Lukács

Lukács is a Hungarian surname derived from the given name Luka or Lukas, the Hungarian form of Luke. The name ultimately comes from the Latin Lucas, which in turn derives from the Greek Loukas, meaning “from Lucania” or “man from Lucania.” In Hungarian orthography, the accent marks the vowel length, as in Lukács.

The surname is common in Hungary and among Hungarian communities in neighboring countries and the broader diaspora. It is encountered in scholarly, literary, and cultural contexts and is often rendered without diacritics as Lukacs in non-Hungarian settings.

Notable people with the surname include Georg Lukács (1885–1971), a Hungarian philosopher and literary theorist whose work helped shape Marxist thought and Western Marxism. He is best known for his analysis of realism and his concept of reification in History and Class Consciousness, as well as his defense of the social-historical method in aesthetics and literature. His writings have had a lasting impact on philosophy, literary criticism, and political theory in Europe and beyond.

Beyond Georg Lukács, the surname appears in various fields among Hungarian-speaking populations, reflecting its regional prevalence. In non-Hungarian contexts, the form Lukacs is commonly used, with the diacritic omitted.