Folyóiratok

Kalangya, II. évfolyam (1933. május) 5. szám, 289–360. p.

The Hungarian writers of Yugoslavia proffer their fraternal welcome to the members of the Dubrovnik Pen Club congress. Anche noi siamo scrittori! We are few in number, and most of our names are unknown to the world, yet together with our Yugoslav colleagues we too dream, create and wish to be amongst the builders of a more beautiful and better to-morrow.

The Hungarian population of Yugoslavia most of them belong to the working classes and necessarily there is a very slight demand for books. The Hungarians of this part of the country have never lived an independent cultural life. Budapest was very near to the Bacska. I dont think there was any other area so much under the centripetal cultural influence of the capital. Besides the social conditions this circumstance hindered the development of such an independet literature and special culture which would be best suited to the changes.

The first conscious step towards real literature was the publication in 1928 of the »Vajdasági Íras«, a literary review. The object of this review was to give rise to independent Hungarian literature in the Bacska and Banat, to break with the old centralism and to deal with the problems, troubles and wishes of the people. From the people – for the people. This purpose was rather daring, considering the old fashioned, stubborn, prejudices which ideas had to be defeated in the reading public. We slowly approached our goal realising that we do not belong to the unit of Hungarian literature and that our work is only justified if we are independent, if we cancel the ideas of the past, live in the present and turn towards our folk, and our soil.

Unfortunately the »Vajdasagi Iras« was only published for two years. There was very little understanding in our public at that time for anything so new, the process of evolution however caused by this review continued. Literature i» restricted to newspapers, in our part of the world, but the spirit, the atmosphere is different, one can feel the pulsation of the new life. [289]

Last year a second organ the »Kalangya« was started, in the footsteps of the »Vajdasági Írás« but with a stronger faith, with a superiour staff and with the assistance of the rising understanding of the readers. Young, gifted men, unbound by fetters of the events of the yesterdays – arose. This year the old difficulties, concerning edition and publication, were settled by the foundation of the » Yugoslavian Hungarian Library, publishing one book monthly, and the »Kalangya Library« with its quartely editions. We are justified in stating that, several books, which appeared in these editions will have a success, passing over the frontiers of our country.

The daily press publishes, a great quantity of the writings of our writers, so much so that now the zone of the Yugoslavian Hungarian literature has been widened by far, that by now there are a great many, new possibilities for her developement.

The Yugoslavian, Hungarian authors consider it their noble duty and are imbued by the keen sense of having the calling to build a bridge between the Hungarian and the Yugoslavian culture. Both the »Kalangya« and the daily press publish a great number of works written by our authors; several translations appeared in bookform amongst others an anthology of the Servian poets, several plays, novels and „books of travel.