- Ráckeve
Infobox Settlement
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = HUN
timezone=CET
utc_offset=+1
timezone_DST=CEST
utc_offset_DST=+2
pushpin_
pushpin_label_position =
pushpin_map_caption =Location of Ráckeve
pushpin_mapsize =official_name=Ráckeve
subdivision_type1=County
subdivision_name1=Pest
area_total_km2=64.09
population_total=9211
population_as_of=2004
population_density_km2=143.71
postal_code_type=Postal code
postal_code=2300
area_code=24
latd=47.13116
longd=18.94747Ráckeve is a town on
Csepel Island inHungary . It is situated in the Pest County.History
After the
Árpád dynasty was established, the region of today's Ráckeve belonged to the Hungarian king.In the Middle Ages, there was a settlement here called "Ábrahámtelke", and also a monastery built in the 12th century, mentioned in official document in 1212 the first time.
In the 15th century many Serb refugees came from the South, fleeing the invasions of the Ottoman Turks. In this time, the settlement was called "Kiskeue", that is to say "Kiskeve" in modern Hungarian. Kiskeve means "Little Keve" in English, and the Serbs in the town called it "Mali Kovin" = "Lesser Kovin", or "Gornji Kovin" ("Upper Kovin") in contrast with the name of other
Kovin ("Donji Kovin" / "Lower Kovin") in the South, where the Serbs had fled from.In the 16th century, Ráckeve was a respectable mercantile town. The Calvinist variant of
Reformation was spread in the town bySzegedi Kis István .In 1541, the town fell under Ottoman rule, and most of its population fled towards North. Many Serbs who used to live in the town settled in
Győr and Komárom. Those who stayed in the town elected a "duke" called "Đurđe" (1543-6). In 1567, the town was populated by (mostlyCalvinist )Hungarians andSerbs .In the first part of the 16th century, the Turkish invasion also reached this area. In 1698, after the expulsion of the Turkish, the whole of
Csepel Island (Csepel-sziget), and thus Ráckeve too, became the land of the victoriousPrince Eugene of Savoy . The new landlord had his mansion built in this settlement; it can be visited by prior appointment.In the 18th century, the arrival of German settlers increased the number of inhabitants in the town. Thus the settlement became a tri-ethnic location with
Hungarians ,Serbs andGermans . Their descendents still refer to the place as Srpski Kovin or Ratzenmarkt.The end of the 19th century, the Millennium period represented a great upswing in the life of the town. At that time, the original wooden bridge was replaced by a permanent iron bridge and the decision was taken to build a new town hall, which was later erected in the Secession style on the site of the original.
A renowned angling paradise, Angelic Island divides the
Danube branch here. The holiday resort areas have been developed in the 1970's, at the same time the hot water spa and lido were also established. City status was granted again to Ráckeve in 1984.Name
The Name of "Ráckeve" in today's form derives from the Hungarian words "rác" and "keve".
Rác is a name formerly used in Hungarian to designate Serbs, who lived, among other, in the medieval Serbian state of Rascia at the time Hungarians came to Europe and first met the Serbs. The town gained this name because it was founded by the Serbs and a large Serb population lived in it.
Keve is the Hungarian rendering of the Serbian name
Kovin , named after the town of "Kovin " in Banat (Vojvodina inSerbia ) whence most inhabitants had fled to settle in Ráckeve. In Serbian, Ráckeve is known as "Горњи Ковин / Gornji Kovin" ("Upper Kovin"), "Мали Ковин / Mali Kovin" ("Lesser Kovin"), or "Srpski Kovin / Српски Ковин" ("Serbian Kovin"). This is to contrast it with the name of the original town in Vojvodina, known as just "Kovin " in Serbian and "Keve" in Hungarian.The Serbian word Kovin comes from the root "ков-" / "kov-" = "smith" (cf. ковач / kovač = ironsmith; ковница / kovnica = "copper mint" кованица / kovanica = "coin" потковица / potkovica = "horseshoe" etc.)
There is also a theory that word "keve" in Hungarian is not just a rendering of Serbian word, but a word in its own right, of Hun origin. Keve was one of the leaders of
Attila , fighting throughout Europe in the 4th century. Since 19th century, the name Keve has been used as a personal name among Hungarians, due to the traditional theories among Hungarians on Hun-Hungarian historical relations."Keve" also meant little stone, or pebble, in pre-modern Hungarian.
Croats from Hungary call this town "Kovin" [hr icon [http://www.croatica.hu/fileadmin/glasnik/2007/glasnik35.pdf Hrvatski glasnik br. 35/2007.] Prvo mjesto na međunarodnome nogometnom turniru pdf ] .
ights
Ráckeve is famous for the only Gothic style Serb Orthodox Church in
Hungary from the 15th century.The Catholic church was designed by
Pataki László . TheFresco-secco in the church is worth seeing.The Calvinist church is built in neo-gothic style in 1913.
There is the "Savoyai Castle" in the town, built in
baroque style in 1702-1750.There is also an "Árpád Museum".
avolyai Palace
References
*Dr. Dušan J. Popović, Srbi u Vojvodini, knjige 1-3, Novi Sad, 1990.
External links
* [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/HU/16/Rackeve.html Rackeve, Hungary Page]
* [http://www.rackeve.hu/ Ráckeve, Hungary, Home page of the town]
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