Солтүстік-Шығыс Венгрия: Саболч-Сатмар-Берег округі

County of Hungary

Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg (Szabolcs Szatmár Bereg vármegye, ) is an administrative county (Hungarian: vármegye) in north eastern Hungary, bordering Slovakia (Košice Region), Ukraine (Zakarpattia Oblast), and Romania (Bihor and Satu Mare counties). It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Hajdú––Bihar and Borsod–Abaúj–Zemplén. The capital of Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg county is Nyíregyháza. Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg County was organised after World War II from the previous counties Szatmár–Ugocsa–Bereg and Szabolcs. Before 1991 it was called Szabolcs Szatmár County.

Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg is in the north eastern tip of Hungary. It borders Ukraine (Zakarpattia Oblast), Slovakia (Košice Region), and Romania (Bihor and Satu Mare counties), and has good connections both by road and rail. Within Hungary, the county is bordered by Borsod–Abaúj–Zemplén County and the Tisza River to the north west and Hajdú–Bihar County to the south west. The early Hungarians transformed this region significantly by clearing large areas of forest to make way for pastures and farmland. Approximately 5 to 6 square kilometres of forest were cleared for the construction of the Szabolcs earthwork in the ninth and tenth centuries, and its ruins are still present. The area was the gateway for the Mongol invasion of Hungary in the 1240s, and suffered considerable destruction and population decrease during the raids. With the subsequent development of the country, the region became even more marginalized in the 15th century. Ongoing civil war, rebellion, and war exacted a heavy price and further hindered the region's development. The county's borders have been altered frequently over the years, its current territory being established in 1950 with the amalgamation of the counties of Szabolcs–Ung and Szatmár–Bereg–Ugocsa. There are many forests, fields, pastures, meadows, and moorland forests in the county. The bog moss moors at Csaroda, the Nyíres lake, and the Bábtava lake are especially valuable, as they contain many rare species of fauna and flora. Szabolcs Szatmár Bereg is Hungary's sixth biggest county with a total land area of From a geographical aspect, it is possible to divide the county into two main regions: The Upper Tisza Valley and the Nyírség. Tisza is one of the most important rivers of the county, entering Szabolcs Szatmár Bereg — and Hungary — at Tiszabecs, and leaving at Tiszadob. Its segment in Szabolcs Szatmár Bereg county is 235 kilometres long, out of which belongs to the Upper Tisza Valley, reaching the area of Tokaj and Rakamaz. The larger area named the Nyírség is derived from the word nyír meaning birch, as the region is dominated by birch woodlands. The northern part of Nyírség is covered with sandy forest soils, the southern areas have loose wind blown sand. Alluvial and meadow soils are found in the Upper Tisza region. The county has a continental climate; it is cooler than the Great Plain because it is further north. Summers are cooler than in other parts of the Plains. Annual precipitation is 550–600 millimetres. The higher than average number of days of sunshine make ideal conditions for the growing of tomatoes, sunflower, tobacco, apples, and other fruits such as plums—for which the county is famous, being eaten fresh, dried into prunes (some made into lekvar) and fermented into well known brandies. The county has 229 settlements, of which 20 are towns. The county capital and largest city is Nyíregyháza with a population of 116,900 in 2003. The other cities have relatively small populations, only those of Kisvárda and Mátészalka having around 18,000 inhabitants. The eastern part of the county is lightly populated and is dotted with small villages which often have very poor economic conditions.

The Upper Tisza region has many streams and rivers, but the Nyírség region has little surface water. The most important of Tisza's tributaries is the river Szamos, which is also characterised by great variations in water volume. There are irrigation systems, a water barrage, and a hydroelectric power station on the Tisza at Tiszalök. Lakes of various sizes have evolved in sandy areas such as the basin of the Sóstó (Salty lake) of Nyíregyháza, whose alkaline, hydrogen carbonated waters have medicinal qualities. Many water reservoirs have been built according to local demand. Thermal waters of 55–65 °C can be brought to the surface from wells as shallow as 1,000 metres. The most important thermal water reserves are in Nyíregyháza, Kisvárda, Mátészalka, and Tiszavasvári. The county's geothermal energy still awaits exploitation. The county has relatively few mineral reserves. Almost all of the large energy source transport systems cross the county.

In 2015, it had a population of 562,357 and the population density was 92/km². Year County population Change 1949 558,098 n/a 1960 586,451 5.08% 1970 565,557 3.56% 1980 593,829 (record) 5.00% 1990 572,301 3.63% 2001 582,256 1.74% 2011 559,272 3.95%2015 562,357 0.55%2018 558,361 0.71%

№English andHungarian namesArea (km²)Population (2011)Density (pop./km²)Seat№ ofmunicipalities1Baktalórántháza District Baktalórántházai járás 254.47 19,123 75Baktalórántháza122Csenger District Csengeri járás 246.51 13,485 55Csenger113Fehérgyarmat District Fehérgyarmati járás 707.37 37,259 53Fehérgyarmat504Ibrány District Ibrányi járás 304.91 23,679 78Ibrány85Kemecse District Kemecsei járás 246.41 22,066 90Kemecse116Kisvárda District Kisvárdai járás 523.09 56,114 107Kisvárda237Mátészalka District Mátészalkai járás 624.70 64,015 102Mátészalka268Nagykálló District Nagykállói járás 377.36 30,403 81Nagykálló89Nyírbátor District Nyírbátori járás 695.94 43,040 62Nyírbátor2010Nyíregyháza District Nyíregyházi járás 809.61 168,118 208Nyíregyháza1511Tiszavasvári District Tiszavasvári járás 381.61 27,684 73Tiszavasvári612Vásárosnamény District Vásárosnaményi járás 617.94 35,323 57Vásárosnamény2813Záhony District Záhonyi járás 145.95 18,963 130Záhony11 Szabolcs Szatmár Bereg County 5,935.83 559,272 94Nyíregyháza229

The county borders three countries, and it is the only Hungarian county bordering Ukraine. The railway border crossing toward Ukraine is well developed; its high capacity is able to meet the requirements of transit and bilateral trade. Following the reconstruction of the road border crossing, the county is also able to cope with increased road transportation. Several regions in the county have tourism potential, mostly unexploited. Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg has several agricultural products of excellent quality, with capacity for higher production. There is an abundance of low cost, semiskilled labour. The county's biggest problem is the economic crisis. There is a shortage of local capital and inward investment, which restrains the creation of new jobs, thus the unemployment rate remains the second highest in Hungary. Manufacturing lags the rest of the country, most notably lacking high quality, high value added products. The marginal soil quality limits the scope of agricultural production to a few products which suffer from shrinking export markets to the east. It is home to the Szakoly Power Plant.