Kompetenciája

Kompetenciája is a Hungarian possessive form of the noun kompetencia, meaning his/her/its competence. The base noun kompetencia denotes a set of skills, knowledge, and authority needed to perform tasks or fulfill duties. The suffix -ja marks ownership by a third person, so kompetenciája refers to the competence belonging to someone or something mentioned in the sentence. This grammatical construction is common in Hungarian and appears in both everyday and formal language.

In use, kompetencia has two main senses. One is personal competence—the abilities, knowledge, and readiness a person has to carry out a job or task. The other is a formal sense of jurisdiction or scope of responsibility, such as the authority of an organization or official. For example, az intézmény kompetenciája means the institution’s competence or jurisdiction, while a személy kompetenciája describes an individual’s capabilities. In professional contexts, kompetenciák (competences) and kompetenciafejlesztés (competence development) are common terms in job descriptions, curricula, and performance evaluations. The possessive form kompetenciája appears in phrases like az ő kompetenciája or a vállalat kompetenciája, linking ownership to the subject.

Etymology-wise, kompetencia comes from Latin competentia and entered Hungarian via German or French influence. Although it shares synonyms with képesség (ability), kompetencia often conveys a more formal, codified, or evaluable set of capabilities and responsibilities.