Elek

Elek (German: Renndorf, Romanian: Aletea) is a town in Békés County, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary.^[1] Until the Second World War, the town was home to the largest concentration of Germans in the county, with its population consisting almost entirely of Swabians. Jews lived in the city as early as the 19th century and in 1944 many of them were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust.^[2][3]

This article is about the town. For people with the given name, see Elek (given name). For people with the surname, see Elek (surname).

Elek
Town
Monument of the deported Germans
Flag Coat of arms
Elek
Coordinates: 46.528°N 21.247°E / 46.528; 21.247
Country	Hungary
County	Békés
District	Gyula
Area
• Total	54.94 km2 (21.21 sq mi)
Population  (2012)
• Total	4,816
• Density	88/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	5742
Area code	(+36) 66
Website	www.elek.hu

Geography

The town covers an area of 54.94 km² (21.21 sq mi) and had a population of 5,567 in 2002.

History

• 1232 : First mentioned
• 1566-1696 : Ottoman rule (Ottoman wars in Europe)
• 1724 : settling of German colonists (predominantly from Franconia)
• 1739 : Bubonic plague
• 1894 : Artesian aquifer
• 1920 : Elek becomes border town (Treaty of Trianon)
• 1946 : Expulsion of German inhabitants
• 1996 : Elek gains town status

Year Population 1802 1,200 1835 2,500 1890 5,700 1930 8,400 1940 9,300 2000 5,500 2010 4,985 2019 4,816

Twin towns

Elek is twinned with:

• Gerolzhofen, Germany (1990)
• Alerheim, Germany (1992)
• Leimen, Germany (1992)
• Sebiș (Borossebes), Romania (1992)
• Gerlingen, Germany
• Laudenbach, Germany (1994)
• Veľké Kapušany (Nagykapocs), Slovakia (1996)
• Grăniceri (Ottlaka), Romania (1997)
• Dumbrava (Igazfalva), Romania (2019)