What do Hungarians celebrate on 20 August?
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People who come to Hungary from abroad might see that August 20 is a national holiday here. No one works on this day: instead, there is a huge celebration with the hoisting of the national flag on Kossuth Square in Budapest, as well as fascinating fireworks in the night. Catholic believers also attend special masses hosted exclusively for this event. But why exactly is this day special?
The 20th of August has multiple names in Hungary. It is most importantly the State Foundation Day of Hungary. To find out the reason behind this name, we must go back almost a thousand years in history: it was on this day in 1038 that the first Christian king of Hungary, St. Stephen I died, five days after he offered the country for Virgin Mary on his deathbed. He became the first canonized saint in Hungary’s history. He was also the monarch who turned Hungary into a legitimate Christian state after about a century of Paganism, so he can be considered the state-founder of the country.
This day is also a religious holiday as is called St. Stephen’s Day as well. Catholics celebrate the day of the first patron saint of Hungary. That is the reason why masses are hosted all over the country on August 20.
[…] anything else about that trip except for sitting on my uncle’s shoulders, waiting for the St. Stephen’s Day fireworks to start. Even though I’ve visited the city so many times before, there were still […]