Heves County

Heves County
Heves megye
Counties of Hungary
Mount Bél Stone in Bükk National Park
Kékes (the highest point in Hungary)
City view from Castle of Eger
Descending, from top: Bél Stone near Bélapátfalva, View of Kékes, and View from Castle of Eger
Flag of Heves County
Flag
Coat of arms of Heves County
Coat of arms
Heves County within Hungary
Heves County within Hungary
Country Hungary
RegionNorthern Hungary
County seatEger
Districts
7 districts
Government
 • President of the General AssemblyRóbert Szabó (Fidesz-KDNP)
Area
 • Total
3,637.21 km2 (1,404.33 sq mi)
 • Rank16th in Hungary
Population
 (2022)
 • Total
285,892
 • Rank14th in Hungary
 • Density78.6020/km2 (203.578/sq mi)
GDP
 • TotalHUF 776 billion
€2.492 billion (2016)
Postal code
300x – 304x,
32xx – 33xx
Area code(s)(+36) 36, 37
ISO 3166 codeHU-HE
Websitehevesmegye.hu

Heves county (Hungarian: Heves megye, pronounced [ˈhɛvɛʃ]) lies in northern Hungary, between the right bank of the river Tisza and the Mátra and Bükk mountains. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Pest, Nógrád, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok. Eger is the county seat.

Tourist sights

Geography

Heves county is a geographically diverse area; its northern part is mountainous (the Mátra and Bükk are the two highest mountain ranges in Hungary), while at south it includes a part of the Great Hungarian Plain. From south it is bordered by Lake Tisza, the largest artificial lake in Hungary. The average temperature is between 8 and 10 °C (higher on the southern parts of the county).

Rivers

Highest point

Lowest point

History

The county was a primary target for the Ottoman Empire during the Ottoman-Hungarian Wars where the Siege of Eger took place.

Demographics

The population of Heves County was 285,892 as of the 2022 Census, with a population density of 79 individuals per square kilometer (79/km2). The number of households was 118,802 and the number of families was 77,333. Since the 2011 Census, the population decreased by 22,990 (-7.4%).

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1870 205,146—    
1880 203,338−0.9%
1890 227,156+11.7%
1900 249,354+9.8%
1910 275,181+10.4%
1920 292,290+6.2%
1930 312,085+6.8%
1941 319,043+2.2%
1949 316,273−0.9%
1960 347,856+10.0%
1970 340,146−2.2%
1980 350,360+3.0%
1990 334,408−4.6%
2001 325,727−2.6%
2011 308,882−5.2%
2022 285,892−7.4%
Source:

Ethnicity

In the 2022 Census, the vast majority (85.9%) of the population identified as Hungarian. A minority of 5.9% identified as belonging to another ethnic group and 11.4% of the population did not respond. The ethnic groups most identified with were Romani (4.8%), German (0.2%), and Ukrainian (0.2%). Small numbers identified as Slovak (344), Romanian (324), Ruthenian (112), or other domestic ethnic groups (365) or other groups (757).

In the 2011 Census, 83.4% of the population identified as Hungarian. Less than a tenth (7.1%) of the population identified as belonging to another ethnic group and 13.9% did not respond. Romani made up 6.3% of the population, German (0.2%), Slovak (0.2%) and Romanian (0.1%). Small numbers identified as other domestic ethnic groups (534) or other groups (563).

Religion

Religion in Heves County (2022 census – of those who declared their religion (60.7%))
  1. Roman Catholic (63.4%)
  2. Calvinistic (7.20%)
  3. Greek Catholic (0.80%)
  4. Lutheran (0.50%)
  5. Other Christian denomination (4.40%)
  6. Other religion (0.40%)
  7. Not religious (23.3%)

In the 2022 Census, just over half of the population (51.4%) were religious adherents. The largest religious community was Roman Catholic (38.5%). Other communities included Calvinist (4.4%), Greek Catholic (0.5%), Lutheran (0.3%), Orthodox Christian (0.1%), Other Christian denomination (1.7%), and other religious affiliations (0.2%). Small numbers (less than 100) were affiliated with Judaism. The non-religious made up 14.1% of the population. More than a third (39.0%) of the population did not respond.

In the 2011 Census, 59.2% of the population were religious adherents. The largest religious community was Roman Catholic (52.1%). Others included Calvinist (4.8%), Greek Catholic (0.4%), Lutheran (0.4%), Other Christian denomination (1.3%), and other religious affiliations (0.2%). Small numbers were affiliated with Judaism and Orthodox Christianity. Atheists made up (1.0%) of the population and other non-religious made up 14.0%. Just over a quarter (25.8%) of the population did not respond.

In 1930, the population was 91.6% Roman Catholic, 5.2% Calvinist, 2.4% Jewish, 0.5% Lutheran, and others (0.3%).

Regional structure

District of Heves County
Gyöngyös 1938
No. English and
Hungarian names		 Area
(km2)		 Population
(2022)		 Density
(pop./km2)		 Seat No. of
municipalities
1 Bélapátfalva District
Bélapátfalvai járás		 180.89 7,817 43 Bélapátfalva 8
2 Eger District
Egri járás		 602.05 80,419 134 Eger 22
3 Füzesabony District
Füzesabonyi járás		 578.55 28,345 49 Füzesabony 16
4 Gyöngyös District
Gyöngyösi járás		 750.78 66,931 89 Gyöngyös 25
5 Hatvan District
Hatvani járás		 352.16 50,266 143 Hatvan 13
6 Heves District
Hevesi járás		 697.68 33,189 48 Heves (town) 17
7 Pétervására District
Pétervásárai járás		 475.07 18,925 40 Pétervására 20
Heves County 3,637.25 285,892 79 Eger 121

Politics

Countyhall of Heves

County Assembly

The Heves County Council, elected at the 2024 local government elections, is made up of 15 counselors, with the following party composition:

Party Seats Current County Assembly
  Fidesz-KDNP 9                  
  Our Homeland Movement 2                  
  Democratic Coalition 2                  
  Momentum Movement 1                  
  Jobbik 1                  

Presidents of the General Assembly

List of presidents since 1990
Róbert Szabó (Fidesz-KDNP)2014–

Members of the National Assembly

The following members elected of the National Assembly during the 2022 parliamentary election:

ConstituencyMemberParty
Heves County 1st constituency Gábor Pajtók Fidesz–KDNP
Heves County 2nd constituency László Horváth Fidesz–KDNP
Heves County 3rd constituency Zsolt Szabó Fidesz–KDNP

Municipalities

Heves County has 1 urban county, 10 towns, 3 large villages and 107 villages.

City with county rights

(ordered by population, as of 2011 census)

Towns
Large villages
Villages

International relations

Heves County has a partnership relationship with:

References and notes

References
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Census database". Census database. Hungarian Central Statistical Office. Retrieved 2025-10-24.
  2. ↑ Regions and Cities > Regional Statistics > Regional Economy > Regional GDP per Capita, OECD.Stats. Accessed on 16 November 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "Regional data – Heves county". Population Census 2011. Hungarian Central Statistical Office. Retrieved 2025-10-24.
  4. ↑ 2011. ÉVI NÉPSZÁMLÁLÁS, 3. Területi adatok, 3.10 Heves megye, (in Hungarian) Archived 2017-02-02 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Nemzeti Választási Iroda - Helyi önkormányzati választások". vtr.valasztas.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2024-10-26.
  6. ↑ "Megyei közgyűlés tagjai 2019-2024 (Heves megye)". valasztas.hu. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  7. ↑ Önkormányzati választások eredményei (in Hungarian)
  8. ↑ "Heves megye parlamenti képviselői (Parlamenti Információs Rendszer 2022-)" (in Hungarian). Hungarian National Assembly.
  9. ↑ "Hargita Heves megye testvérmegyéje lett | EgerHírek". 15 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "Bővítenék a kapcsolatokat".
Notes
  1. 1 2 Individuals were able to identify with multiple ethnic groups, so the percentages may not add up to 100%.

47°50′N 20°15′E / 47.833°N 20.250°E / 47.833; 20.250