Cultural Studies paper by Szentkirályi, Endre
Hungarian Diaspora Culture: a Sociological and Linguistic Case Study of Cleveland (Accepted)
Type of Abstract (select):Abstract (max. 250 words):
Communities throughout the Hungarian diaspora are always at cultural crossroads; how can they slow down the inevitable forces of cultural assimilation and to what extent will they endure? How do they navigate the norms and aspects of the host country while trying to keep the values and traditions brought over from their ancestral home? A detailed analysis of one specific diaspora community, that of the Hungarians in Cleveland, can shed light on the broader context of Hungarians abroad. Touching on waves of emigration, ways of ascertaining a realistic number of the actual population, using ethnographic research and detailing how the community interacts on a regular basis, the study also places the city into a broader context of Hungarian-American communities and shows the linguistic factors enabling language proficiency well into the second and third generations of immigration. When most Hungarian-Americans eventually assimilate, the sociology of this city, which is but one of many in North America, shows how a group can use the power of community to maintain a strong ethnic identity, to live in two worlds simultaneously: one Hungarian and one American. Put simply, this paper shows how the Hungarian diaspora can maintain its language, culture, and traditions, and in so doing illuminates what it really means to be Hungarian in Cleveland.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Born and raised in Cleveland, Endre Szentkiralyi studied English and German at Cleveland State University, earned an MA in English at the University of Akron, and earned his PhD in literary and cultural studies at the University of Debrecen. He has edited several books of oral histories and helped produce documentary films about Hungarian-Americans. His books include Cold War to Warm Cooperation: the Military Service of Cleveland Hungarians 1950-2014 (Zrínyi Publishing) and Being Hungarian in Cleveland: Maintaining Language, Culture, and Traditions (Helena History Press, 2019). He currently teaches English and German at Nordonia High School near Cleveland, Ohio.