiľakovo castle, Slovakia.jpg, Fiľakovo castle. File:Fiľakovo viewed from the castle.jpg, Fiľakovo viewed from the castle.

References

Genealogical resources

The records for genealogical research are available at the state archive "Statny Archiv in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia" * Roman Catholic church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1700-1893 (parish A) * Lutheran church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1783-1895 (parish B) * Reformated church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1800-1895 (parish B)

External links

Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Filakovo Cities and towns in Slovakia Lučenec District First Vienna Award Municipalities in Slovakia where Hungarian is an official language

Geography

History

Demographics

Twin towns — sister cities

People

Gallery

See also

References

Genealogical resources

External links