Székely Land
[4] Székelys (or Szeklers) live in the valleys and hills of the Eastern Carpathian Mountains, corresponding mostly to the present-day Harghita, Covasna, and parts of Mureș counties in Romania.
In August 1940, as a consequence of the Second Vienna Award, northern territories of Transylvania, including the Székely Land, were returned to Hungary.
Northern Transylvania came under the control of Soviet and Romanian forces in 1944,[8][9][10] and were confirmed as part of Romania by the Paris Peace Treaties signed 1947 after World War II.
Under the name Magyar Autonomous Region, with Târgu Mureș as capital,[11] parts of the Székely Land enjoyed a certain level of autonomy between 8 September 1952 and 16 February 1968.
According to Minahan its territory is approximately 16,943 square kilometres (6,542 sq mi),[4] though the autonomy proposal of the Szekler National Council consists of about 13,000 km2.
After the fall of Roman Dacia, the present-day territory of the Székely Land became part of the Thervingi kingdom "Gutthiuda".
In the Battle of Nedao the East Germanic Gepids defeated the Huns and founded Gepidia in the territory of present-day Transylvania.
The Székelys presumably settled in Transylvania in the 12th century from present day Bihar and Bihor counties[citation needed].
From the 12th and 13th centuries, the Székely Land enjoyed a considerable but varying amount of autonomy, first as a part of the Kingdom of Hungary, then inside the Principality of Transylvania[citation needed].
The autonomy was largely due to the military service the Székely provided until the beginning of the 18th century[citation needed].
From the end of the 17th century, Transylvania became part of the Habsburg monarchy (later Austrian Empire), and governed by imperial governors.
The Austrian emperor incited the Romanians and Serbians living in Hungary and Transylvania against the Hungarians, promising them some kind of autonomy.
In 1876, a general administrative reform abolished all the autonomous areas in the Kingdom of Hungary and created a unified system of counties.
[18] In 1940, as a result of the Second Vienna Award, Northern Transylvania became part of Hungary again; this territory included most of the historical Székely areas.
A conference devoted to the concentration of Jews in the Székely Land was held on 28 April 1944; it covered the counties of Csík, Háromszék, Maros-Torda and Udvarhely.
[21][22] For instance, the so-called Iuliu Maniu Guards terrorized the Székely villages, butchered the local Hungarians by axe and hatchet[1] and operated a death camp in Feldioara.
The USSR let the Romanian authorities back to the area in March 1945,[21] and the Paris Peace Treaties officially returned Northern Transylvania to Romania.
Following the Northern Transylvania's return to Romania after World War II, a Magyar Autonomous Region was created in 1952 under the Soviets' pressure,[27][28] which encompassed most of the land inhabited by the Székelys.
"[33] In 2014, the UDMR and the Hungarian Civic Party had a joint autonomy proposal for the Székely Land, but the Szekler National Council also possessed its own suggestion.
The Supreme Council of National Defence of Romania declared that an autonomy of the so-called Székely Land would be unconstitutional.
[37] In 2002 the estimated ethnic composition of the Székely Land (Mureș, Covasna and Harghita counties) consisted of Hungarians (66%), Romanians (29%), Germans (1%) and Roma (4%).
According to the 2011 official census, 570,033 Hungarians (53.22%) live in the counties of Covasna, Harghita and Mureș (out of a total population of 1,071,890 inhabitants).
[42] Important centers of the Székely Land are Târgu-Mureș (Marosvásárhely), Miercurea Ciuc (Csíkszereda), Sfântu Gheorghe (Sepsiszentgyörgy), and Odorheiu Secuiesc (Székelyudvarhely).
Starting with the 2010/2011 season, the Sport Club ice hockey team participated at the championships under the name HSC Csíkszereda and that year it won its first Erste League title as well.
