Hernádszentandrás

May I greet you with much love on behalf of the population of this ancient Hungarian settlement.
In a short while you will be getting to know a village in Abaúj that can be proud of its past, is doing the best it can in the present and is working diligently and with responsibility on the foundation of its own future.
Please do get to know us and visit us! The gates of Hernádszentandrás are wide open before you!

Hernádszentandrás is a small village in the county called Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and has a population of 425 people. It is situated in the south of Hernád-valley between the rivers of Nagy-Hernád and Kis-Hernád. It lies 8 kms from Encs - the centre of this region, 35 kms from Miskolc and 6 kms from Miskolc-Hidasnémeti high way.

The settlement was named after the patron saint of its church, Saint Andrew. The word "Hernád" was added to the name later on and refers to the river flowing by the village.
Around 1310 the village was owned by the Fuggi family, later it belonged to the Doby and Abady families.
The village is still called "noble" Hernádszentandrás by the villagers and by those living nearby. The existing documents show that with few exception everyone was called noble lord or lady. It was not motivated by wealth, rather by origin. There were also smallholders and cottars working in their fields living in this completely Hungarian village.
During its history Hernádszentandrás has always been a community with a mentality of high standards and industriousness. In comparison it has given a lot more highly educated people to the nation than the neighbouring villages.

Hernádszentandrás is a quiet, easily approachable village which is rich in natural resources. People traditionally work in agriculture. The air is clear and there is nothing around here that would change this positive feature.
Our little village lies in picturesque surroundings and the River Hernád being so close, makes it even more wonderful.
There are all the necessary buildings in the village that are needed for community life.
In the past years the village has achieved great things as far as infrastructural development is concerned. We have a network of telephone cabels, drinking water, drainpipe and gas piping and by the middle of 2005 the cabel television system was also completed.
The recently won projects were aimed at the following points of interest: developing the countryside tourism, village community life, taking care of old people, help in living healthy way of life and helping different areas of employing people.

As for tourism, we are considering developing two main areas in the near future.
One of the planned projects is cleaning and tidying the stagnant water belonging to the River Kis-Hernád which is fed by springs. After buying and landscaping the 5-6 ha area belonging to it, it could be used as a tourist attraction (camps, weekend houses, leisure parks, boating facilities, adventure-park, fishing and birdwatching hides) and a fishing area. After accomplishing all this, the area would be attached to the Memorial Park in the centre of the village by a decorative wooden bridge.
The other planned project is the renovation of the pillar-structured, porched school building which was built in 1879. It is out of use at the moment. We would give it new functions, suh as a place for camps, courses for adults, accommodation, and a complex village centre for different programmes. We could make facilities for a forestry school and get in touch with schools from neighbouring towns in order to organize educational camps there.
Besides, there is an opportunity to establish a House of Hungarian Festivals which would introduce not only the state festivals but also the festivities with old documents, traditional costumes, articals for personal use and gastronomy.
This building may play a greater role in the village's life by having a modern plumbing, a new system of heating, having a converted loft and a beautiful garden with benches.

Some typical numbers of the local residents: 25% are of old age, 30% are under 18, 30-35% of the adult population - mainly skilled workers - are unemployed. There is a trust working in the village that helps reaching the goals set by village with its own means.
As far as the work of the local government is concerned , we have been extremely busy in recent months. The times in which our standard could be upheld without significant input are over. The resources provided by the government are simply not enough in themselves.

The projects might be very useful but they do not solve many of our problems. We need ourselves, our own strong points and our own work to be able to move on.
If we do not care for our own values, if we do not mind our own household, sooner or later there will be nothing attractive left in Hernádszentandrás.
But when we act, our village can be a bright spot in Abaúj where the locals can feel more at home and the guests can have pleasant experiences and it can help the village to make a name for itself.
In Western Europe, more so in the West part of Hungary, people living in villages are beginning to realize that they are able to do a great deal to make their village more beautiful and to launch serious development. We are lagging behind and we need many years of hard work to accomplish significant changes.

The future results depend on our ability to represent the following motto in our working day:
"..Leading means actions, not status..."

Address:
Hernádszentandrás Község Önkormányzata
H-3852 Hernádszentandrás
Fő út 41.
Phone: +36 46 456-201; +36 20 392 2784
E-mail: hernadszentandras@gmail.com; uveges.mail@gmail.com
Homepage: www.hernadszentandras.hu

Click here to see Photos of the village. Topics and comments are only in hungarian.