2,509 people reported their ethnicity as Greek in the 2001 census, with 1,821 people reporting their mother tongue to be Greek. The number of people with ties to Greek cultural values and traditions was 6,140, and 1,974 people reported using the Greek language with family and friends. 2,860 people speak Greek as a foreign language in Hungary, and 366 people speak no other language but Greek. The 2001 census also generated citizenship data, and according to the results, more than 80% of ethnic Greeks (1,775 people) are Hungarian citizens. The ratio is similar for those whose mother tongue is Greek (1,459 Hungarian citizens), with 462 people not having Hungarian citizenship. The number of Greeks born abroad is 1,290, or 19.49% of those who reported to be ethnic Greeks.
After the 2010 self-government elections, Greek minority self-governments were set up in 21 districts of Budapest and 16 towns and cities around the country. Their goals are primarily the conservation of the language, traditions and identity of the Greek community.
The main activities, carried out with the assistance of the Greek Self-Government of Budapest, the minority self-governments of Budapest districts and other towns and cities and non-governmental organizations, are chosen accordingly. This means that mutual assistance is provided for the implementation of programmes in the field of organization and financing. This enriches Greek cultural life in Budapest and elsewhere.
The Greek community attaches great importance to the proper celebration of Greek national holidays, which is one of the most important ways of conserving traditions and experiencing the Greek identity. The most important holidays are the celebrations of the Greek War of Independence that started on 25 March 1821, the 1940 national resistance ‘Ohi Day’, and the fight again the fascist invasion of Greece (celebrating EAM and EPON). In recent years, these celebrations took place in various venues in Hungary, with the regular participation of Greek artists, bands, dance groups and performing schoolchildren. It is a source of great pleasure that these events are visited not only by members of the Greek community, but by Hungarians living in Budapest as well.
The students in the Greek school participate each year in the events of the ‘Christmas of Nations’.
They celebrate the new year every year by cutting up the traditional Greek ‘Vasilopita’.
The Greek community attaches great importance to protecting their mother tongue. Therefore, the Greek self-government has been supporting the 12-year Supplementary Greek Language School by providing it with teachers coming from the home country. The school was set up in 2004 as an institution of the self-government, and has several branches in other towns and cities outside of Budapest as well – and of course, there was Greek teaching in Hungary earlier as well. In Decision 9/2012 (I. 24.), the Assembly of the self-government decided to take over the maintenance rights of the Beloiannisz Primary School as of academic year 2012/2013, and operate the school as a Greek-Hungarian bilingual school for the Greek minority.
Apart from the school, the county Greek self-government set up the Research Institute of the Greek in Hungary, which researches the history of the Greek community in Hungary. The foundation of the Simon Sina award with the Hungarian Academy of Sciences was an important step in the life of the research institute, and a Sina memorial plaque was placed in the Academy building. Since then, the Sina memorial award is given every year to the most generous entrepreneur-sponsor. The research institute also publishes books, printing one or more new publications on the history of Greeks in Hungary every year.
In order to maintain the Greek identity of new generations, they support the language camps and sports events organized by the Greek Youth Association. The older generation receives adequate attention, as well. Support is provided to pensioners' clubs and domestic excursions, taking people back to visit the towns and children's' homes where they found a temporary home as refugee children: Fehérvárcsurgó, Hőgyész, Dég, Balatonalmádi, Balatonkenese.
They have good relations with foundations, with cooperation agreements and mutual assistance:
Their relations with our civil society organisations are especially good:
There are numerous Greek orchestras in Hungary as well, which enjoy our support (Syrtos, Mydros, Stefanidu Janula and Orchestra, Taverna, Pyrgos etc.)
The cultural life of the Hungarian Greek community receives special attention. A lot of help was provided in organizing art exhibitions and publishing catalogues (Jorgosz Dzordzoglu, Sztefanosz Sztefanu, Katalin Orbán, Andreasz Papahrisztosz, Szteliosz Papageorgiu, Andrea Papageorgiu, Csilla Theoharidisz).
The preservation of the written Greek language among Greeks living in Hungary is especially important for them; therefore, they set up bi-monthly bilingual newspaper Enimerotiko Deltio in 1995, which changed its name to Ellinismos in 2003 and is now published in 1500 copies every month.
In 2003, the Greek Self-Government of the 8th District of Budapest installed a memorial plaque on the wall of the Tobacco Factory building, which was the new home of the first families of refugees after the civil war. Each year the former refugees place a memorial wreath and organize a cultural show in commemoration of the years spent there. In 2011, a memorial plaque was placed in Király utca in Budapest in memory of Miklós Dumtsa as well.
However, the Greek community felt that this was not enough, and wished to express its gratitude to the Hungarian state for receiving Greek adults and children with such care and affection. The opportunity came soon enough: On 15 September 2005, a large exhibition was organized in partnership with the Greek self-government of the 5th district of Budapest, entitled Thank you, Hungary, showing period photographs collected by Raptisz Jannisz and Vlahosz Haralambosz. At this event, the Greek children who took refuge in Hungary in 1948-49 extended their thanks to the Hungarian people. The photos exhibited at the event were collected in an album with the same title. They celebrated the 60th anniversary of their arrival in the country in 2008, and exhibitions and other events were held in Budapest and Athens on the occasion.