Tokaj

Tokaj
Town
Flag Coat of arms
Tokaj
Coordinates: 48°07′17″N 21°24′45″E / 48.121443°N 21.412468°E / 48.121443; 21.412468
Country	Hungary
County	Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County
District	Gönc District
Government
• Mayor	György Posta
Area
• Total	28.2 km2 (10.9 sq mi)
Population  (2024)
• Total	3,743
• Density	130/km2 (340/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Website	tokaj.hu

Tokaj is a town in northern Hungary, in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County, where the Tisza and Bodrog rivers meet. It is a World Heritage Site and the seat of the Tokaj District.

It is the main town of the Tokaj Wine Region, not just for its wine making and sales, but also for its important position as a transport center.

Location

It is located around 54 kilometers east of Miskolc, in the Tokaj Wine Region, where the Tisza and Bodrog rivers meet, at the base of Kopasz Hill.

Connetion

The main road is Road 38, which you can reach from Szerencs and Nyíregyháza. It connects to Bodrogkeresztúr via road 3838, to Taktabáj via road 3619, and to other nearby small villages via road 3621.

The Mezőzombor-Nyíregyháza railway line is affected, with one stop here.

History

The area was first noted in writing in 1067, when it was already a wine area. The town was first called Tokaj in 1353. By the 14th century, there was a castle there. Because of the money from wine, Tokaj grew into a farming town and its population rose. In 1705, Ferenc Rákóczi II ordered the castle to be destroyed to keep it from being taken by others.

In the peaceful years of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Tokaj grew and improved, but this was stopped by the two world wars. In 1944, the German army first, followed by the Soviet army, took control of Tokaj.

After World War II, Tokaj grew slowly, and Sátoraljaújhely took over its main place in the wine trade. After the fall of communism in Hungary, Tokaj started to grow quickly again. Tokaj is a well-liked spot for tourists.

Population

In 2022, 93.1% of people said they were Hungarian, 0.5% German, 0.2% Ukrainian, 0.2% Greek, 0.2% Gypsy, 0.1% Croatian, 0.1% Romanian, 0.1% Rusyn, and 0.1% Slovak, while 3.2% identified as other non-Hungarians (6.7% did not respond; due to mixed identities, the total may be above 100%). By religion, 24.1% were Roman Catholic, 19.9% Reformed, 8.2% Greek Catholic, 1% other Christian, 0.6% Evangelical, 0.1% Jewish, 0.1% Orthodox, and 8.5% had no religion (37% did not answer).

Sights

• Historical Downtown
• Orthodox Church - The church was built in the late 1700s. The community was almost depopulated. However, the remaining Orthodoxes in the town still use the church.
• Roman Catholic Church - The 20th-century Neo-Romanesque church in the center of Tokaj was built in 1912.
• Greek Catholic Church - The oldest church in the town, built in 1700s.
• Reformed Church - The church was built between 1802-22 in the late Baroque style.
• Rákóczi-Dessewfy Castle - The castle was built around 1700 in Baroque style.
• Synagogue (Cultural Center) - The former synagogue, built in 1890, now operates as a Cultural Center.

Notes