ABSTRACT
Among the sources that enable to determine the use of languages are the statistical data produced by the general censuses of 1880, 1890, 1900, and 1910, their analysis, however, calls for some remarks on the methodological framework according to which they were collected. First, as already mentioned, they were undertaken using two different conceptions of language as a criterion for defining the belonging of individuals to a national group. Nationality itself was considered differently in the two parts of the monarchy. The German designation used for defining the peoples was first Volksstamm, a term coming close to “ethnic group.” The term “nationality” (Nationalität) appeared and became prevalent in the second half of the nineteenth century, but it was not used in official publications. In the Hungarian language, “nation” (nemzet) and “nationality” (nemzetiség) were already in common use before 1848. When referring to the Magyars, these terms were interchangeable, but when speaking of the diversity of the Hungarian kingdom, the less specific word “peoples” (népek) was employed.
