Taking a turn from our more mainstream languages of 30 Days of Learning Different Languages, today we are focusing on Hungary. The Hungarian language origin to be exact! My mom’s side of the family is from Hungary and I have always been curious to learn a little bit more about their culture and language. Apparently it’s one of the hardest languages to learn so I feel as though I am in for a long night.
What is the Hungarian Language Origin?
Hungarian is a really fascinating language because it is only spoken by 13 million people. It is also referred to as Magyar within the country of Hungary. The rest of the world refers to the language as Hungarian. The Hungarian language comes from the Uralic region of Asia.
OK so where does it get Hard?
- Hungarian consists of 44 letters in their alphabet and some include two or three letters but they just call it one! For example, the letter “dzs” is pronounced like the English “j”. Talk about confusing!
- If you are introducing yourself, you always start with your last name. So I would say, “Hi, my name is Kalajian, Krysta”. I think people would lose me at Kalajian ha!
- There are some VERY LONG words in Hungarian. The longest word, Megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért, is 44 letters! And sadly there is no perfect English translation for the rest of us to truly understand the meaning!
- The Hungarian language has 14 vowels. FOURTEEN! We have 5 in English just to put that in perspective.
What are some Hungarian Basics?
If you made it this far and you aren’t terrified to try out a few words (and aren’t afraid to sound like a fool). Try out some of these phrases below:
Hi, I’m Krysta – Szia, Krysta vagyok.
Nice to meet you – Örvendek
Thank you – Köszönöm
You’re Welcome – Nincs mit
Hi, Hello, & Goodbye – Szia!
Hi Guys (with friends/informal to 2+ people) – Sziasztok!
Yes – Igen
No – Nem
Do you speak English? – Beszélsz Angolul?
Let me know if you become one of the 13 million people on this planet who can speak Hungarian! Such a cool fun fact to have in your back pocket!
xoxo
Krysta
