Project financed by
THE EUROPEAN UNION

Elek is a locality with many minorities. It belongs to Bekes region and it became town in 1996. For the first time the locality was mentioned in 1232. In the past it belonged to Arad district and Zarand district. The locality was occupied by the ottomans in 1551. The Hungarian historians think that the locality remained almost without inhabitants as a result of Turkish conquest in XVIII th century. In 1724 the Baron Johann Georg Harruken colonized Aletea with catholic germans.After the plague from 1739, another colonizing takes place in 1744. In the middle of the XVIII th century the inhabitants from Aletea were all germans. The Romanian inhabitants came in Aletea at the end of the XVIIIth  century, looking for work, they were coming from Romanian villages around Aletea. In 1854 the locality became market town and from 1871 it became residence of region.

 The Slovaks came in Elek in the XIXth century. After the second world war in the local society important changes have been made. An important number of german inhabitants were transported in Soviet Union, others were compelled to go in Germany. The Slovaks were also compelled to go in Czechoslovakia. In  locality were colonized Hungarians. Nowadays in Aletea are living together Hungarians, Romanians, few germans, Slovaks and some gypsies who are talking Romanian language. In Aletea there is a Romanian self government, a german self government and a gipsy self government. During the census from 2001 in Aletea were mentioned 201 romanians, but as the local authority say the number of the Romanian inhabitants is biger.

 In Aletea there is a huge catholic church patronized by the Saint Mary and it was hallowed in 1796. There also are an orthodox chapel from 1947, a big catholic grave yard in which were buried other minorities and orthodox grave yard which has at one of its sides a jewish grave yard. The town has a town hall, a library, a modern house of culture, a primary school and a primary Romanian school in which are studing gipsy children.

 In 2001 in the middle of the town was built a monument dedicated to those germans who were transported .

 Every year in Aletea there is a meeting of all the inhabitants of Aletea. They are gathering from all over the world to visit their relatives and birth places. It is a very good reason for those Germans and Slovaks who left Aletea to come visit once a year their relatives.

[Home] [About the project] [Research in Romania] [Research in Hungary] [Micherechi (Mehkerek)] [Aletea (Elek)] [Totkomlos] [Architecture] [Trades] [Storytellers] [Multimedia] [Contact]