Szekely Land is the name given to the Romanian territories in which the Szekelys inhabit. These territories are spread throughout different parts of Romania, being located within the central area of the country, some parts of the counties of Mures and Covasna, and the region composed by the hills and valleys of the Eastern Carpathian Mountains. As it can be seen, due to their different locations, tourists could easily visit the Szekely Lands during a vacation in Romania since despite of what region of the country they are in they could surely easily reach this territories.
The Szekely Lands are inhabited by approximately 660,000 people, with the highest density in the counties of Covasna and Harghita. It might be interesting to know that the Szeklers are willing to count with a regional autonomy for the regions they inhabit, but the constitution of Romania seems to be against it since it sees the country as a unitary nation, and therefore such goal doesn’t count with many chances of being achieved.
Between the 12th and 19th century, the Skezely Lands were partially autonomous. That partial autonomy varied depending on the époque and who was in control of the region at the time, since it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary, of the Principality of Transylvania, and the Habsburg Empire subsequently.
During the 18th century was when the Szekelys counted with the greatest amount of autonomy in the entire period as consequence of a treaty known as the Austro-Hungarian compromise. In 1876, all the autonomous regions of the Kingdom of Hungary were abolished, and with them, the Szekely Lands.
During the year 1940, the northern part of Transylvania had to be given to Hungary as part of what was known as the Second Vienna Award, and this way most of the areas inhabited by the Szekelers became part of such country. This situation endured until endings of World War II, when the Szekely Lands were named a Hungarian Autonomous Region, situation which changed in the year 1968 when they finally became part of the actual Romania after a new administrative division.