Vas County
| Vas County | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| Country | Hungary | ||
| Region | Western Transdanubia | ||
| County seat | Szombathely | ||
| Government | |||
| • President of the General Assembly | László Majthényi (Fidesz-KDNP) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 3,336.14 km2 (1,288.09 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | 17th in Hungary | ||
| Population (2011 census) | |||
| • Total | 256,629 | ||
| • Rank | 17th in Hungary | ||
| • Density | 77/km2 (200/sq mi) | ||
| Postal code | 95xx – 99xx | ||
| Area code(s) | (+36) 94, 95 | ||
| ISO 3166 code | HU-VA | ||
| Website |
www | ||
Vas (German: Eisenburg, Slovene: Železna županija or županija Železna, Croatian: Željezna županija) is the name of an administrative county (comitatus or megye) in present Hungary, and also in the former Kingdom of Hungary. The county is a part of the Centrope Project.
Geography
Vas county lies in western Hungary. It shares borders with Austria and Slovenia and the Hungarian counties Győr-Moson-Sopron, Veszprém and Zala. The capital of Vas county is Szombathely. Its area is 3,336 km².
History
Vas is also the name of a historic administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in western Hungary, eastern Austria and eastern Slovenia. The capital of the county was Szombathely.
Vas county arose as one of the first comitatus of the Kingdom of Hungary.
In 1920, by the Treaty of Trianon the western part of the county became part of the new Austrian land Burgenland, and a smaller part in the southwest, known as Vendvidék became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later renamed to Yugoslavia). In the Vendvidék in 1919 was founded an unrecognized state the Prekmurje Republic, alike in Burgenland the Lajtabánság. The remainder stayed in Hungary, as the present Hungarian county Vas. A small part of former Sopron county went to Vas county. Some villages north of Zalaegerszeg went to Zala county, and a small region west of Pápa went to Veszprém county.
Since 1991, when Slovenia became independent from Yugoslavia, the Yugoslavian part of former Vas county (around Murska Sobota) is part of Slovenia.
The Vas county is home to a small Slovene minority, which lives in the area between the town of Szentgotthárd and the Slovenian border (see Hungarian Slovenes).
Demographics
In 2015, it had a population of 253,997 and the population density was 76/km².
| Year | County population[1] | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1949 | 283,070 | n/a |
| 1960 |  282,728 |
-0.12% |
| 1970 | 277,619 |
-1.81% |
| 1980 |  285,498 |
2.84% |
| 1990 | 275,944 |
-3.35% |
| 2001 | 268,123 |
-2.83% |
| 2011 | 256,629 |
-4.29% |
Ethnicity
Besides the Hungarian majority, the main minorities are the Croats (approx. 3,000), Roma (2,500), Germans (2,000) and Slovenes (1,500).
Total population (2011 census): 256,629
Ethnic groups (2011 census):[2]
Identified themselves: 225 052 persons:
- Hungarians: 214 512 (95,32%)
- Croats: 3 102 (1,38%)
- Gypsies: 2 559 (1,14%)
- Others and indefinable: 4 879 (2,17%)
Approx. 39,000 persons in Vas County did not declare their ethnic group at the 2011 census.
Religion
Religious adherence in the county according to 2011 census:[3]
- Catholic – 58.8% (Roman Catholic – 58.7%; Greek Catholic – 0.1%);
- Evangelical – 5.9%;
- Reformed – 2.8%;
- other religions – 0.8%;
- Non-religious – 5.3%;
- Atheism – 0.7%;
- Undeclared – 25.7%.
Politics
The Vas County Council, elected at the 2014 local government elections, is made up of 15 counselors, with the following party composition:[4]
| Party | Seats | Current County Assembly | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fidesz-KDNP | 10 | |||||||||||
| Movement for a Better Hungary (Jobbik) | 2 | |||||||||||
| Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) | 2 | |||||||||||
| Mayors Association for Vas County (PVME) | 1 | |||||||||||
Presidents of the General Assembly
| Gyula Pusztai (MSZP) | 1990–1998 |
| Péter Markó (Fidesz) | 1998–2006 |
| Ferenc Kovács (Fidesz) | 2006–2014 |
| László Majthényi (Fidesz) | 2014– |
Municipalities
City with county rights
- Szombathely (county seat)
Cities and towns
(ordered by population, according to the 2001 census)
- Sárvár (15,651)
- Körmend (12,616)
- Kőszeg (11,731)
- Celldömölk (11,650)
- Szentgotthárd (9,090)
- Vasvár (4,705)
- Csepreg (3,640)
- Vép (3,546)
- Bük (3,122)
- Répcelak (2,697)
- Őriszentpéter (1,293)
Villages
Gallery
Szombathely, the capital of the county
Jurisics Square in Kőszeg_2.jpg)
Saint George's Abbey and the Saint James Chapel in Ják
Nádasdy Castle, Sárvár.jpg)
Batthyány Mansion in Körmend
Batthyány Mansion in Csákánydoroszló
.jpg)
Traditional Hungarian house in Szalafő
References
- ↑ népesség.com, "Vas megye népessége 1870-2015"
- ↑ 1.1.6. A népesség anyanyelv, nemzetiség és nemek szerint – Frissítve: 2013.04.17.; Hungarian Central Statistical Office (Hungarian)
- ↑ 2011. ÉVI NÉPSZÁMLÁLÁS, 3. Területi adatok, 3.18 Vas megye, (Hungarian)
- ↑ A Vas Megyei Közgyűlés tagjai, (Hungarian)
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vas County. |
- Official site in Hungarian and English
- Vas Népe (vaol.hu) - The county portal
- Hungary at GeoHive
 | ||
Coordinates: 47°10′N 16°45′E / 47.167°N 16.750°E