Customer Reviews

Hungarian: Lonely Planet Phrasebook

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Well, I am a native speaker of Hungarian myself, so I was quite curious to see this book.
For the most part, I found it very good.
The main part of the book, the phrases are quite good and natural - it really shows that they had native speakers check it.
The phrases cover all sorts of issues from shopping to visiting a doctor or even dating and having sex!
The boxed texts on culture are also quite good and often amusing.
It has only 12 pages on grammar, but that's quite spot on.
It does include a box on present tense verb conjugation (taking vowel harmony into account!), and has even devoted a whole page to conjugating four common, but irregular verbs (come, go, eat, drink). Another box conjugates "to be" and yet another shows the suffixes for possessions. I guess it's quite OK for the space.
The 2000 word dictionary at the back is quite comprehensive.
A weaker point is the "phonetical transliteration" system used - Hungarian is written fully phonetically in its original form (thankfully also presented here), but the phonetical transliteration provided here for English-speakers may result in blank looks in many cases - you could always choose to ignore it.
The intro contains useful facts about the history and roots of the language, though the map showing where Hungarian is supposedly spoken might raise some eyebrows in neighbouring countries! ;-)
The layout is attractive, with color illustrations.
I even like the cover (different from what is shown on Amazon)- certainly better than a kitshy horseman or traditionally clad dancer could have been! ;-)
Overall: RECOMMENDED.
If you are planning to spend any time away from the major cities and tourist areas, you will find it VERY useful!

I took one term of Hungarian in college, and I've been to Hungary a few times (but only for a few days each time). So I tried getting this book to relearn some of the language before going back to Hungary this year. It helped me do just that, and I was able to converse with plenty of non-English speaking Hungarians. This is a well-written book.

But how much will this book help you if you don't know Hungarian at all? I'm not so sure. To communicate in a language, I think you really need to hear it spoken and painstakingly learn a bunch of vocabulary words (I like using flashcards to do this). I think it will be more of a help to those who already know something about the language, or at least have access to someone who can help them practice it.

I'm glad I got this book. I recommend it.

This pocket book is a must-have for anyone who, like me, has an interest in learning Hungarian or who plans to visit Hungary. Concise & comprehensive, it's a winner. The only drawback is that the 'pronunciation' provided seems to be geared to travelers from the UK &, as such, can cause difficulties for No. Americans. This ancient, beautifully soft, & richly vocalic language is certainly complicated for an English speaker. Along with a Törkenczy grammar any traveler should be speedily humming along in party town Budapest. These people are warm, friendly, & openly admire most anyone willing to tackle their tongue, not to mention the cuisine & the wines!

This phrasebook is filled with loads of well-organized information and superb vocab words - I thouroughly enjoyed reading it from cover to cover while on the plane to Budapest. However, once I arrived in Hungary I was a bit disappointed to find that everyone spoke English (at least in the Budapest area). The phrases I tried got a few smiles, but the only truly useful part of the book was the dictionary. It was quite helpful in reading signs, ads, posters, menus etc.
In spite of the little use I got out of it, I would still recommend taking this phrasebook to Hungary. It provides a bit of security for the short-term traveler and would become more useful the longer you stayed (especially for those who can speak a bit of Hungarian already or those who are studying the language).

I love this book. It's small enough to just throw in your bag and go when you are exploring a new city. Since moving to Budapest, it has come in handy several times over - and the pronunciation is superb! It has every helpful phrase you need when traveling abroad!

I think this book could be used for travelers of any age - though the "romance" section may be limited to the younger population.

One thing I would like to see in future publications though is maybe a map of the city - or at least a map of the metro.

I would buy this book - and others from the series - without hesitation in the future. I am a huge fan of Lonely Planet products so having this book in my library is just the icing on the cake!

With help from this guidebook I was able to pronounce words off of menus well enough to where servers were pleased with me and eager to help me out. My last phrasebook left people in Poland laughing at me as the phonetic guides led me astray. The problem with this guide is that it was not correct with some of the basic words a traveller would want. Our hotel staff told us that we were using antiquated, formal versions for certain greetings and interactive words, and gave a lesson on what to say (and when) instead. We also found that we got blank stares when we asked about dinner at a resturant. We pointed out the word in the book and the server looked very confused. I guess this book fails to even provide a correct translation for "dinner"...and who knows what else? I was glad to have this book along -- it is basically useful -- but I've got to assume other guides do a better job with getting some of the basics right. If you book at a big hotel you can save a few dollars by getting a free, accurate lesson from the staffers, and forgetting this guide.

I purchased this before a recent trip to Hungary and was pleasantly surprised. It is pocket sized and easy to carry (which wasn't clear to me from the other info on Amazon). It has all the necessary basic phrases divided into useful categories, and a nice little glossary in back. It doesn't offer an extensive vocabulary, but for me it was the right amount and the limit was worth keeping the book small and easy to carry. I would say it is perfect for someone with no or almost no experience with Hungarian who needs just the basics for a trip.