5 things that foreigners think about Hungarians

We have already shared a few articles about how foreigners see us, Hungarians and what kind of misconceptions they might have about us. Now we bring you an oldie but a goodie – a little survey conducted by Reddit, which ended with interesting results.

What people think of themselves and how others see them are not necessarily the same. But this is not a bad thing, nor are stereotypes inevitably negative – we all need certain ideas to hold on to in order to be able to categorise and comprehend the world.

According to blikk.hu, Hungarians like to think of themselves as resourceful, having beautiful women, strong spices and good wine. However, the opinions shared on Reddit’s forum show a different picture. Let’s see five of the most popular comments.

“For some reason, their language is very similar to Finnish, but this has always confused me because the two countries are far from each other” – comment from Poland

“The Hungarian language is like listening to Klingon” – comment from Greece

These are probably our favourite opinions because they reflect the complexity of the Hungarian language that dazzles every foreigner. Based on the Finno-Ugric language theory, Hungarian belongs to the Ugric branch. However, the theory has been criticised many times.

One thing is for sure: the Hungarian language is full of miraculous curiosities.

“It is the home of the Rubik’s cube, they all have one, but nobody knows how to solve it” – comment from Ireland

Well, the Rubik’s cube is definitely the most well-known Hungarian invention, but we doubt that all Hungarians have one. However, many people can solve it, not to mention the many competitions, exhibitions and events that focus on the magical cube.

The world record of solving it is beaten all the time, the most recent is 4.22 seconds! Yes, seconds, not minutes 😀

“The turul bird is the symbol of the country and the nation” – comment from Great Britain

The turul is the recurring symbol of Hungarian origin myths, some people identify it with the falcon. It was even on the military badge of Hungarians from Attila until Grand Prince Géza. You can see the biggest turul statue in Tatabánya, but there are also others in the Castle District.

Photo: www.kurultaj.hu

“Hungarian foods are spicy. All of them” – comment from Italy

Although paprika characterises most traditional meals, it was not part of the original, ancient cuisine, because it only spread in the country around the 1500s. In fact, in the beginning, it was used as a bedding plant.

“They are always pessimistic” – comment from the United States of America

We have to be self-critical at this point because there is something to this opinion. Several surveys have shown that many people find the future to be very gloomy.

Still, we have to acknowledge that live in a beautiful country 🙂

These are just a few opinions, the list could go on longer. If you are interested in more, we recommend you to read our article about Hungarian stereotypes, which – among others – include resourcefulness, living on paprika, owning horses and arguing a lot.

Featured image: MTI

Source: http://www.blikk.hu/