Gáspár Heltai

Gáspár Heltai
Gáspár Heltai
Born	Caspar Helth; c. 1510; Nagydisznód, Kingdom of Hungary (now Cisnădie, Romania)
Died	c. 1574; Kolozsvár, Principality of Transylvania (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania)
Occupation(s)	Writer, printer
Era	Reformation
School	Lutheran ; Unitarianism

Gáspár Heltai (c. 1510–1574) was a Protestant writer and printer from Transylvania who produced many books in Hungarian. He was also the father of the sister-in-law of Ferenc Dávid.

Career

Heltai was born Caspar Helth to a Transylvanian Saxon and Lutheran family.^[2] His surname may derive from the German name of his birthplace, Heltau (now Cisnădie, Romania).^{[citation needed]} In 1543, he studied at Wittenberg University (now Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg) under Philip Melanchthon. Returning to Transylvania the next year, he became a clergyman in the Calvinist and then Lutheran denominations. In 1569, he converted to Unitarianism and defended it in a debate with representatives of the Reformed (i.e. Calvinist) Church in Gyulafehérvár (now Alba Iulia, Romania).^[3]

From 1550 he worked as a printer in partnership with György Hoffgreff in Kolozsvár (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania). The press functioned under Heltai's name after 1552, and continued to work after his death thanks to his widow.^[3]

Heltai founded a public bath, a paper mill and the first brewery in the town. He is considered the first religious reformer in Kolozsvár,^[4] and a great spirit of Hungarian Unitarian^[5] Reformation.^[6] Together with a group of scholars Heltai produced an almost complete translation^[2] of the New Testament into Hungarian.^[7] His work marked the first buds of a secular literature in Hungary.^[8]

Bonfini translation

Heltai's most voluminous work is his reworking and translation of Antonio Bonfini's Rerum Hungaricum Decades ("Ten Volumes of Hungarian Matters"), which Heltai published in 1575 as Chronica az magyaroknak dolgairól ("Chronicle of the Hungarians’ Past Deeds").^[9] The work was printed in Kolozsvár.^[9]

References

^ Tezla, Albert (1970). Hungarian authors; a bibliographical handbook. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 203. ISBN 0674426509.
^ ^a ^b Greenslade, S. L. (1975). "The Bible in East-Central Europe". The Cambridge History of the Bible: Volume 3, the West from the Reformation to the present day. Cambridge University Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-521-29016-3. Retrieved 2008-07-06.
^ ^a ^b Tezla, Albert (1970). Hungarian authors; a bibliographical handbook. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 204. ISBN 0674426509.
^ Georg Daniel Teutsch, Helth, Kaspar,Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Band 11. Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1880, pag. 711–713.
^ Kelemen, Miklós (2000). "Short History of the Unitarian Church". Unitarian Church of Hungary. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-07-05.
^ "Introduction by the Rector". Károli Gáspár University of the Hungarian Reformed Church. Retrieved 2008-07-05.
^ "The forerunners of the Hungarian Bible translation". Hungarian Bible Society. Archived from the original on 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2008-07-05.
^ Molnár, Miklós; Anna Magyar (2001). "A Country Under Three Crowns, 1526-1711". A Concise History of Hungary. Cambridge University Press. pp. 111. ISBN 0-521-66736-4. Retrieved 2008-07-05.
^ ^a ^b "Antonio Bonfini". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

Relevant literature

Forgács-Drahota, Erzsébet (2000) Sprichwörter in den Werken von Gáspár Heltai. Acta Ethnographica Hungarica, 45 (3-4). pp. 337–357. ISSN 1216-9803

External links

Works by Gáspár Heltai at Post-Reformation Digital Library
The text of the New Testament translation of Heltai in its original orthographic form is available and searchable in the Old Hungarian Corpus.

This Hungarian history article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] Tezla, Albert (1970). Hungarian authors; a bibliographical handbook. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 203. ISBN 0674426509.

[Cambridge-2] Greenslade, S. L. (1975). "The Bible in East-Central Europe". The Cambridge History of the Bible: Volume 3, the West from the Reformation to the present day. Cambridge University Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-521-29016-3. Retrieved 2008-07-06.

[:0-3] Tezla, Albert (1970). Hungarian authors; a bibliographical handbook. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 204. ISBN 0674426509.

[4] Georg Daniel Teutsch, Helth, Kaspar,Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Band 11. Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1880, pag. 711–713.

[Unitarian-5] Kelemen, Miklós (2000). "Short History of the Unitarian Church". Unitarian Church of Hungary. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

[6] "Introduction by the Rector". Károli Gáspár University of the Hungarian Reformed Church. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

[HBS-7] "The forerunners of the Hungarian Bible translation". Hungarian Bible Society. Archived from the original on 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

[History-8] Molnár, Miklós; Anna Magyar (2001). "A Country Under Three Crowns, 1526-1711". A Concise History of Hungary. Cambridge University Press. pp. 111. ISBN 0-521-66736-4. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

[Britannica-9] "Antonio Bonfini". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

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v t e Hungarian literature
The list is by chronological order.
Early sources	Old Hungarian script Establishing charter of the abbey of Tihany Urgesta Funeral Sermon and Prayer Anonymus (notary of Béla III) Gesta Hungarorum Ákos (chronicler) Simon of Kéza Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum Lamentations of Mary
14th century	Minorite Chronicle of Buda John of Küküllő Mark of Kalt Chronicon Pictum
15th century	John Vitéz Hussite Bible Janus Pannonius Johannes Thuróczy Codex of Bécs Codex of Munich Zirc Bestiary Buda Chronicle Chronica Hungarorum Epitome rerum Hungarorum
15th – 16th century	Antonio Bonfini Gáspár Heltai Nicolaus Olahus
16th century	Sebestyén Tinódi Lantos Tripartitum Érdy Codex Péter Bornemisza Bálint Balassi
16th – 17th century	Péter Pázmány
17th century	Miklós Zrínyi István Gyöngyösi Nádasdy Mausoleum
17th – 18th century	Kelemen Mikes
18th century	József Kármán
18th – 19th century	Ferenc Kazinczy János Batsányi Mihály Fazekas Sándor Kisfaludy Mihály Csokonai Vitéz Dániel Berzsenyi Károly Kisfaludy Ferenc Kölcsey István Széchenyi József Katona
19th century	Mihály Vörösmarty József Bajza János Garay József Eötvös Ede Szigligeti Zsigmond Kemény János Arany Mihály Tompa Sándor Petőfi Imre Madách János Vajda Gergely Csiky
19th – 20th century	Mór Jókai Kálmán Mikszáth Elek Benedek Zoltán Ambrus Sándor Bródy Géza Gárdonyi Ferenc Herczeg Ignotus Miklós Bánffy Endre Ady Miksa Fenyő Ferenc Molnár Gyula Krúdy Dezső Szabó Zsigmond Móricz Ferenc Móra Menyhért Lengyel Margit Kaffka Lajos Nagy Gyula Juhász Mihály Babits Károly Kós Géza Gyóni Béla Balázs Árpád Tóth Géza Csáth Dezső Kosztolányi Lajos Kassák Frigyes Karinthy Lajos Áprily Milán Füst József Nyírő Sándor Reményik Lajos Zilahy Tibor Déry Béla Hamvas Sándor Szathmári Áron Tamási János Kodolányi
20th century	István Fekete Lőrinc Szabó Sándor Márai László Németh Antal Szerb Gyula Illyés Jolán Földes Sándor Török Jenő Rejtő Attila József Albert Wass Miklós Szentkuthy Mária Szepes Géza Képes Miklós Radnóti István Örkény Géza Ottlik László Kálnoky Sándor Weöres Iván Mándy Ferenc Karinthy János Pilinszky Ágnes Nemes Nagy László Nagy Éva Janikovszky Péter Zsoldos Ervin Lázár Gáspár Nagy
20th – 21st century	György Faludy Magda Szabó András Sütő Ferenc Juhász Sándor Kányádi Imre Kertész Gábor Görgey Sándor Csoóri Anna Jókai György Konrád György Moldova István Csukás Tamás Cseh Péter Esterházy György Károly Erno Polgar
Contemporary	Ágnes Gergely László L. Lőrincz Endre Kukorelly Péter Nádas György Spiró Ádám Nádasdy Miklós Vámos Zsuzsa Rakovszky Béla Markó Lajos Parti Nagy László Krasznahorkai Attila Bartis György Dragomán
Category:Hungarian writers

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