Editing Burgenland

{{short description|Austrian state}}
{{About|the Austrian state Burgenland|the German district|Burgenlandkreis|the region in Romania known as Burzenland in German|Țara Bârsei}}{{Refimprove|date=February 2025}}{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->| official_name      = Burgenland
| native_name        = 
| native_name_lang   = de
| settlement_type    = [[States of Austria|State]]
| image_flag         = Flag of Burgenland.svg
| flag_size          = 120px
| image_shield       = Burgenland Wappen.svg
| shield_size        = 75px
| anthem             = "[[Mein Heimatvolk, mein Heimatland]]"<br />{{center|}}
| image_map          = Burgenland in Austria.svg
| coordinates        = 
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = {{AUT}}
| seat_type          = Capital
| seat               = [[Eisenstadt]]
| leader_party       = [[Social Democratic Party of Austria|SPÖ]]
| leader_title       = [[List of governors of Burgenland|Governor]]
| leader_name        = [[Hans Peter Doskozil]]
| area_total_km2     = 3680
| population_footnotes = 
| population_total   = 301250
| population_as_of   = 2023
| population_density_km2 = auto
| demographics_type1 = GDP
| demographics1_footnotes = <ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Basisdaten Bundesländer |url=http://wko.at/statistik/bundesland/basisdaten.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061009193742/http://wko.at/statistik/bundesland/basisdaten.pdf |archive-date=2006-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=2023-09-01}}</ref>
| demographics1_title1 = Total
| demographics1_info1 = €9.498 billion (2021)
| demographics1_title2 = Per capita
| demographics1_info2 = €32,000 (2021)
| timezone1          = [[Central European Time|CET]]
| utc_offset1        = +1
| timezone1_DST      = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST    = +2
| blank_name_sec1    = [[Human Development Index|HDI]] (2022)
| blank_info_sec1    = 0.890<ref name="GlobalDataLab">{{Cite web|url=https://hdi.globaldatalab.org/areadata/shdi/|title=Sub-national HDI – Area Database – Global Data Lab|website=hdi.globaldatalab.org|language=en|access-date=2018-09-13}}</ref><br />{{color|green|very high}} · [[List of Austrian states by Human Development Index|9th of 9]]
| blank1_name_sec1   = 
| blank1_info_sec1   = 
| blank1_name_sec2   = [[Federal Council of Austria|Votes in Bundesrat]]
| blank1_info_sec2   = 3 (of 62)
| blank_name_sec2    = [[First level NUTS of the European Union#Austria|NUTS Region]]
| blank_info_sec2    = AT1
| iso_code           = AT-1
| website            = {{URL|www.burgenland.at}}
| footnotes          = 
| governing_body     = [[Landtag Burgenland]]
}}
'''Burgenland''' ({{IPA|de-AT|ˈbʊrɡn̩land|-|Burgenland.ogg}}; {{langx|hu|Őrvidék}}; {{langx|hr|Gradišće}}; [[Bavarian language|Austro-Bavarian]]: ''Burgnland''; [[Slovene language|Slovene]]: ''Gradiščanska''; {{langx|sk|Hradsko}}) is the easternmost and least populous [[Bundesland (Austria)|state]] of [[Austria]]. It consists of two [[statutory city (Austria)|statutory cities]] and seven rural districts, with a total of 171 municipalities. It is {{convert|166|km|abbr=on}} long from north to south but much narrower from west to east ({{convert|5|km|mi|0|abbr=on|disp=or}} wide at [[Sieggraben]]). The region is part of the [[Centrope]] Project. The name of Burgenland was invented/coined in 1922, after its territories became part of Austria. The population of Burgenland as of 1 January 2024 is 301,951. Burgenland's capital is [[Eisenstadt]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.hungarianhistory.com/lib/austria/The_Fate_of.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=July 30, 2023 |archive-date=April 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410093238/https://www.hungarianhistory.com/lib/austria/The_Fate_of.pdf |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>

==History==
The territory of present-day Burgenland was successively part of the [[Roman Empire]], the [[Hun Empire]], the [[Kingdom of the Ostrogoths]], the [[Italy|Italian]] [[Kingdom of Odoacer]], the [[Kingdom of the Lombards]], the [[Avar Khaganate]], the [[Frankish Empire]], Dominion Aba belonging to the [[Aba (family)]]; Aba – Koszegi, the [[Kingdom of Hungary]], the [[Habsburg monarchy]], the [[Austrian Empire]], [[Austria-Hungary]], and lastly [[Austria]].

Burgenland is the only Austrian province which has never been part of the [[Archduchy of Austria]], [[Holy Roman Empire]], [[German Confederation]] nor Austria-Hungary's [[Cisleithania]].

===Prehistory and antiquity===
From the 4th century BC, the area was dominated by [[Celts]] and in the 1st century AD it became part of the [[Roman Empire]]. During Roman administration, it was part of the province of [[Pannonia]], and later part of the provinces of [[Pannonia Superior]] (in the 2nd century) and [[Pannonia Prima]] (in the 3rd century). During the late Roman Empire, Pannonia Prima province was part of larger administrative units, such are [[Diocese of Pannonia]], [[Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum]] and [[Praetorian prefecture of Italy]].

=== Early Germanic states ===
[[File:MajorianEmpire.png|thumb|300px|right|The Ostrogothic Kingdom in Pannonia]]
The first [[Germanic people]] to settle in this region were the [[Ostrogoths]], who came to Pannonia in AD 380. The Ostrogoths became allies of [[Rome]] and were allowed to settle in Pannonia, being tasked to defend the [[Limes (Roman Empire)|Roman borders]]. In the 5th century, the area was conquered by the [[Huns]], but after their defeat, an independent Kingdom of the Ostrogoths in Pannonia was formed. The territory of present-day Burgenland became part of the Italian [[Kingdom of Odoacer]], but at the end of the 5th century the Ostrogothic king [[Theodoric the Great|Theodoric]] conquered this kingdom and restored Ostrogothic administration in western Pannonia.

In the 6th century, the territory was included in another Germanic state, the [[Kingdom of the Lombards]]. However, the Lombards subsequently left towards [[Italy]] and the area came under the control of the [[Avars (Carpathians)|Avars]]. For a brief period in the 7th century, the area became part of the [[Slavs|Slavic]] State of [[Samo]], however it subsequently came back under Avar control. After the Avar defeat at the end of the 8th century, the area became part of the [[Frankish Empire]]. After the [[Battle of Lechfeld]] (or [[Augsburg]]) in 955, new [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] settlers came to the area.<ref name="Fischer2011">{{cite book|author=Henry A. Fischer|title=Emigrants and Exiles: Book Three, Volume One|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wb5Wm76_6NsC&pg=PA252|date=23 February 2011|publisher=Author House|isbn=978-1-4567-4365-9|pages=252–}}</ref>

=== Medieval Kingdom of Hungary ===
In 1043, [[Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry III]] and King [[Samuel Aba of Hungary]] signed a peace treaty. On 20 September 1058, [[Agnes of Poitou]] and [[Andrew I of Hungary]] met to negotiate the border.<ref>Landeschronik Niederösterreich: 3000 Jahre in Daten, Dokumenten und Bildern, Seite 104, Karl Gutkas, C. Brandstätter, 1990.</ref> The area of Burgenland remained the western frontier of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary until the 16th century.

The majority of the population was Germanic, except for the Hungarian border guards of the frontier March (''[[Gyepű]]''). Germanic immigration from neighbouring Austria was also continuous in the Middle Ages.

===Habsburg administration===
[[File:Habsburg mortgages between 15th and 17th centuries.jpg|left|350px|thumb|Habsburg mortgages in Burgenland between the 15th and 17th centuries]]
In 1440 the territory of present-day Burgenland was controlled by the Habsburgs of Austria, and in 1463 the northern part of it (with the town of [[Kőszeg]]) became a mortgage-territory according to the peace treaty of [[Wiener Neustadt]]. In 1477 King [[Matthias Corvinus]] of Hungary had retaken the area, but in 1491 it was mortgaged again by King [[Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary]] to Emperor [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian I]]. In 1647 Emperor [[Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor|Ferdinand II]] returned it to the Kingdom of Hungary (which itself was a Habsburg possession in this time).

In the 16th century, the medieval [[Kingdom of Hungary (1526–1867)|Kingdom of Hungary]] lost its independence and its northwestern part that was not conquered by the Ottoman Empire was included in the Habsburg Empire. This Habsburg possession was known as [[Royal Hungary]] and it included territory of present-day Burgenland and western Hungary. [[Royal Hungary]] still had counties. What is today Burgenland was in those times the Moson, Sopron and Vas counties of Hungary.
[[File:Central europe 1572.png|thumb|The Kingdom of Hungary as divided into 3 parts]]

In the 16th and 17th centuries German [[Protestant]] refugees arrived in Western Royal Hungary to shelter from [[European wars of religion|the religious wars]] of the [[Holy Roman Empire]], particularly from the suppression of the Reformation in Austrian territories, then ruled by the staunchly Roman Catholic Habsburgs. After the Habsburg military victory against the Ottomans at the end of the 17th century, the Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary was enlarged to include much of the territory of the former medieval Kingdom of Hungary. In the 17th and 18th centuries the region of Western Hungary was dominated by the wealthy Catholic landowning families, for example the [[House of Esterházy|Esterházys]] and [[Batthyány]]s. In 1867, the Habsburg Empire was transformed into the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary.

===Dissolution of Austria-Hungary===
According to the 1910 census 291,800 people lived on the territory of present-day Burgenland. Among them 217,072 were German-speaking (74%), 43,633 Croatian-speaking (15%) and 26,225 (9%) Hungarian-speaking. [[Romani people|Roma people]] were counted according to their native language.

In December 1918, the [[Republic of Heinzenland]] was declared by Austrian politician [[Hans Suchard]] with the goal of the territory being annexed by Austria. However, it was taken over within two days by Hungary.

From March to August 1919, Burgenland was part of the [[Hungarian Soviet Republic]].

The area had also been discussed as the site of a [[Czech Corridor]] to Yugoslavia. The decision on "German West Hungary" (''Deutsch-Westungarn'') was fixed in the treaties of [[Treaty of Saint Germain|Saint Germain]] and [[Treaty of Trianon|Trianon]]. Despite diplomatic efforts by [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]], the victorious parties of World War I set the date of Burgenland's official unification with Austria for 28 August 1921. However, on that day sharpshooters with the support of Hungary prevented the establishment of Austrian police control and customs. [[Lieutenant Colonel]] [[Pál Prónay]] and his men, the [[Rongyos Gárda]], defended western Hungary from occupation by Austrian officials and forces of the Austrian [[Gendarmerie (Austria)|Gendarmerie]]. Prónay had help from Hungarians and Croatians who did not want to live under Austrian rule, leading to the [[Uprising in West Hungary]] in 1921. Prónay occupied the whole area and created the state of [[Lajtabánság]].

=== Ninth Austrian province ===
[[File:Venediger Protokoll vom 13. Oktober 1921.JPG|thumb|Protocol of Venice from Oct.13.1921]]
With the help of Italian diplomatic mediation in the [[Venice Protocol]], the crisis was resolved in the autumn of 1921, when Hungary committed to disarm the sharpshooters by 6 November 1921. This was in exchange for a plebiscite on the unification of certain territories, including Ödenburg ([[Sopron]]), the designated capital of Burgenland, and eight surrounding villages. [[1921 Sopron plebiscite|The vote]] took place from 14 to 16 December, and resulted in a clear (but doubted by Austria){{citation needed|date=January 2013}} vote of the people who inhabited the Sopron district to be part of Hungary. Consequently, the territory was incorporated into Austria, except for the Sopron district which was united with Hungary.<ref name="Marxer2012">{{cite book|author=Wilfried Marxer|title=Direct Democracy and Minorities|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jyWiNVe3cB0C&pg=PA17|date=27 February 2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-3-531-94304-6|pages=17–}}</ref><ref name="Smith2018">{{cite book|author=Leonard V. Smith|title=Sovereignty at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_z5MDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA147|year=2018|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-967717-7|pages=147–}}</ref><ref name="Bischof2017">{{cite book|author=Günter Bischof|title=Quiet Invaders Revisited: Biographies of Twentieth Century Immigrants to the United States|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vLt4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT126|date=12 July 2017|publisher=StudienVerlag|isbn=978-3-7065-5882-2|pages=126–}}</ref>

Further border adjustments were made in 1922 by the League of Nations border committee. After their decision was approved on 17 September, 10 Settlements were returned to Hungary. That included 8 settlements in the Pinka valley: Kisnarda, Nagynarda, Felsőcsatár, Alsócsatár, Németkeresztes, Magyarkeresztes, Horvátlövő and Pornóapáti, as well as Rendek (Liebing) and Rőtfalva (Rattersdorf) north of Kőszeg. The last two were handed back to Austria in a swap agreement on 22 November in exchange for Szentpéterfa and Ólmod.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Határ Ausztriával |url=https://trianon100.hu/blog-cikk/hatar-ausztriaval |access-date=2025-01-09 |website=trianon100.hu/ |language=hu}}</ref>
[[File:Krensdorf-Tormafalu-war memorial.jpg|thumb|A memorial in [[Krensdorf]] to soldiers who died in the two World Wars]]
In contrast to all the other present Austrian states, which had been part of [[Cisleithania]], Burgenland did not constitute a specific ''[[Crown Land|Kronland]]'', and when it was formed it did not have its own regional political and administrative institutions such as a ''[[Landtag]]'' (representative assembly) and ''[[Statthalter]]'' (imperial governor).

On 18 July 1922, the first elections for the parliament of Burgenland took place. Various interim arrangements were required due to the changeover from Hungarian to Austrian jurisdiction. The parliament decided in 1925 on [[Eisenstadt]] as the capital of Burgenland, and moved from the various provisional estates throughout the country to the newly built ''Landhaus'' in 1929.

The first Austrian census in 1923 registered 285,600 people in Burgenland. The ethnic composition of the province had changed slightly: the percentage of German speakers increased compared to 1910 (227,869 people, 80%) while the percentage of Hungarian speakers rapidly declined (14,931 people, 5%). This was due mainly to the emigration of the Hungarian civil servants and intellectuals after the territory was ceded to Austria.

In 1923, emigration to the [[United States|United States of America]], which started in the late 19th century, reached its climax; in some places up to a quarter of the population went overseas.

After the [[Nazi German]] ''[[Anschluss]]'' of Austria, the administrative unit of Burgenland was dissolved. Northern and central Burgenland joined the district of [[Reichsgau Niederdonau|Niederdonau]] (Lower Danube) while southern Burgenland joined [[Reichsgau Steiermark|Styria]].{{citation needed|date=December 2019}} The Jews of Burgenland were forced to emigrate in the immediate aftermath of the ''Anschluss''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Zalmon |first1=Milka |title=Forced Emigration of the Jews of Burgenland |journal=Yad Vashem Studies |date=2003 |volume=XXXI |pages=287–324 |url=https://www.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%207002.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050330054638/http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%207002.pdf |archive-date=2005-03-30 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The policy of [[Germanization]] also affected other minorities, especially [[Burgenland Croats]] and Hungarians. Minority schools were closed and the use of their native language discouraged.

In 1944, the Nazis began to build the ''[[South-east wall|Südostwall]]'' (South-east wall) with the help of mostly Jewish forced labor and collaborating inhabitants. Soviet troops crossed the Hungarian–Austrian border during the [[Vienna offensive]] and were only somewhat delayed by the unfinished fortifications. In the last days of the Nazi regime many executions and death marches of Jewish forced laborers took place.

=== Occupation ===
[[File:Austria Occupation Zones 1945-55 en.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|Burgenland under Soviet administration, 1945–1955]]
As of 1 October 1945 Burgenland was reestablished with Soviet support and given to the Soviet forces in exchange for [[Styria]], which was in turn occupied by the [[United Kingdom]].

Under Soviet occupation, people in Burgenland had to endure a period of serious mistreatment and an extremely slow economic progress, the latter induced by the presence of Soviet troops which discouraged investment. The Soviet occupation ended with the signing of the [[Austrian Independence Treaty]] of [[Vienna]] in 1955 by the Occupying Forces.

The brutally crushed [[1956 Hungarian Revolution|Hungarian Revolution]] on 23 October 1956 resulted in a wave of Hungarian refugees on the Hungarian-Austrian border, especially at the Andau Bridge ([[Brücke von Andau]]). They were received by the inhabitants of Burgenland with overwhelming hospitality.

In 1957, the construction of the "anti-Fascist Protective Barrier" resulted in a complete sealing off of the area under Soviet influence from the rest of the world, turning the Hungarian-Austrian border next to Burgenland into a deadly zone of minefields and barbed wire (on the Hungarian side of the border): part of the [[Iron Curtain]]. Even during the era of the Iron Curtain, local trains between the north and south of Burgenland operated as "[[Korridorzug|corridor train]]s" (''Korridorzüge'') – they had their doors locked as they crossed through Hungarian territory.

Between 1965 and 1971, the minefields were cleared because people were often harmed by them,{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}} even on the Austrian side of the border.

=== Recent history ===
[[File:Centrope_Map.svg|thumb|upright=2.0|Burgenland is part of [[Centrope]], a project establishing a multinational region in four [[Central Europe]]an states: [[Slovakia]], [[Austria]], [[Hungary]] and the [[Czech Republic]].|right]]
Despite Burgenland (especially the area around the [[Neusiedler See]]) always producing excellent wine, some vintners in Burgenland [[1985 Diethylene Glycol Wine Scandal|added illegal substances to their wine]] in the mid-1980s. When this was revealed, Austria's wine exports dwindled dramatically. After recovering from the scandal, vintners in Austria, and not only in Burgenland, started focusing on quality and mostly stopped producing low-quality wine.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}

On 27 July 1989, the [[foreign minister]]s of Austria and Hungary, [[Alois Mock]] and [[Gyula Horn]], cut the [[Iron Curtain]] in the village of [[Klingenbach]] in a symbolic act with far-reaching consequences.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Linke|first=Reinhard|date=2019-06-27|title=27. Juni 1989: Ein Foto verändert Europa|url=https://noe.orf.at/stories/3002107/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-08-15|website=noe.ORF.at|language=de|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628143716/https://noe.orf.at/stories/3002107/ |archive-date=2019-06-28 }}</ref> At the same time, the border crossing at Nickelsdorf (Austria) / Hegyeshalom (Hungary) was opened by the Hungarian border patrol and this enabled the escape of East Germans. Directly behind the wires special medic troops of the Austrian Red Cross awaited them and provided first assistance. Thousands of [[East Germany|East Germans]] fled to the West in this way. Again, the inhabitants of Burgenland received them with great hospitality. Later, this was often referred to as the beginning of [[German reunification]].{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}

After 1990 Burgenland regained its traditional role as a bridge between the western and eastern parts of [[Central Europe]]. In 2003 it joined an [[Interreg]] project [[Centrope]]. Cross-border links were further strengthened when [[Hungary]], [[Slovakia]] and the [[Czech Republic]] joined the [[European Union]] in 2004. All three countries became part of the [[Schengen Agreement|Schengen zone]] in late 2007, and border controls ceased to exist in the region.

In 2021, Burgenland grew by about 6,000 m<sup>2</sup>. This was due to the change of flood protection measures along the [[Lafnitz (river)|river Lafnitz]], which forms part of the border between Burgenland and Styria, in the late 1970s. As the course of the river changed somewhat along with the change of the flood protection measures, some areas belonging to Styria ended up to the east of the river and some areas belonging to Burgenland ended up to the west of the river. In 2010, it was decided by legislators together with the local councils that the areas to the west of the river would be part of Styria and the areas to the east of the river would be part of Burgenland, reflecting the perceptions and attitudes of the population. This decision was put into law in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|date=2021-08-09|title=Burgenland ist größer geworden (in German)|url=https://burgenland.orf.at/stories/3116218/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-08-15|website=burgenland.ORF.at|language=de|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809130245/https://burgenland.orf.at/stories/3116218/ |archive-date=2021-08-09 }}</ref>

== Geography ==

[[File:Unterwart Landschaft.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Unterwart]] Landscape ([[East Styrian Hills]])]]

Burgenland is the third-smallest of Austria's nine [[Provinces of Austria|states]] at {{convert|3,962|km2|abbr=on}}. The province's highest point is exactly on the border with [[Hungary]], on the [[Geschriebenstein]], {{convert|884|m|ft}} above sea level. The highest point entirely within Burgenland is 879 metres above sea level; the lowest point (which is also the lowest point of [[Austria]]) at {{convert|114|m|ft}}, is in the municipal area of [[Apetlon]].

Burgenland borders the Austrian states of  [[Styria]] to the southwest and [[Lower Austria]] to the northwest. To the east it borders [[Hungary]] ([[Vas County]] and [[Győr-Moson-Sopron County]]). In the extreme north and south there are short borders with [[Slovakia]] ([[Bratislava Region]]) and [[Slovenia]] ([[Mura Statistical Region]]) respectively.

Burgenland and Hungary share the [[Neusiedler See]] (Hungarian: ''Fertő-tó''), a lake known for its reeds and shallowness, as well as its mild climate throughout the year. The Neusiedler See is Austria's largest lake. It is a tourist attraction, bringing ornithologists, sailors, and wind and kite surfers into the region north of the lake.<ref name="Strunz2012">{{cite book|author=Gunnar Strunz|title=Burgenland: Natur und Kultur zwischen Neusiedler See und Alpen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Itrlw79NP9YC|year=2012|publisher=Trescher Verlag|isbn=978-3-89794-221-9}}</ref>

==Politics==
{{main|2020 Burgenland state election}}

Burgenland's provincial assembly ''([[Landtag]])'' has 36 seats. At the election held on [[2020 Burgenland state election|26 January 2020]], the [[Social Democratic Party of Austria|Social Democratic Party]] (SPÖ) won an [[absolute majority]] of 19 seats, the [[Austrian People's Party]] (ÖVP) won 11 seats, the [[Freedom Party of Austria|Freedom Party]] (FPÖ) won 4 seats and the [[Austrian Green Party|Green Party]] won 2 seats. The [[voting age]] for regional elections in Burgenland was reduced to 16 years in 2003.

== Economy ==
The province's [[gross domestic product]] (GDP) was €9 billion in 2018, accounting for 2.3% of Austria's economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was €27,300  or 90% of the EU27 average in the same year. Burgenland is the province with the lowest GDP per capita in Austria.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/10474907/1-05032020-AP-EN.pdf/81807e19-e4c8-2e53-c98a-933f5bf30f58 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417095003/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/10474907/1-05032020-AP-EN.pdf/81807e19-e4c8-2e53-c98a-933f5bf30f58 |archive-date=2020-04-17 |url-status=live|title=Regional GDP per capita ranged from 30% to 263% of the EU average in 2018|website=Eurostat}}</ref>

==Administrative divisions==
Burgenland consists of nine [[districts of Austria|districts]], two [[statutory city (Austria)|statutory cities]] and seven rural districts. From north to south:
[[File:Karte Aut Bgld.png|thumb|300px|right|Districts of Burgenland]]

=== Statutory cities ===
These combine the attributes of district and city.
* [[Eisenstadt]]
*[[Rust, Burgenland|Rust]]

===Rural districts===
* [[Neusiedl am See (district)|Neusiedl am See]] (administrative center [[Neusiedl am See]])
* [[Eisenstadt-Umgebung]] ([[Eisenstadt]])
* [[Mattersburg (district)|Mattersburg]] ([[Mattersburg]])
* [[Oberpullendorf (district)|Oberpullendorf]] ([[Oberpullendorf]])
* [[Oberwart (district)|Oberwart]] ([[Oberwart]])
* [[Güssing (district)|Güssing]] ([[Güssing]])
* [[Jennersdorf (district)|Jennersdorf]] ([[Jennersdorf]])

==Demographics==

=== Population development ===
{{Historical populations|1869|254,301|1880|270,090|1890|282,225|1900|292,426|1910|292,007|1923|285,698|1934|299,447|1939|287,866|1951|276,136|1961|271,001|1971|272,319|1981|269,771|1991|270,880|2001|277,569|2011|285,685|2021|297,506|align=right|cols=1|source=Censuses<ref>{{cite web |title=Historic Censuses - STATISTICS AUSTRIA|url=https://www.statistik.at/en/statistics/population-and-society/population/population-stock/historic-censuses|publisher=Statistics Austria}}</ref>}}The historical population is given in the following chart:
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  color:skyblue width:22 shift:(-60,-5) fontsize:M anchor:till
 bar:1869 from:0 till:254 text:254,301
 bar:1880 from:0 till:270 text:270,090
 bar:1890 from:0 till:282 text:282,225
 bar:1900 from:0 till:292 text:292,426
 bar:1910 from:0 till:292 text:292,007
 bar:1923 from:0 till:286 text:285,698
 bar:1934 from:0 till:299 text:299,447
 bar:1939 from:0 till:288 text:287,866
 bar:1951 from:0 till:276 text:276,136
 bar:1961 from:0 till:271 text:271,001
 bar:1971 from:0 till:272 text:272,319
 bar:1981 from:0 till:270 text:269,771
 bar:1991 from:0 till:271 text:270,880
 bar:2001 from:0 till:278 text:277,569
 bar:2011 from:0 till:286 text:285,685
 bar:2021 from:0 till:296 text:296,010

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 fontsize:M pos:(35,20)
 text:"Source: Statistik Austria"
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=== Minorities ===
Burgenland has notable [[Burgenland Croats|Croatian]] (130,000)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.enciklopedija.hr/clanak/gradiscanski-hrvati|title=Natuknica|language=hr}}</ref> and [[Hungarians in Austria|Hungarian]] (5,000–15,000) populations.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}} Croats number 30,000.

==== Croats ====
{{main|Burgenland Croats}}
The Croats arrived after the devastating [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] war in 1532, when the Ottoman army destroyed some settlements in their ethnic territory. The emigration in great haste of the remaining Catholic population of western [[Slavonia]] into Burgenland was – as far as possible – organized by estate owners. The archives of the [[Sabor]] (the Croatian parliament) from this period contain numerous references to such resettlements. As reported in the spring of 1538 by the [[Ban of Croatia]], Petar [[House of Keglević|Keglević]], who himself owned large estates in western Slavonia, that the country's population at the Ottoman border was preparing to emigrate.<ref>Kölner geographische Arbeiten, Ausgaben 15–18, Seite 69, Geographisches Institut der Universität zu Köln, 1963</ref> Their resettlement by estate owners was finished only in 1584. They have preserved their strong Catholic faith and their language until today, and in the 19th century their national identity grew stronger because of the influence of the National Revival in Croatia. Between 1918 and 1921 Croats opposed the planned annexation of West-Hungary to Austria, and in 1923 seven Croatian villages voted for a return to Hungary. The Croatian Cultural Association of Burgenland was established in 1934. In the Nazi era (1938–45) the Croatian language was officially prohibited, and the state pursued an aggressive policy of Germanization. The [[Austrian State Treaty]] of 1955 guaranteed minority rights for every native ethnic minority in Austria but Croats had to fight for the use of their language in schools and offices even in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2000 51 new bilingual village name signs were erected in Burgenland (47 Croatian and 4 Hungarian).

The [[Burgenland Croatian language]] is a 16th-century dialect which is different from standard Croatian. In minority schools and media the local dialect is used, and it has had a written form since the 17th century (the Gospel was first translated to this dialect in 1711). Today the language is endangered by assimilation, according to the UNESCO's [[Red Book of Endangered Languages]]. The Croats of Burgenland belong to the same group as their relatives on the other side of the modern-day border with Hungary.

==== Hungarians ====
Hungarians live in the villages of [[Oberwart]]/Felsőőr, [[Unterwart]]/Alsóőr and [[Siget in der Wart]]/Őrisziget. The three villages together are called [[Upper Őrség]] (Hun: ''Felső-Őrség'', German: ''Wart''), and they have formed a language island since the 11th century. The other old Hungarian language island in [[Oberpullendorf]]/Felsőpulya has almost disappeared today. The Hungarians of Burgenland were "''őrök''", i.e. guards of the western frontier, and their special dialect is similar to the [[Székelys]] in Transylvania. Their cultural centre is Oberwart/Felsőőr. Another distinct Hungarian group were the indentured agricultural workers living on the huge estates north of Neusiedler See. They arrived mainly from the [[Rábaköz]] region. After the dissolution of the manors in the mid-20th century this group ceased to exist.

==== Roma and Jews ====
In addition to Germans, Croats and Hungarians, Burgenland used to have substantial Roma and Jewish populations, but these were wiped out by the Nazi regime. Before their deportation during 1938, the traditionally very religious Burgenland Jews were concentrated in the famous "Seven Communities" ([[Siebengemeinden]]/Sheva kehillot) in [[Eisenstadt]], [[Mattersburg]], [[Kittsee]], [[Frauenkirchen]], [[Kobersdorf]], [[Lackenbach]] and [[Deutschkreutz]], where they formed a substantial part of the population: e.g. in Lackenbach, 62% of the population was Jewish as of 1869.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lackenbach History |url=https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/lackenbach/html/History.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241001165655/https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/lackenbach/html/History.html |archive-date=October 1, 2024 |access-date=October 1, 2024 |website=JewishGen KehilaLinks}}</ref> After the war, Jews from Burgenland founded the Jerusalem [[haredi]] neighbourhood of [[Kiryat Mattersdorf]], reminding of the original name of Mattersburg, once a centre of a famous yeshiva.

===Religion===
According to 2021 figures of [[Statistics Austria]], Burgenland's population is mostly Christian (80.3%), with the highest proportion of [[Protestant]]s in Austria (11.4%). 65.5% of the population are [[Roman Catholic]], and further 3.4% are adherents of other Christian denominations (mostly [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christians]]). [[Islam]] is practiced by 2.2%, while 0.7% profess another religion. 16.8% of Burgenland's inhabitants profess no affiliation with any religion or denomination.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.statistik.at/fileadmin/pages/439/Religion_2021_Bundesland.ods|title=Bevölkerung 2021 nach ausgewählter Religion bzw. Kirche und Religionsgesellschaft und Bundesland|language=de|publisher=[[Statistics Austria]]|format=ODS|access-date=22 July 2022}}</ref>

==Names==
In [[Slovak language|Slovak]], Burgendland is known as ''Hradsko''; in [[Croatian language|Croatian]] as ''Gradišće''; in [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] as ''Őrvidék'', ''Felsőőrvidék'' or ''Várvidék''; in [[Slovene language|Slovene]] as ''Gradiščanska''.

As the region was not a territorial entity before 1921, it never had an official name. Until the end of [[World War I]] the German-speaking western borderland of the Kingdom of Hungary was sometimes unofficially called ''Deutsch-Westungarn'' (German West Hungary). The historical region included the border city of [[Sopron]] in Hungary (known as Ödenburg in German).

The name ''Vierburgenland'' (Land of Four Castles) was created in 1919 by Odo Rötig, a Viennese resident of Sopron. It was derived from the four ''vármegye'' of the Kingdom of Hungary (in German ''Komitaten'', 'counties') known in Hungarian as [[Pozsony County|Pozsony]], [[Moson County|Moson]], [[Sopron County|Sopron]] and [[Vas County (former)|Vas]], or in German as Pressburg, Wieselburg, Ödenburg and Eisenburg. After the town of Pozsony/Pressburg ([[Bratislava]]) was assigned to [[Czechoslovakia]], the number ''vier'' was to be changed  to ''drei'' (=three), but after it became clear that none of the ''Burgen'' would be part of the Burgenland, the number was dropped completely but the name Burgenland was kept because it was deemed to be appropriate for a region with so many old frontier castles.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2011-11-11|title=Von den "vier Burgen" blieb nur eine|url=https://www.diepresse.com/707910/von-den-bdquovier-burgenldquo-blieb-nur-eine|url-status=live|access-date=2021-08-15|website=Die Presse|language=de|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112174913/https://www.diepresse.com/707910/von-den-bdquovier-burgenldquo-blieb-nur-eine |archive-date=2021-01-12 }}</ref> The "Burgenland" name was adopted by the first provincial Landtag in 1922.

In Hungarian the German name is generally accepted but there are three modern alternatives used by minor groups. The Hungarian translation of the German name, "Várvidék", was invented by [[László Juhász]], an expert of the region in the 1970s, and it is becoming increasingly popular especially in tourist publications. The other two names "Őrvidék" and "Felső-Őrvidék" are derived from the name of the most important old Magyar language island, the Felső-Őrség. This microregion is around the town Felsőőr/Oberwart, so these new names are a bit misleading; however they are sometimes used.

The Croatian and Slovenian names "{{lang|sh|Gradišće}}" and "{{lang|sl|Gradiščansko}}" are [[calque]]s of the German name. The village of [[Jennersdorf]] is no more than 5 kilometers from the Slovenian and Hungarian borders (see the [[United Slovenia]] movement).

Alternatively, the Serbs, Czechs and Slovaks call the western shores of the [[Neusiedler See]], the lake adjoining the town of Rust, Luzic or Lusic. However, the descendants of [[Serbs|Luzic Serbs]], [[Bosniaks]], [[Croats]], [[Czechs]] and [[Slovaks]] were eventually assimilated into the [[ethnic German]] or [[Magyarization|Hungarian]] cultures over four centuries.

The province has a long history of Slavic, as well Austrian-German and Hungarian-Magyar settlement. The province's easternmost portion (the shores of the Neusiedler See) carried its own topographical term ''Seewinkel'' in Austrian-German. This is the area least influenced by Austrian-German since the Hungarian and Slovak borders are less than 10 kilometers away.

==Symbols==
Heraldic description of the coat-of-arms of Burgenland:

:Or, standing upon a rock sable, an eagle regardant, wings displayed gules, langued of the same, crowned and armed of the first, on his breast an escutcheon paly of four, of the third and white fur, fimbriated of the field, and in dexter and sinister cantons two crosslets paty sable.

The arms were introduced in 1922 after the new province was created. They were composed from the arms of the two most important medieval noble families of the region, the counts of [[County of Nagymarton|Nagymarton]] and [[County of Fraknó|Fraknó]] (Mattersdorf-Forchtenstein, eagle on the rock) and the counts of [[County of Németújvár|Németújvár]] (Güssing, three bars of red and white fur).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://hu.wikibooks.org/wiki/C%C3%ADmerhat%C3%A1roz%C3%B3/Burgenland_c%C3%ADmere|title=Címerhatározó/Burgenland címere – Wikikönyvek|website=hu.wikibooks.org}}</ref>

The flag of the province shows two stripes of red and gold, the colours of the coat-of-arms. It was officially confirmed in 1971.

==Culture==
[[File:Wiener Blut Morbisch.jpg|thumb|{{center|[[Seefestspiele Mörbisch]]}}]]
The cultural offerings are diverse and especially in the summer famous for the [[Seefestspiele Mörbisch]] and the [[Nova Rock Festival]] with numerous international rockbands.

The permanent exhibition at [[Forchtenstein Castle]] shows an impressive collection of the dukes of [[Esterházy]], at whose court at [[Schloss Esterházy|Esterházy Palace]] worked the world-famous musician [[Joseph Haydn]], who composed from the [[Burgenland Croatian]] folk-song ''"V jutro rano se ja stanem"'' ("In the morning I rise up early") the melody of ''"[[Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser]]"'' ("God save Franz the Emperor"), which became the melody of today's [[national anthem of Germany]].<ref>Slavonic and East European review, Volume 34, page 2, University of London. School of Slavonic and East European Studies, Committee of American Scholars, Sir Bernard Pares, Robert William Seton-Watson, Harold Williams, Norman Brooke Jopson, Published by the Modern Humanities Research Association for the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University of London, 1955.</ref> There are also cultural events organized by the minorities such as Croatian or Hungarian folk evenings.

The dialect spoken in Burgenland is called Hianzisch.

People from Burgenland tend to be the butt of a [[joke cycle]] by people from other regions of Austria, similar to the [[Germany|German]] [[East Frisian jokes]]. These jokes portray people from Burgenland as dumb or slow on the uptake.<ref>[https://buzz.oe24.at/spass/die-lustigsten-burgenlaender-witze/180153401 Die lustigsten Burgenländer-Witze.] oe24.at, retrieved 22 March 2023.</ref><ref>[https://www.witze.tv/lustige-witze/burgenlaender-witze/ Burgenländer-Witze – Hier findest du die lustigsten!] witze.tv, retrieved 22 March 2023.</ref><ref>[https://witze.at/kategorie/37/burgenlaender/ Burgenländer-Witze]. witze.at, retrieved 22 March 2023.</ref>

== Media ==

=== Radio ===
*[[Radio OP]] (2009)

== References ==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Sources==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110204091043/http://hungarian-history.hu/lib/macartney2/8Burgen.pdf History of Burgenland] (archived link)

==Further reading==
* Imre, Joseph. "Burgenland and the Austria-Hungary Border Dispute in International Perspective, 1918–22." ''Region: Regional Studies of Russia, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia'' 4.2 (2015): 219–246.
* Swanson, John C. "The Sopron plebiscite of 1921: A success story." ''East European Quarterly'' 34.1 (2000): 81+ [https://www.proquest.com/openview/a01e00e6db118afb6bad196425cc5b7b/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=47966 link].

==External links==
{{Commons category|Burgenland}}
{{wikivoyage|Burgenland}}
* {{Official website}} {{In lang|de}}
* [https://www.burgenland.info/en Burgenland Tourism]
* [http://www.hrvatskicentar.at/ Burgenland-Croatian Center]
* [http://www.the-burgenland-bunch.org/ The Burgenland Bunch Genealogy Group]

{{States of Austria}}
{{Burgenland}}

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{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Burgenland| ]]
[[Category:NUTS 2 statistical regions of the European Union]]
[[Category:States of Austria]]
[[Category:Wine regions of Austria]]
[[Category:Countries and territories where Croatian is an official language]]
[[Category:History of Austria by location]]