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Hungary Country Guide
Explore Hungary in Europe
The terrain features mostly flat to rolling plains with hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border. The average density of population is approximately 107 per km². The notable climate conditions in Hungary can be described as temperate with cold, cloudy, humid winters and warm summers. Potential natural disasters are .
To reach someone in Hungary dial +36 prior to a number. There are 3,069,000 installed telephones. And there are 11,793,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 850/1900 MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".hu". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 230V - 50Hz.
About the flag and history of Hungary
Three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green; the flag dates to the national movement of the 18th and 19th centuries, and fuses the medieval colors of the Hungarian coat of arms with the revolutionary tricolor form of the French flag; folklore attributes virtues to the colors: red for strength, white for faithfulness, and green for hope; alternatively, the red is seen as being for the blood spilled in defense of the land, white for freedom, and green for the pasturelands that make up so much of the country.
Hungary became a Christian kingdom in A.D. 1000 and for many centuries served as a bulwark against Ottoman Turkish expansion in Europe. The kingdom eventually became part of the polyglot Austro-Hungarian Empire, which collapsed during World War I. The country fell under Communist rule following World War II. In 1956, a revolt and an announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact were met with a massive military intervention by Moscow. Under the leadership of Janos KADAR in 1968, Hungary began liberalizing its economy, introducing so-called "Goulash Communism." Hungary held its first multiparty elections in 1990 and initiated a free market economy. It joined NATO in 1999 and the EU five years later. In 2011, Hungary assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the EU for the first time.
Geography Quick-Facts
| Summary | Continent: Europe Neighbours: Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Ukraine, , Croatia, Austria, Serbia Capital: Budapest |
| Size | 93,030 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 35,919 square miles (mi² or sqmi) slightly smaller than Indiana |
| Population | 9,930,000 |
| Currency | Name Forint, Currency Code:HUF |
| Country Top Level Domain (cTLD) | .hu |
| Telephone Country Prefix | +36 |
| Mobile Phone Connections | 11,793,000 |
| Landline Phone Connections | 3,069,000 |
Country Position in World Rankings
Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).
Geography
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 93,028 (sq km) | 110 |
People and Society
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 9,939,470 | 87 |
| Population growth rate | -0.20 (%) | 212 |
| Birth rate | 9.37 (births/1,000 population) | 203 |
| Death rate | 12.71 (deaths/1,000 population) | 23 |
| Net migration rate | 1.36 (migrant(s)/1,000 population) | 50 |
| Maternal mortality rate | 21.00 (deaths/100,000 live births) | 137 |
| Infant mortality rate | 5.16 (deaths/1,000 live births) | 179 |
| Life expectancy at birth | 75.24 (years) | 95 |
| Total fertility rate | 1.41 (children born/woman) | 204 |
| Health expenditures | 7.30 (% of GDP) | 75 |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.10 (%) | 134 |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 3,000 | 128 |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 200 | 113 |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 27.60 (%) | 37 |
| Education expenditures | 5.10 (% of GDP) | 67 |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | 26.10 (%) | 36 |
Economy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | 198,800,000,000 | 57 |
| GDP - real growth rate | -1.70 (%) | 206 |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | 20,000 | 71 |
| Labor force | 4,391,000 | 87 |
| Unemployment rate | 11.20 (%) | 121 |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 24.70 | 133 |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 16.00 (% of GDP) | 132 |
| Taxes and other revenues | 43.40 (% of GDP) | 32 |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -2.80 (% of GDP) | 106 |
| Public debt | 78.60 (% of GDP) | 28 |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.70 (%) | 154 |
| Central bank discount rate | 7.00 (%) | 41 |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 8.56 (%) | 107 |
| Stock of narrow money | 32,340,000,000 | 56 |
| Stock of broad money | 74,500,000,000 | 59 |
| Stock of domestic credit | 85,670,000,000 | 57 |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | 22,800,000,000 | 60 |
| Industrial production growth rate | 1.70 (%) | 122 |
| Current account balance | 2,146,000,000 | 38 |
| Exports | 105,100,000,000 | 39 |
| Imports | 98,200,000,000 | 35 |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 67,000,000,000 | 30 |
| Debt - external | 202,000,000,000 | 34 |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | 94,900,000,000 | 41 |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | 30,300,000,000 | 43 |
Energy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity - production | 34,280,000,000 (kWh) | 64 |
| Electricity - consumption | 36,130,000,000 (kWh) | 56 |
| Electricity - exports | 9,000,000,000 (kWh) | 23 |
| Electricity - imports | 16,970,000,000 (kWh) | 10 |
| Electricity - installed generating capacity | 9,900,000 (kW) | 57 |
| Electricity - from fossil fuels | 72.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 103 |
| Electricity - from nuclear fuels | 20.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 12 |
| Electricity - from hydroelectric plants | 1.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 142 |
| Electricity - from other renewable sources | 7.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 29 |
| Crude oil - production | 22,560 (bbl/day) | 70 |
| Crude oil - imports | 108,500 (bbl/day) | 48 |
| Crude oil - proved reserves | 31,720,000 (bbl) | 84 |
| Refined petroleum products - production | 167,900 (bbl/day) | 60 |
| Refined petroleum products - consumption | 141,100 (bbl/day) | 71 |
| Refined petroleum products - exports | 49,010 (bbl/day) | 61 |
| Refined petroleum products - imports | 171,600 (bbl/day) | 32 |
| Natural gas - production | 2,072,000,000 (cu m) | 56 |
| Natural gas - consumption | 11,900,000,000 (cu m) | 45 |
| Natural gas - exports | 835,000,000 (cu m) | 41 |
| Natural gas - imports | 8,173,000,000 (cu m) | 29 |
| Natural gas - proved reserves | 3,014,000,000 (cu m) | 94 |
| Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy | 50,390,000 (Mt) | 61 |
Communications
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2,933,000 | 52 |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 11,690,000 | 67 |
| Internet hosts | 3,145,000 | 33 |
| Internet users | 6,176,000 | 41 |
Transportation
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Airports | 41 | 104 |
| Railways | 8,057 (km) | 26 |
| Roadways | 197,519 (km) | 24 |
| Waterways | 1,622 (km) | 48 |
Military
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Military expenditures | 1.75 (% of GDP) | 83 |
Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases
List of current world heritage sites
| Name | Since |
|---|---|
| Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue This site has the remains of monuments such as the Roman city of Aquincum and the Gothic castle of Buda, which have had a considerable influence on the architecture of various periods. It is one of the world's outstanding urban landscapes and illustr ... | 1987 |
| Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst The variety of formations and the fact that they are concentrated in a restricted area means that the 712 caves currently identified make up a typical temperate-zone karstic system. Because they display an extremely rare combination of tropical and g ... | 1995 |
| Early Christian Necropolis of Pécs (Sopianae) In the 4th century, a remarkable series of decorated tombs were constructed in the cemetery of the Roman provincial town of Sopianae (modern Pécs). These are important both structurally and architecturally, since they were built as underground burial ... | 2000 |
| Hortobágy National Park - the Puszta The cultural landscape of the Hortobágy Puszta consists of a vast area of plains and wetlands in eastern Hungary. Traditional forms of land use, such as the grazing of domestic animals, have been present in this pastoral society for more than two mil ... | 1999 |
| Millenary Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma and its Natural Environment The first Benedictine monks settled here in 996. They went on to convert the Hungarians, to found the country's first school and, in 1055, to write the first document in Hungarian. From the time of its founding, this monastic community has promoted c ... | 1996 |
| Old Village of Hollókő and its Surroundings Hollokö is an outstanding example of a deliberately preserved traditional settlement. This village, which developed mainly during the 17th and 18th centuries, is a living example of rural life before the agricultural revolution of the 20th century. ... | 1987 |
| Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape The cultural landscape of Tokaj graphically demonstrates the long tradition of wine production in this region of low hills and river valleys. The intricate pattern of vineyards, farms, villages and small towns, with their historic networks of deep wi ... | 2002 |