Absztrakt

In the 1970s and 1980s, young people from Algeria took part in vocational training in a number of Hungarian towns. They faced similar social challenges, while their presence exposed teachers and locals to unprecedented intercultural issues of language and religion. Available sources are limited to contemporary newspaper articles, vocational school memorabilia (such as class photos and other images), and oral history collected from surviving teachers, Algerian students, and their friends. Algerian students were trained in various professions, such as technicians in water management, high-voltage electricity, food preservation, road and bridge construction, and so on. Joint events, exhibitions introducing the North African country, as well as Algerian–Hungarian sports competitions were of particular interest. The students integrated successfully; they even established a national Algerian student association with chapters in every city. Many of them started families in Hungary and continue to live there today.