Hungarian Research Institute - A Research Ancillary of the University of Toronto

The Institute

Nations and societies, like living organisms and natural systems, need objective information about themselves and about their environment in order to thrive and to prosper. The establishment of an independent research institute free of political pressures has been a long-standing dream of Hungarians all over the world. As early as 1924, Tibor Eckhardt, a noted public figure of the period, called on his fellow Hungarians to set up an institution which could examine ”issues of great national importance with impartiality and with empathy.” Half a century later, on November 1, 1985, the Hungarian Research Institute of Canada (HRIC) was inaugurated as a research ancillary of the University of Toronto.

Canada was seen as an ideal home for an institute for the examination of social, political and historical questions relevant to Hungarians inside Hungary, those living in the neighbouring states and those in the Hungarian diaspora. Canada's official policy of fostering cultural diversity makes it an ideal host country for such an institute.

The University of Toronto, one of the foremost institutions of higher learning in North America, is well known for the high quality of its research. In 1978 it agreed to host a Hungarian Chair in Literature. The Chair's existence paved the way for the Institute. This is the first time in the history of the University of Toronto that a research ancillary devoted to the social sciences and the humanities has been created.

Directors

 

Although the HRIC is autonomous, the high standards appropriate to the University of Toronto are maintained through the University's presence on the Institute's Board of Directors. The HRIC's board administers all its academic and financial affairs.

 

Advisors

The International Academic Advisory Board consists of leading scholars from Europe and North America who act as consultants on the Institute's major projects.

History

Spearheaded by leaders of the Rákóczi Foundation and the Széchenyi Society, both nationally based registered charitable organizations of the Hungarian community, negotiations began with the University in 1982 to establish an Institute devoted to performing research in the social sciences and in history focusing on Hungarian Canadians and Hungarians inside and outside Hungary. Since its Inauguration in 1985, the HRIC has been diligent in fulfilling its mandate.