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Khust (, ; ; ; ; ; ) is a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
located on the Khustets River in
Zakarpattia Oblast Zakarpattia Oblast (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпатська область), also referred to as simply Zakarpattia (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпаття; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kárpátalja'') or Transcar ...
, western
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
. It is near the сonfluence of the Tisa and Rika Rivers. It serves as the
administrative center An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgiu ...
of Khust Raion. Population: Khust was the capital of the short-lived republic of Carpatho-Ukraine.


Etymology

The name is most possibly related to the name of the stream Hustets or Husztica, which means "kerchief". It is also conceivable that the name of the city comes from a Romanian traditional food ingredient – husti. There are several alternative names used for this city: Ukrainian/: Хуст, Romanian: ''Hust'', Hungarian: ''Huszt'',
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
/ Slovak: ''Chust'', , .


History

The settlement was first mentioned as ''terra'' ''Huzth'', in 1324. Its
castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
, supposed to be built in 1090 by the king St. Ladislaus of Hungary as a defence against the
Cumans The Cumans or Kumans were a Turkic people, Turkic nomadic people from Central Asia comprising the western branch of the Cumania, Cuman–Kipchak confederation who spoke the Cuman language. They are referred to as Polovtsians (''Polovtsy'') in Ru ...
and destroyed during the Mongol invasion of Hungary, was mentioned in 1353. The town got privileges in 1329. In 1458 King Matthias imprisoned his uncle, the rebellious Mihály Szilágyi in the castle. In 1514, during
György Dózsa György Dózsa (or ''György Székely'', Romanian: ''Gheorghe Doja''; – 20 July 1514) was a Székely man-at-arms from Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary who led a peasants' revolt against the kingdom's landed nobility during the reign ...
's peasant revolt local peasants captured the castle. In 1526 the area became a part of
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
. The army of Ferdinand I captured the town in 1546. In 1594, the Tartars destroyed the town, but could not take the castle. The castle was besieged in 1644 by the army of George I Rákóczi, in 1657 by the Polish, and in 1661–62 by the Ottoman and Tartar hordes. Count Ferenc Rhédey, the ruling prince of Transylvania and high steward of
Máramaros County Máramaros County (; ; ; ; ; ) was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in north-western Romania and western Ukraine. The capital of the county was Máramarossziget (present-day Sighetu Marmație ...
died in the castle on 13 May 1667. The castle surrendered to the Kurucs on 17 August 1703, and the independence of Transylvania was proclaimed here. It was the last castle the Habsburgs occupied when suppressing the freedom fight of the Kurucs, in 1711. The seriously damaged castle was struck by lightning and burnt down on 3 July 1766; a storm brought down its tower in 1798, it has been in ruins ever since then. Khust was renamed as ''Csebreny'' in 1882 during
Magyarization Magyarization ( , also Hungarianization; ), after "Magyar"—the Hungarian autonym—was an assimilation or acculturation process by which non-Hungarian nationals living in the Kingdom of Hungary, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, adop ...
process. In 1861, Rabbi Moshe Schick, established what was, at that time, the largest
yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...
in the world, with over 800 students. In 1910 Khust had 10,292 citizens, 5,230 Ukrainians, 3,505
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...
and 1,535
Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...
. During World War I, a camp for Russian army prisoners of war was established in Khust. A monument to the dead of the first period of the war was constructed near the Castle. By 1919, the Soviets had established leadership of the region and the Hungarian Soviet Republic was proclaimed. On April 18, 1919, all of Zakarpattia was captured by Romanian troops and transferred to Czechoslovakia under the
Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (; ; ; ), often referred to in Hungary as the Peace Dictate of Trianon or Dictate of Trianon, was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace Conference. It was signed on the one side by Hungary ...
. After World War I, in summer 1919 the Rumanian troops took over the territory. But according to the St.-Germain treaty
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
received the city, as part of newly formed Podkarpatsko ("under the Carpathians") region (Subcarpathia). Czechoslovakia had to provide the region a wide autonomy, but autonomy was realised only in 1938. In Autumn 1938 an autonomous government was organized. The day after the collapse of Czechoslovakia on 14 March 1939, the Khust city government proclaimed, by the will of the local population and under the leadership of Avgustyn Voloshyn, independence as Carpathian Ukraine on 15 March 1939. The next day, 16 March 1939, Hungarian troops invaded Khust and claimed it as part of Hungary. On 24 October 1944 Soviet troops occupied the city, and annexed it into the Soviet Union. The Soviet government deported much of the city's German and Hungarian populations.


WWII and the Holocaust

Prior to 1939, Jews thrived in Khust and owned many businesses. When the city became part of Hungary in March 1939 again, many Jewish citizens were forced into labor camps. A ghetto was established, and Jews from other regions were forced to live there. Additional ghettos were established nearby in Iza and Szeklence (now Sokyrnytsia,
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
). By April 1944, most Jewish residents were killed at
Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...
. Prior to the war, there were 8 synagogues in the city. One survives and is in use today.


Demographics

In 2001 it had 31,900 inhabitants, including 28,500
Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...
, 1,700
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...
, 1,200
Rusyns Rusyns, also known as Carpatho-Rusyns, Carpatho-Russians, Ruthenians, or Rusnaks, are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group from the Carpathian Rus', Eastern Carpathians in Central Europe. They speak Rusyn language, Rusyn, an East Slavic lan ...
and 100 Roma. The exact ethnic composition was as follows: Until the 19th century, the city's population also included ethnic
Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...
(800 Romanians according to the 1880 census).


Geography


Climate

Khust has an
oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Cfb'').


Tourist sights

* Ruins of the Khust Castle *
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
fortress church 13th–14th century, Protestant since 1524, fortified in 1616, 1644, 1661 and 1670, restored in 1773 and 1888. Its belfry is from the 15th century; until 1861 it had four pinnacles. *
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church (
Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
, 18th century) *
Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...
church (18th century) * St Elizabeth's church, built in 1526


Notable people

* Jenő Benda, writer, and journalist was born here in 1882. *
Leslie Buck Leslie Buck (September 20, 1922 – April 26, 2010) was an American business executive and Holocaust survivor who designed the Anthora coffee cup, which has become an iconic symbol of New York City since its introduction in the 1960s. Early lif ...
(born ''Laszlo Büch''), American business executive and Holocaust survivor, designer of the
Anthora The Anthora is a design for a disposable paper cup for coffee that has become iconic in New York City daily life. History The cup was originally designed by Leslie Buck of the Sherri Cup Company in 1963, to appeal to Greek-owned coffee sho ...
coffee cup A coffee cup is a cup for serving coffee and List of coffee drinks, coffee-based drinks. There are three major types: conventional cups used with saucers, mugs used without saucers, and disposable cups. Cups and mugs generally have a Handle (gri ...
, was born in Khust in 1922. * Myroslav Dochynets, a Ukrainian writer was born here in 1959. * Jaromír Hořec, Czech poet, writer and journalist was born here in 1921. * József Koller, historian of religion was born here in 1745. * Antonín Moskalyk, a Czech film director was born here in 1930. *
Ernő Szép Ernő or Erno is a Finnish language, Finnish and Hungarian language, Hungarian masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: *Ernő Balogh (1897-1989), Hungarian pianist, composer, editor, and educator *Ernő Bánk (1883-1962), Hunga ...
, a writer was born here in 1894. * Count József Teleki, a scientist was born here on December 21, 1738. * Rabbi Zeev ben Moshe Feuerlicht (born 1918), studied in yeshiva of Satu-Mare Rebbe, Romania, during the Liberation of Czechoslovakia from Nazi Germany he joined as an active fighter the Gen.
Ludvík Svoboda Ludvík Svoboda (; 25 November 1895 – 20 September 1979) was a Czech general and politician. He fought in both World Wars, for which he was regarded as a national hero,Alt-neu Shul as a Rabbi, educator and shochet. Rabbi Feuerlicht, together with Rabbi Karol Efraim Sidon, is credited for the survival of the Jewish Orthodox community in Czechoslovakia after WWII. * Rachel Ta-Shma, scientist and educator at Hebrew University, Jerusalem * Eugene Hollander, Hungarian
survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: * one who survives Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 KKnD series#Armies, ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Foundation'', a fictional ...
and author of ''From the Hell of the Holocaust: A Survivor's Story''


Gallery


See also

*
Zakarpattia Oblast Zakarpattia Oblast (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпатська область), also referred to as simply Zakarpattia (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпаття; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kárpátalja'') or Transcar ...
* History of the Jews in Carpathian Ruthenia


Notes


References


External links


Khust
in th
Encyclopedia of Ukraine

All about Khust City
Includes a large image of the city and castle.



{{Navbox_Rusyns Khust Raion Cities in Zakarpattia Oblast Cities of regional significance in Ukraine Carpatho-Ukraine Holocaust locations in Ukraine Rusyn communities