Pest, Hungary

Pest ( /ˈpɛst/; Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈpɛʃt]) is the eastern, mostly flat part of Budapest, Hungary, comprising about two thirds of the city's territory. It is divided from Buda, the other part of Budapest, by the Danube River. Among its most notable parts are the Inner City, including the Hungarian Parliament, Heroes' Square and Andrássy Avenue. In colloquial Hungarian, "Pest" is often used for the whole capital of Budapest.

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Etymology

The name Pest comes from a Slavic word meaning "furnace", "oven" (Bulgarian пещ ['peʃt]; Serbian "пећ/peć"), probably with reference to a local cave where fire burned. [1]

History

Pest was a separate independent city, references to which appear in writings dating back to 1148. In earlier centuries there were ancient Celtic and Roman settlements there. Pest became an important economic center during 11th–13th centuries. It was destroyed in the 1241 Mongol invasion of Hungary but rebuilt once again soon thereafter. In 1838 it was flooded by the Danube. In 1849 the first suspension bridge, the Széchenyi Chain Bridge, was constructed across the Danube connecting Pest with Buda. Consequently, in 1873, the two cities were unified with Óbuda to become Budapest.

Pest
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D
 
 
40
 
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−7
 
 
28
 
0
−6
 
 
29
 
5
−2
 
 
26
 
11
4
 
 
62
 
18
10
 
 
73
 
24
15
 
 
73
 
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18
 
 
89
 
25
17
 
 
67
 
21
13
 
 
52
 
14
7
 
 
60
 
7
2
 
 
51
 
2
−4
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm

Notable people

See also

References

Further reading

External links