Generations grew up on these Hungarian Folk tales; Can you recognise any? – VIDEOS

September 30^th is the day of Hungarian Folk-tales and also the birthday of Elek Benedek, who have gathered many-many folk tales himself both Hungarian and Transylvanian. In today’s article, I would like to introduce you to this great Hungarian literary person and show you what a generation of Hungarian children grew up watching on the television screen.

Elek Benedek was born in 1859 in Kisbacon, which is today’s Băţani Mic, Romania. He studied in Székelyudvarhely and Budapest and as a student, he went on an ethnographical trip. At one point he was a journalist, and later he became an MP at Nagyajta. He was interested in youth literature Hungarian folk traditions in general. He was also concerned about public education.

His love for youth literature is evident from his later works, as in 1889, he took part in the first Hungarian youth magazine, titled Az Én Újságom, which literally means me “My Magazine”. He also edited a series of books intended for youth. Although Elek Benedek wrote several of his own works; poems, dramas and historical fiction books, he is most well known for his collection of Transylvanian fairy tales; Székely Tündérországand (Szekler Fairy-land) and Székely Mesemondó (Szekler Storyteller).

He also made a five-volume collection of Hungarian folk tales during his career, which was one of the most challenging projects for the writer. The collection is titled Magyar mese-és mondavilág (World of Hungarian Tales and Legends). Elek Benedek also translated many tales from the Brothers Grimm and Arabian Nights to the Hungarian language. He is one of the founders of children’s literature in Hungary and that is why the Hungarian Reading Association titled his birthday the day of Hungarian folk tales.