Szentendre

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**Szentendre**
County	Pest
Area	43,83 km²
Population Total (2001) Density	23,119 527.47 /km²
Postal code	H-2000; H-2001
Area code	26

Photo of Szentendre's "Főtér" (Main Square)

Szentendre (Medieval Latin: Sankt Andrae; Serbian: Сентандреја or Sentandreja; German: Sankt Andrä; Slovak: Senondrej; Croatian: Sentandrija) is a riverside town in Pest county, Hungary, near the capital city of Budapest. Szentendre is known for its museums (most notably the Open-Air Ethnographical Museum), galleries, and artists. Due to its picturesque appearance and easy rail and river access, it has become a popular destination for tourists staying in Budapest and there are many shops and restaurants catering for these visitors.

1 History
2 The Arts
3 Ethnocultural Diversity
4 See also
5 External links
6 Notes
7 Gallery

[edit] History

Populated for well over a millennium, under the Romans it was called Ulcisia Castra, meaning Wolf Castle. Since the 1500s it was considered the center of the Hungarian Serb community. It is the see of the Buda Eparchy of the Serb Orthodox Church.

In the 1700s, after liberation from the Turks, Szentendre enjoyed a rebirth with Mediterranean leanings, as Serbian, Slovakian, German and Greek newcomers moved in and lived alongside the Magyar inhabitants. According to the 1720 data, 88% of the population of the town were Serbs (mostly Orthodox, but also some Catholics). ^[1] The town to this day is characterised by a south European atmosphere with much baroque architecture, churches of various faiths, narrow sidestreets, and cobble-stone roads.

[edit] The Arts

Szentendre is home to the Kovács Margit Múzeum, named after renowned ceramicist Margit Kovács (1902–1977) whose ceramic statues enjoy great popularity even today and are on permanent exhibition at the museum.