Szamosközy István
Encyclopedia
Szamosközy István was a Hungarian
humanist
and historian
.
, Romania
) to a Calvinist family. He completed his studies at Heidelberg
and Padova. In 1593 he returned to Hungary and started to work in Gyulafehervar (present day Alba Iulia
, Romania
) for the archive of the Transylvanian court. There he started collecting materials and writing his major work on Hungarian history
.
Stephen Bocskai nominated him as the official court historian.
His unfinished Hungarian history was never published but parts are extant in many manuscript copies. Bethlen Farkas saved longer parts in his Transylvanian history. He designed his work based on the example of Antonio Bonfini
's Decades (Tenths). Szilagyi Sandor published Szamosközy's works in four volumes in Szamosközy törteneti maradvanyai, Budapest 1876–1880.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
humanist
Renaissance humanism
Renaissance humanism was an activity of cultural and educational reform engaged by scholars, writers, and civic leaders who are today known as Renaissance humanists. It developed during the fourteenth and the beginning of the fifteenth centuries, and was a response to the challenge of Mediæval...
and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
.
Life
Szamosközy was born in Kolozsvar (present day Cluj-NapocaCluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) to a Calvinist family. He completed his studies at Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
and Padova. In 1593 he returned to Hungary and started to work in Gyulafehervar (present day Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) for the archive of the Transylvanian court. There he started collecting materials and writing his major work on Hungarian history
History of Hungary
Hungary is a country in central Europe. Its history under this name dates to the early Middle Ages, when the Pannonian Basin was colonized by the Magyars, a semi-nomadic people from what is now central-northern Russia...
.
Stephen Bocskai nominated him as the official court historian.
Works
- In Padova he published a Collection of RomanAncient RomeAncient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
inscriptions in DaciaDaciaIn ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range... - he published also a numismatic treatise
His unfinished Hungarian history was never published but parts are extant in many manuscript copies. Bethlen Farkas saved longer parts in his Transylvanian history. He designed his work based on the example of Antonio Bonfini
Antonio Bonfini
Antonio Bonfini was an Italian humanist and poet who spent the last years of his career as a court historian in Hungary with King Matthias Corvinus....
's Decades (Tenths). Szilagyi Sandor published Szamosközy's works in four volumes in Szamosközy törteneti maradvanyai, Budapest 1876–1880.
- Hebdomanes (Sevenths)
- Pentates (Fifths)http://www.antikvarium.hu/ant/book.php?func=gyorsszerzo&tipus=tema&kezdet=1&darab=50&talalat=15&rendezes=Cim_AZ&temakorID=0&sszam=2&ID=10069
- History of the year 1594