Carnival Traditions in Hungary
Carnival is the period between Epiphany (Twelfth Night) and Ash Wednesday. The primary aim of carnival rituals was to drive away winter and promote fertility. Even in ancient Rome, people held masked processions and festivities to bid farewell to winter and welcome spring.
A Bit of Etymology
According to the Hungarian Ethnographic Lexicon, the development of carnival customs in Hungary dates back to the Middle Ages, with strong German influence — a fact reflected in the Hungarian word farsang itself.
“Farsang is of Bavarian–Austrian origin; its first written appearance in Hungarian dates to the mid-14th century. The term derives from the German compound Fastenschank (roughly ‘Lent-drinking’), from fasten (‘to fast’) and Schank (‘to serve drink’). Originally, it referred to the last day before Lent, i.e., Shrove Tuesday.”
The highlight of the carnival season is undoubtedly the carnival itself, traditionally known in Hungary as “the tail of the carnival”. This term refers to the three final days of the season — from Carnival Sunday to Shrove Tuesday — marking the great farewell to winter. But what does Shrove Tuesday mean in Hungarian (húshagyókedd)? The word húshagyó literally means “leaving the meat” and is a mirror translation of the Italian carnevale, which in turn comes from the Latin carne levare — “to give up meat.” It is said that from this expression came the cheerful farewell: Carne, vale! — “Farewell, meat!” — the origin of the modern word carnival.
Carnival Foods
This period is typically the time of pig slaughters, so most dishes were made of pork. No celebration would be complete without doughnuts and fritters, such as the csöröge fánk (literally “crispy fritter”). Its name comes from the clattering sound the pieces make when frying — they “chatter” in the pan.
As for dietary customs, in the region around Szeged, people observed Fat Thursday (kövércsütörtök) by preparing rich, greasy meals and eating heartily, believing that this would bring a bountiful harvest and fat, healthy pigs. In Muravidék villages, the menu featured pork, cabbage, aspic, doughnuts, wine, and brandy. The leftovers of carnival meals were dried and ground into powder to heal sick animals. In Syrmia (Szerémség), people baked doughnuts on the first day of carnival, convinced that doing so would protect their roofs from storm winds.
Masks and Costumes
For some, the phrase masked ball evokes images of lavish noble mansions and elegant masquerades; for others, it recalls a slightly shabby school gymnasium, where children smile shyly in homemade costumes sewn by their grandmothers for the obligatory class photo.
Despite the difference in setting, one thing unites them: dressing up. The wearing of masks and costumes has symbolic meaning. At its heart lies a universal desire — to experience what it would feel like to be someone else.
From the Mohai “Hen-Beating” to the Busójárás
Almost every Hungarian region preserves a unique carnival custom, such as tikverőzés, dőrejárás, or the famous busójárás.
The name tikverőzés (“hen-beating”) refers to the symbolic act performed during the ritual: jesters lightly strike the hens’ bottoms with sticks to encourage fertility — though the main point is to search for eggs, which are then used to make scrambled eggs for the feast.
Dőrejárás is a farsang custom from Upper Csallóköz (Žitný Ostrov) and is among the oldest surviving folk plays in Hungary — often considered a “little sibling” of the busójárás in Mohács. Participants imitate a mock wedding procession, teasing and playfully disturbing the villagers. The word dőre means a foolish or clownish man in the local dialect.
The best-known of all is, of course, the Busójárás of Mohács, a Šokci (Croatian Šokac) folk tradition recognized worldwide.
TÉ
translated by László Gönczi
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