Néprajzi

Néprajzi is the Hungarian adjective meaning ethnographic. It refers to ethnography, the scholarly study of peoples, cultures and their ways of life, past and present. Néprajzi research describes social practices, beliefs, kinship, family life, material culture, clothing, foodways, rituals, languages, music, folklore, and other aspects of daily life within communities, and it often seeks to understand how these aspects change over time and in response to external influences. Fieldwork, participant observation, interviews, archival sources, and the collection of artefacts are common methods in néprajzi work, with emphasis on context, interpretation, and meaning in addition to description.

In Hungary, néprajzi is used in the names of institutions and programs concerned with ethnography, such as ethnographic museums and research institutes, and in university departments that teach ethnography and related disciplines. The best-known example is the ethnographic museum in Budapest, commonly referred to as the Néprajzi Múzeum, and similar organizations exist in other European and global contexts where Hungarian scholars and communities participate in ethnographic study.

Néprajzi studies intersect with anthropology, folklore studies, history, linguistics, and cultural heritage. They address contemporary cultural diversity, heritage preservation, identity, and social change, and they contribute to public understanding of traditional practices as well as to the documentation of cultural risk and the preservation of intangible heritage.