Gáspár Heltai (–1574) was a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

writer and printer from

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

who produced many books in Hungarian. He was also the father of the sister-in-law of Ferenc Dávid.

Career

Heltai was born Caspar Helth to a Transylvanian Saxon and

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

family. His surname may derive from the German name of his birthplace, Heltau (now Cisnădie,

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

). In 1543, he studied at Wittenberg University (now

Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public research university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. MLU offers German and i ...

) under

Philip Melanchthon Philip Melanchthon (born Philipp Schwartzerdt; 16 February 1497 – 19 April 1560) was a German Lutheran reformer, collaborator with Martin Luther, the first systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation, an intellectual leader of the L ...

. Returning to Transylvania the next year, he became a clergyman in the

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

and then

denominations. In 1569, he converted to

Unitarianism Unitarianism () is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian sect of Christianity. Unitarian Christians affirm the wikt:unitary, unitary God in Christianity, nature of God as the singular and unique Creator deity, creator of the universe, believe that ...

and defended it in a debate with representatives of the Reformed (i.e. Calvinist) Church in Gyulafehérvár (now Alba Iulia, Romania). From 1550 he worked as a printer in partnership with György Hoffgreff in Kolozsvár (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania). The press functioned under Heltai's name after 1552, and continued to work after his death thanks to his widow. Heltai founded a public bath, a

paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...

and the first

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of b ...

in the town. He is considered the first religious reformer in Kolozsvár, and a great spirit of Hungarian Unitarian

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

. Together with a group of scholars Heltai produced an almost complete translation of the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

into Hungarian. His work marked the first buds of a

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

literature in Hungary.

Bonfini translation

Heltai's most voluminous work is his reworking and translation of Antonio Bonfini's ''Rerum Hungaricum Decades'' ("''Ten Volumes of Hungarian Matters''"), which Heltai published in 1575 as ''Chronica az magyaroknak dolgairól'' ("''Chronicle of the Hungarians’ Past Deeds''"). The work was printed in Kolozsvár.

References

Relevant literature

*Forgács-Drahota, Erzsébet (2000) Sprichwörter in den Werken von Gáspár Heltai. ''Acta Ethnographica Hungarica'', 45 (3-4). pp. 337–357. ISSN 1216-9803

External links

* *The text of the New Testament translation of Heltai in its original orthographic form is available and searchable in th
Old Hungarian Corpus
16th-century Hungarian historians 16th-century printers Hungarian Unitarians Translators of the Bible into Hungarian Translators to Hungarian Hungarian writers Hungarian chroniclers Hungarian-German people Transylvanian Saxon people University of Wittenberg alumni Hungarian expatriates in Germany People from Sibiu County 1490 births 1574 deaths 16th-century businesspeople from the Holy Roman Empire {{Hungary-hist-stub