Semlac, Arad

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History of Semlak Georg Schmidt, Ratingen Translated into English by Michael Kontz, Regina, SK.,Canada

The town of Semlak (Semlac, Romanian; Szemlak, Hungarian) is situated on a slight elevation on the northern shore of the river Marosch, 38 kilometers (24 miles) west of Arad. The geographic co-ordinates are: 46 degrees, 05 minutes northern latitude and 20 degrees, 54 minutes east of Greenwich longitude. The elevation ranges from 110 to 124 meters (360 to 407 feet) above the Adriatic Sea.

There is evidence that the area around the Semlak of today has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Excavations from different periods confirm this. Over the course of time there seem to have been several communities located there, some of which were occupied in a more or less continous manner.

According to the earliest known records, the town was the property of the Hungarian king Andrew II, who deeded it to the Roman Catholic diocese of Csanad. In 1320 Semlak belonged to the Hungarian king Charles I Robert, of the older House of Anjou, who in turn made a gift of it to one of his soldiers, the count John Zemleky. It is unclear whether the name Semlak originated from the count Zemleky, or vice-versa. When the daughter of Zemleky married the son of count Joksy of Nadlak, (a neighboring town, MK) Semlak became his property. Upon the death of Joksy, king Wladislaw I became the owner. Wladislaw I in turn made a present of Semlak to John Hunyadi, and he to his mother. She divided 3/4 of the acreage amongst the inhabitants of Semlak and turned the remaining 1/4 into an independent estate.

The first mention of Romanian settlers dates to the 11th century. During the 15th century Serbs arrived, and they built the first GreekOrthodox church.

From 1564 to 1697 Semlak was a part of the Ottoman Empire and became a fortified settlement. The remainders of the fortifications were visible until recently and were located close to the Romanian Orthodox church, which was turned into a mosque during that period.

During the times of the "military frontier" along the rivers Theiss (Tisa) and Marosch, Semlak was an important outpost that was mainly manned by Serbian farmers also doing military duties.

From 1841 to 1848 count Gustav Hadik of Futok was the owner of Semlak. Beginning with the revolution of 1848 and thereafter, 3/4 of Semlak were returned to the inhabitants and 1/4 to the estate of the Hungarian crown. In 1819 the first Germans were settled in Semlak by the Imperial Chancery for Hungary. (Department of the Interior.) They were of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Augsburg Confession and came from the small city of Mezoeberenyi (also called Harruckernau or Berin), approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles) northwest of Semlak, in the county of Bekes, Hungary. They were followed between 1823 and 1827 by approximately 38 families from Balmazujvaros, situated west of Debrecen, also in Hungary. The latter were Evangelical Reformed of the Helvetian (Calvinist) faith.

The colonization of Semlak by Germans took place through migration within the Hungarian country proper. Their ancestors came to Hungary after the wars against the Turks and were called by the new land owners as settlers on their large holdings. This is a marked difference to the colonization of the Banat. The Germans of Semlak of later years have their own history, which has practically nothing in common with that of the Swabians of the Banat. The "Semlakers" do not consider themselves as Swabians and "Banat" to them is the land on the other side of the Marosch river. Only after the union with Romania (1919), brought about by the peace treaty of Trianon (Versailles, MK), and the happenings during the 1930s, were the Germans of Semlak and the Swabians of the Banat to become linked by a common destiny.

Separated by different faiths and ancestry, two strong German communities developed during the 19th century: The "Beriners" (Lutherans), primarily the descendents of the immigrants from Mezoeberenyi (but also from Hartau and Soldvadkert in Hungary), and the "Gubaschen" (Calvinists), whose ancestors came from Balmazujvaros. The latter were called "Gubasch" on account of the cape, the "guba", made of felt, they wore, which was a distinguishing mark in their clothing. Both communities resided separately in their own district of the town, right until the present times. It is quite unique for our area, hat two different dialects were kept alive in Semlak all along. The Lutherans speak a Rhenish-francon "fest" (as in Oktoberfest, MK),whereas the Reformeds speak a Rhenish-francon "fesht" version. These dialects had already developed in Mezoeberenyi and Balmazujvaros.

Semlak has always been a place where a number of different nationalities were living side by side. We will concentrate here primarily on the Germans. The Lutherans built their first school already in 1822 and they operated their own school system in German right until 1948. In 1829 the congregation received its first pastor, but it took until 1845 before the church of today was built. The Reformeds were at first in partnership with them. In 1838 they built their first school, in which until 1885 the church services were also conducted. They, too had their own church-run school until the educational reform of 1948. On account of their Evangelical faiths, the Germans of Semlak were leaning culturally more towards Hungary, until the end of World War I, rather towards the Banat. Only in 1923 did the Lutheran congregation join the Synod of the Saxons of Transylvania.

The Germans of Semlak were always the second largest group after the Romanians. A statistic of 1848 indicates that there were 2630 Romanians, 1883 Germans, and 987 members of other nationalities (Hungarians, Slovaks, Serbs, Jews, Gypsies, Ruthenians) living in Semlak. In 1890 there were 2419 Germans in the town of 6321. Towards the end of the 19th century a considerable decline in their numbers took place. In order to find more living space Germans did not only emigrate to overseas countries, but also to Serbia and even to Bulgaria. Fifty one young men lost their lives during World War I. This caused a considerable decline in births. Thus the number of Germans in the community had dropped to 1873 by 1930, and rose to 221 by 1941.

The events around World War II caused a steady reduction of Germans in Semlak. 104 young men died as members of the Romanian and German armies, 27 young men and women fell victim to the deportation to labour camps in the Soviet Union, and many of the ones who fled to the West in the fall of 1944, never returned. In 1977 there were 1065 Germans left, but only about 200 by 1994.

The Germans of Semlak were settled as farmers, and most of them remained in that occupation until the expropriation of 1945. The trades people belonged largely to other nationalities. The cultural life revolved until 1941 largely around the churches. In 1925 the Evangelical cultural hall was built on the initiative of Andreas Gottschick. In it many cultural events, even operettas took place. In 1931 the Evangelical men's choir "Brudertreu" (Brother-loyal) was founded. It was affiliated with the Huber-Gruenn-Group of the German Choirs Association of the Banat. The consecration of its flag took place on August 27, 1933. Many choirs from the Banat took part in this event. It was the largest festival that the town ever witnessed. As the national awakening between the two world wars became a fact, more German associations were formed:

In:

1932 one Evangelical and one Reformed ladies club. 1934 the German Citizens Reading club. 1936 the Producers Co-operative. 1939 the Swabian Farmers Association (Chairman Georg Schmidt, Vice Chairman Friedrich Schilling), and the trades people's club. In the political life, the Germans of Semlak always played a minor role, as they were only the second largest group. With Friedrich Schilling in the 19th century and Georg Wagner in the 1970s, they only occupied the mayor's chair twice. The German political parties between the world wars found little attention. Only towards the end of the 1930s and up to the end of World War II was there some political engagement noticeable .

The beginning of an economic upturn just prior to World War II was destroyed by the latter. Following the expropriation of 1945, the Germans of Semlak, who had been mostly farmers, were facing economic ruin. They became day-laborers at the state-owned farms, formed from their own fields. In 1952 two collectively-owned farms were formed and many Germans joined them. Many younger people chose different occupations and others attended higher schools in the nearby cities. Especially after the railroad connection to the county seat Arad was completed, many "Semlakers" commuted to work there in one of the many factories.

Following the educational reform of 1980 slowly a strong German school developed. It eventually became part of the local public school system until the end of the 1980s. Thanks to the devoted teachers of this school, an active cultural life flourished from 1950 right to the emigration. The teachers Jakob Schmidt, Alfred Mueller, Katharina Gal, Michael Jost, as well as the lay-artists Georg Kaiser, Josef Haibach and many more deserve acknowledgement.

Beginning with the 1970s the great wave of emigration to Germany, which reached its climax with the Romanian "revolution", took a hold of Semlak, too. The few Germans remaining in Semlak have founded a local branch of the Democratic Forum of Germans. Under the leadership of Pastor Walter Sinn they strive to maintain our traditions. The 175th anniversary of the settlement of the first Germans in Semlak, in August 1994, was celebrated with a large festival.

Since 1980 regular reunions of the former "Semlakers" take place in Germany. At the third reunion in Ingolstadt, May 22, 1983, the Home Town Association (Heimatortsgemeinschaft, HOG) was founded. Its first chairman was Heinrich Schubkegel (1938-1991). In 1991 Georg Schmidt was elected chairman. At the general meeting on Pentecost 1997, the Association adopted its bylaws and it has been recognized as an organization whose main purpose is to further and cherish the ties between fellow Semlakers, as well as their descendents, in close co-operation with the Association of the Swabians of the Banat.

The Home Town Association, under the editorship of Georg Schmidt produces and distributes the newsletter "Heimatbrief", in which studies and reports concerning the Association, as well as the history and traditions of the Germans of Semlak are being published.