Telephone and address directories are used by genealogists and historians to identify people and businesses from a particular place and era. This guide lists uncataloged directories from Hungary in the Library of Congress collection.
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Authors:
Zsuzsa Daczó: Reference Librarian, Latin American, Caribbean and European Division
Kenneth Nyirady, former Head of the European Reading Room, Latin American, Caribbean and European Division
Note: This guide is adapted from an earlier version, which first appeared on the European Reading Room website in 2007.
Created: December 3, 2021
Last Updated: December 3, 2021
Introduction
The Library of Congress maintains a large collection of foreign and domestic directories. Most of the foreign telephone directories held by the Library of Congress are uncataloged, we have therefore compiled this list of directories from Hungary as a finding aid for our staff and for researchers. These directories cover Hungary between the years 1936-2016. In addition to the uncataloged directories listed below, the Library also holds a handful that are cataloged and may be requested using the Library of Congress Online Catalog. To locate these directories, search the online catalog using subject keywords such as "Hungary" and "directories," or "telefonkönyv" (telephone book) or "címtár" (address directory). In addition to telephone directories, searching for directories in general also yields business/address directories.
The index is arranged by the area that the directories cover, such as all of Hungary, or a region or city, and following that they are arranged chronologically. This compilation of uncataloged directories reflects the Library of Congress telephone directory holdings from Hungary as of 2021.
Budapest address directories from 1867 to 1942 have been digitized and are available for full text search on the Hungaricana websiteExternal, Telephone directories from 1906 to 1950 for Budapest and the surrounding area can also be searched online in the collection of the Metropolitan Library Szabó Ervin. External
Besides using printed telephone directories, a reader may find it helpful to use current online directories available for free on the Internet such as the one listed below.
Provides mobile and landline telephone numbers as well as addresses for private residences and for businesses. The dataset can be searched by name, by address, or used for reverse phone number lookup. The search can be run for partial or complete match with the data one provides.