<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The exact definition of the Mezőség/Câmpia Transilvaniei/Transylvanian Plain, hereafter Plain, as a region with an independent folk culture having a coherent internal structure is still a subject of debate among ethnographers. Some of them regard certain small regions (Borsa/Borșa Valley, Kis and Nagy Szamos/Someșul Mic și Someșul Mare etc.) as belonging to the Mezőség/Plain, while others do not. I distinguish a central group of the villages in the Mezőség/Plain region (Belső-Mezőség or Central Plain: e.g. Visa/Vișea, Magyarpalatka<bold>/</bold>Pălatca, Katona/Cătina, Pusztakamarás/Cămăraşu) from the rest of the territory, similarly to György Martin, István Pávai and László Barabás, relying on material culture and folklore research, as well as my own investigations. When advancing outward from this core area, the concentric circle of so-called peripheral areas follow (the West, North, East and South Plain/Mezőség), reaching the boundaries on the edges of the region: Nagy Szamos/Someșul Mare Valley, Lápos/Lăpuș Valley, Sajó/Șieu Valley, Maros/Mureş Valley, Marosszéki<sup>1</sup> Mezőség/Mureș Seat Plain, Erdőalja/Sub Pădure area, Borsa/Borșa Valley, and Kis Szamos/Someșul Mic Valley. A further, smaller group of villages can be distinguished in the area of Belső-Mezőség/Central Plain by their dance and music culture; for the regular weekend dance events of these villages, organised by local youths in the 1960s, Roma musicians of Magyarpalatka/Pălatca would play the music. I assign the name <bold>Palatka dance district</bold> to this area in my paper.</p>
</abstract>

The exact definition of the Mezőség/Câmpia Transilvaniei/Transylvanian Plain, hereafter Plain, as a region with an independent folk culture having a coherent internal structure is still a subject of debate among ethnographers. Some of them regard certain small regions (Borsa/Borșa Valley, Kis and Nagy Szamos/Someșul Mic și Someșul Mare etc.) as belonging to the Mezőség/Plain, while others do not. I distinguish a central group of the villages in the Mezőség/Plain region (Belső-Mezőség or Central Plain: e.g. Visa/Vișea, Magyarpalatka/Pălatca, Katona/Cătina, Pusztakamarás/Cămăraşu) from the rest of the territory, similarly to György Martin, István Pávai and László Barabás, relying on material culture and folklore research, as well as my own investigations. When advancing outward from this core area, the concentric circle of so-called peripheral areas follow (the West, North, East and South Plain/Mezőség), reaching the boundaries on the edges of the region: Nagy Szamos/Someșul Mare Valley, Lápos/Lăpuș Valley, Sajó/Șieu Valley, Maros/Mureş Valley, Marosszéki1 Mezőség/Mureș Seat Plain, Erdőalja/Sub Pădure area, Borsa/Borșa Valley, and Kis Szamos/Someșul Mic Valley. A further, smaller group of villages can be distinguished in the area of Belső-Mezőség/Central Plain by their dance and music culture; for the regular weekend dance events of these villages, organised by local youths in the 1960s, Roma musicians of Magyarpalatka/Pălatca would play the music. I assign the name Palatka dance district to this area in my paper.

Geographical Distribution of the Traditional Dance Culture in Mezőség

Department of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology, Research Centre for the Humanities, Institute for Musicology

Hungarian Studies Yearbook

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"Geographical Distribution of the Traditional Dance Culture in Mezőség"}

The exact definition of the Mezőség/Câmpia Transilvaniei/Transylvanian Plain, hereafter Plain, as a region with an independent folk culture having a coherent...

Geographical Distribution of the Traditional Dance Culture in Mezőség

Published Online: Dec 23, 2021

Page range: 163 - 182

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/hsy-2021-0010

Keywords
Mezőség (Transylvanian Plain, Câmpia Transilvaniei), dance dialects, linquistics, folklore research, traditions and modernisation, migration of cultural elements

© 2021 Sándor Varga, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Geographical Distribution of the Traditional Dance Culture in Mezőség

Published Online: Dec 23, 2021

Page range: 163 - 182

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/hsy-2021-0010

KeywordsMezőség (Transylvanian Plain, Câmpia Transilvaniei), dance dialects, linquistics, folklore research, traditions and modernisation, migration of cultural elements

© 2021 Sándor Varga, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Mezőség (Transylvanian Plain, Câmpia Transilvaniei), dance dialects, linquistics, folklore research, traditions and modernisation, migration of cultural elements