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Békés County
Coat of arms
Country	Hungary
Region	Southern Great Plain
County seat	Békéscsaba
Area
• Total	5,631 km2 (2,174 sq mi)
Population
• Total	376,657
• Density	67/km2 (170/sq mi)

Békés County (Hungarian: Békés megye), is an administrative division (county or megye) in south-eastern Hungary, on the border with Romania. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties Csongrád, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok and Hajdú-Bihar. The capital of Békés county is Békéscsaba. The county is also part of the Danube-Kris-Mures-Tisa euroregion.

Geography[link]

Békés county lies on the Pannonian Plain (Great Plain), it is a flat area with good soil. Average rainfall is 645 mm/year. One-fifth of the natural gas resources of Hungary can be found in Békés. The river Körös/Criş runs through the county.

Demographics[link]

The county has a population of 377,000 (2008). More than 60 % of the population lives in towns. Besides the Hungarian majority, the main minorities are the Slovaks (approx. 7,000), Roma (5,000), Romanians (4,000), Germans (1,500) and Serbs (400).

History[link]

Old countrymap with settlements and roads, railway

The area has been inhabited since 5000-4000 BC. Before the arrival of the Hungarians several other tribes lived in the area.

The castle of Gyula was built in the early 15th century. Gyula was the most significant town of the county at that time, and became county seat under Matthias I. It was an important fortress during the Ottoman wars in Europe but it was captured in 1566. During this time several towns were destroyed in the area.

In the early 18th century, after the Ottomans were expelled, the county was repopulated, not only with Hungarians, but with Slovaks (in the towns Békéscsaba, Endrőd, Szarvas, Tótkomlós), Serbs (Battonya), Germans (Németgyula, Elek) and Romanians (Kétegyháza). Most of the non-Magyar population was assimilated by the mid-19th century.

The agricultural importance of the county and the new railway line between Pest and Békéscsaba (finished in 1858) brought development, which was quickened when Hungary lost its southern territories to Romania after World War I and Békéscsaba had to take over the role of the lost cities.

The population growth peaked in 1950 (472,000), in the same year when Békéscsaba became the county seat. During the following years the county was industrialized, like most of Hungary, and the population of the cities and towns grew.

Regional structure[link]

The regional structure of Békés county is typical of the Great Plain: it has a small number of villages, but those are large, both by area and by population. There are several farmsteads too. 70% of the population lives in cities and towns, 17% in the county seat.A large village network is chatacteristic of the county which currently has 75 administratively- independent settlements., out of wgich 19 are cities and 56 are villages. The oldest towns, and with the largest populations, are: Békéscsaba, the county seat - a city carrying a rank of county right, Orosháza, Gyula, Békés and Szarvas.

City with county rights[link]

Békéscsaba

Békéscsaba (county seat)

Cities and towns[link]

(ordered by population, according to the 2001 census)

Villages[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Category:Békés County

v t e Békés County County seat: Békéscsaba Cities and towns Battonya Békés Csorvás Dévaványa Elek Füzesgyarmat Gyomaendrőd Gyula Körösladány Medgyesegyháza Mezőberény Mezőhegyes Mezőkovácsháza Orosháza Sarkad Szarvas Szeghalom Tótkomlós Újkígyós Vésztő Villages Almáskamarás Békéssámson Békésszentandrás Bélmegyer Biharugra Bucsa Csabacsüd Csabaszabadi Csanádapáca Csárdaszállás Doboz Dombegyház Dombiratos Ecsegfalva Gádoros Gerendás Geszt Hunya Kamut Kardos Kardoskút Kaszaper Kétegyháza Kertészsziget Kétsoprony Kevernes Kisdombegyház Kondoros Körösnagyharsány Köröstarcsa Körösújfalu Kötegyán Kunágota Lökösháza Magyarbánhegyes Magyardombegyház Medgyesbodzás Méhkerék Mezőgyán Murony Nagybánhegyes Nagykamarás Nagyszénás Okány Örménykút Pusztaföldvár Pusztaottlaka Sarkadkeresztúr Szabadkígyós Tarhos Telekgerendás Újszalonta Végegyháza Zsadány Other topics History Geography Government Economy Culture Tourism

v t e Counties of Hungary Counties Bács-Kiskun Baranya Békés Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén Csongrád Fejér Győr-Moson-Sopron Hajdú-Bihar Heves Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok Komárom-Esztergom Nógrád Pest Somogy Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg Tolna Vas Veszprém Zala Urban counties Békéscsaba Budapest (capital) Debrecen Dunaújváros Eger Érd Győr Hódmezővásárhely Kaposvár Kecskemét Miskolc Nagykanizsa Nyíregyháza Pécs Salgótarján Sopron Szeged Székesfehérvár Szekszárd Szolnok Szombathely Tatabánya Veszprém Zalaegerszeg

References[link]

Roaming in Békés County free guide 2010 Published by Békés County Government Text by Barát Tünde Coordinates: 46°44′15″N 21°2′41″E / 46.7375°N 21.04472°E / 46.7375; 21.04472

Békés
Békés from above
Coat of arms
Békés
Coordinates: 46°46′N 21°08′E / 46.767°N 21.133°E / 46.767; 21.133
Country	Hungary
County	Békés
Area
• Total	127.23 km2 (49.12 sq mi)
Population (2009)
• Total	20,465
• Density	169.33/km2 (438.6/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	5630
Area code(s)	66

Békés (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈbeːkeːʃ]; Slovak: Békéš, Romanian: Bichiş) is a town in Békés county, Hungary. It lies about 10 km (6 mi) north of Békéscsaba and 190 km (118 mi) east of Budapest.

History[link]

The area of the present town has been inhabited since ancient times, due to its good soil and proximity to rivers. After Hungarians conquered the area, Békés and its surroundings were the property of the Csolt clan. Békés (the name means "peaceful") was originally the name of the castle which gave its name to the comitatus, and, like many castles, was possibly named after its first steward. Many documents from the 13th century prove that Békés was the county seat. After 1403, when the area became the estate of the Maróthi family, Békés slowly lost its importance and the role of the centre of the comitatus was gradually taken over by Gyula.

In 1566 the castle of Gyula was occupied by the Ottoman army, and Békés fell under Ottoman rule too. The Ottomans built a motte castle in the town, but it was destroyed in 1595 when the Ottomans had to defend Gyula against the Hungarians who tried to get it back. The area became deserted. It was only exactly 100 years later, in 1695 that Békés was freed from Ottoman rule.

During the freedom fight led by Prince Francis II Rákóczi in the early 18th century the area of Békés was deserted again, for the last time. In 1720 John George Harruckern was granted Békés county via Royal Deed. He gave privileges to the serfs of the area, and gradually the population grew.

By the end of the 18th century the town already had its present five districts and the Protestant, Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches and the Jewish Synagogue. The buildings of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches and the Jewish Synagogue are all located within close proximity of each other. The annual floods of the Körös river meant a significant problem until the 1850s when the river was controlled.

In 1872 Békés was re-classified as a village. It was not until a hundred years later that it got its town status back.

Békés Synagogue pre-1944

Around the turn of the century Békés was rapidly developing and several new buildings were built. During the World Wars there were no significant battles in the area. Békés was freed from the Nazis on October 6, 1944. After the war industrialization quickened. On April 15, 1973 Békés was granted town status.

Today, Békés is made of several ethnic groups, including Hungarians, Roma, and with its near proximity to the Romanian border, Romanians who constitute approximately 5% of the population.

Tourist sights[link]

Aerial photography: Roman Catholic Temple of Békés

• Széchenyi square (main square) with several historical buildings
• City hall
• Protestant church (Zopf style)
• Roman Catholic church (1795)
• Greek orthodox church (one of the northernmost ones)
• Jewish Synagogue () (partially restored, interior and woman's gallery preserve original form, now a community center and restaurant)
• School museum
• Several bridges on the backwaters of the regulated Körös river; Békés is called the "city of bridges" because of them
• Small-boat harbour

Twin town[link]

• Gheorgheni, Romania (since 1993)

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Békés

• (Hungarian) Official site
• Békés Mátrix + Community & News Webportal Of Bekes City - [1] Official News Site Of Bekes

Coordinates: 46°46′N 21°08′E / 46.767°N 21.133°E / 46.767; 21.133

v t e Békés County County seat: Békéscsaba Cities and towns Battonya Békés Csorvás Dévaványa Elek Füzesgyarmat Gyomaendrőd Gyula Körösladány Medgyesegyháza Mezőberény Mezőhegyes Mezőkovácsháza Orosháza Sarkad Szarvas Szeghalom Tótkomlós Újkígyós Vésztő Villages Almáskamarás Békéssámson Békésszentandrás Bélmegyer Biharugra Bucsa Csabacsüd Csabaszabadi Csanádapáca Csárdaszállás Doboz Dombegyház Dombiratos Ecsegfalva Gádoros Gerendás Geszt Hunya Kamut Kardos Kardoskút Kaszaper Kétegyháza Kertészsziget Kétsoprony Kevernes Kisdombegyház Kondoros Körösnagyharsány Köröstarcsa Körösújfalu Kötegyán Kunágota Lökösháza Magyarbánhegyes Magyardombegyház Medgyesbodzás Méhkerék Mezőgyán Murony Nagybánhegyes Nagykamarás Nagyszénás Okány Örménykút Pusztaföldvár Pusztaottlaka Sarkadkeresztúr Szabadkígyós Tarhos Telekgerendás Újszalonta Végegyháza Zsadány Other topics History Geography Government Economy Culture Tourism

Judson Laipply
Laipply at Blog World Expo 2008
Born	1976 (age 35–36)
Residence	Lakewood, Ohio[1]
Nationality	American
Other names	Jud Laipply
Years active	2006–present
Known for	Motivational speaking, Comedy, Dance
Notable work(s)	Evolution of Dance (video)[2] Evolution of Dance 2 (video)[3] Might as Well Dance (book)[4]
Website
TheEvolutionOfDance.com MightAsWellDance.com

Judson Laipply (born 1976) is an American motivational speaker and dancer from Bucyrus, Ohio.^[5] He is best known for his performance in the Evolution of Dance viral video clip.^[6] He has worked as a public speaker since 2000.^[1]

The Evolution of Dance[link]

Laipply first performed "The Evolution of Dance" in March 2001, at which time it consisted of 12 popular dance songs. In 2006, he uploaded a video of the six-minute performance to YouTube. The clip received 70 million views in under 8 months.^[7] It was rated on YouTube as:^[8]

• #1 Most Viewed All Time Video on YouTube.com
• #1 Top Rated Video on YouTube.com
• #3 Most Discussed Video on YouTube.com

Songs in Evolution of Dance[link]

Evolution of Dance 2[link]

The Evolution of Dance 2 video was released in January 2009.^[3]

Evolution of Dance 3[link]

This was announced by Judson on June 16, 2010.^[11] He stated that it was in its early stages and that it was too early to give any details. In a YouTube comment he claimed he was trying to incorporate much older music and possibly include a second dancer. In a talk given at TASC (April 2nd) he displayed his new dance. It contains new tracks such as LMFAO's "I'm sexy and I know it" and "Party Rock anthem" as well as other dances such as the "Stanky leg".

Popular culture[link]

In December 2007, Judson appeared in an advert on the BBC for the 'dance season' during the Christmas Holidays.^[12] "Evolution of Dance" was #1 on the show Rude Tube hosted by Alex Zane and Laipply was interviewed on the show. Judson was also featured in the music video for Weezer's song "Pork and Beans" along with several other Internet celebrities.

In February 2010 the video was used as a question reference on the game show Jeopardy! in the 2010 college championships. In "The Delivery" episode of The Office, Andy Bernard does the dance sans music as a pregnancy distraction for Pam. In 2011 Judson also appeared on Tosh.0, hosted by Daniel Tosh.

He did another video, called "The Evolution of the Touchdown Dance", which included memorable NFL touchdown dances, like "The Ickey Shuffle", Joe Horn's cell phone celebration, and famous celebrations from Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• YouTube page
• Evolution of Dance video, and Judson interviewed for StayTunedTV.tv
• Evolution of Dance on VidTaggr - The Evolution of Dance video labeled with song titles.