The Clash of ‘Europeanisation’ and ‘Traditionalisation’ in Hungary: East-Central Europe and the Reinvention of the Past

The relationship between European and national identity is an old and central topic of public discourse in Hungary, moving back and forth between optimistic ‘Europeanisation-centric’ and pessimistic ‘nation-centric’ thinking. Due to the speed of modernisation, tensions have emerged as the impact of EU action has broadened. Although Hungary has successfully adjusted in some policy areas, it has lagged behind in others. Hungary’s advanced ‘European’ cities contrast with underdevelopment in the countryside, which has led to two separate worlds with different worldviews. After thirty years of a catching up, Hungary has entered a period of regression in both Europeanisation and democratisation. ‘De-democratisation’ and ‘de-Europeanisation’ began in the 2010s. This shift is reflected in current narratives about Europe, though a strong emotional attachment to European culture and history still persists. Global crisis management has, however, opened perspectives in the EU that may be the start of a new historical phase of Europeanisation narrative.