Folia Humanistica et Socialia

From Humbaba to Medusa

Eliza Gujabidze — 2025-12-17

This study provides an overview of Mesopotamian influences on Greek art, especially the influence of Humbaba imagery from the Epic of Gilgamesh on the Gorgons’, particularly Medusa’s. Based on specific examples of artefacts and historical sources, including vases, masks, cylinder seals and inscriptions, the present paper explores how motifs and symbolic representations were understood and interpreted across the Eastern Mediterranean. The analysis highlights parallels in narrative themes, visual compositions and protective symbolism, suggesting that Greek adaptations may hypothetically reflect selective borrowings from broader Eastern artistic and mythological traditions rather than independent invention.

One Language, Many Voices

Inessa Arustamyan — 2025-12-17

This work is a micro-level sociolinguistic study aimed at revealing the complex ways in which Armenian linguistic variants not only coexist but also dynamically influence one another through daily interactions. This research is based on semi-structured, narrative discourse and questionnaires conducted with Armenian and Armenian-diaspora students in Budapest. The object of the research is the language use of Armenian students from Lebanon and Syria, as well as from the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh/Arc‘ax (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic), who are living and studying in Budapest, Hungary. The study elucidates the unique challenges encountered by speakers of Eastern and Western Armenians as they engage with academic and cultural traditions, frequently using Arabic and Russian alongside Armenian. Through lexicological analysis, the paper shows how language interaction goes beyond mere communication, serving as a channel for cultural expression and exchange.

Writing this paper was especially meaningful to me because, beyond analyzing how students perceived and responded to this linguistic environment, I also was able to contribute my own perspective. Rather than merely being an external observer, I approached the study as an insider, a member of this community who comes from a slightly different cultural region and dialectal background.

Images and Perceptions of Armenia in Armenian Diaspora Films

Marianna Manasyan — 2025-12-17

This study examines the images and perceptions of Armenia constructed by Armenian diasporic filmmakers across three major periods: the Soviet era, post-Soviet transition, and contemporary times. Through a close analysis of diasporic films, the research highlights how representations shifted from imagined and symbolic portrayals during the Soviet era—formed without direct access to Armenia—to more realistic, heterogeneous, and critical depictions following Armenia’s independence. Soviet-period diasporic cinema emphasized themes of trauma, loss, and imagined homeland, while post-Soviet and contemporary films introduced narratives of disillusionment, economic struggle, concealed trauma, and fragmented identity. Special focus is given to how filmmakers like Atom Egoyan, Gariné Torossian, and Michael Hagopian conceptualize Armenia not solely as a geographical homeland but as a complex construct of memory, culture, and ongoing negotiation. The analysis underscores that Armenian diaspora cinema plays a dual role: preserving a dispersed national identity while exposing the contradictions and evolving realities of Armenia within the global cultural context.

The Trial as a Utopia?

Alíz Csilla Smitnya — 2025-12-17

Fredric Jameson interpreted the concept of utopia not merely as a literary genre but as a fundamental human desire that carries the promise of transforming the social order. For instance, he read 1984 as a dystopia that critiques the practice of socialism, yet also expresses utopian longings for order and justice. In this study, I argue that based on Jameson’s definition, Franz Kafka’s novel The Trial also allows for a utopian reading. The absurdity and inhumanity of bureaucracy in the novel evoke a dystopia, but behind its existence lies a utopian aspiration to create order and meaning. Josef K.’s futile desires for redemption and genuine human connection symbolize the unattainable perfection of utopia while also emphasizing the importance of striving toward it. On the level of authorial intent, Kafka’s portrayal critiques the lack of transparency and justice in systems of power, while on the level of reader interpretation, the outcome of the story raises the possibility of alternatives. This new reading interprets The Trial as a symbolic representation of utopian desire.

Global Ballet, Local Signification

Hedvig Ujvári — 2025-12-17

In the second half of the 19^th century, the intertwining of ballet and melodrama in Italy gave rise to a new cultural discourse. This study focuses on Excelsior, a ballet by Luigi Manzotti that premiered in 1881, which allegorically staged the ideals of technological progress and globalization. It is argued that Excelsior shaped the discourse of dance across both local and global dimensions, with particular emphasis on the representation of national and non-Western identities. Drawing on qualitative analysis, the research examines the press reception of the ballet in Vienna and Budapest, revealing how local socio-political contexts influenced the adaptation and semantic layers of the performance. By engaging with both the narrative and visual features of the ballet, the study contributes to understanding Excelsior as a case of cultural transfer, highlighting how its social and political significance was transformed in distinct regional contexts.

Structure-From-Motion-Based Photogrammetry and 3D Spatial Reconstruction at the Pānkān Archaeological Site (2014–2021)

Mór Bendegúz Takáts — 2025-12-17

This study presents the application of Structure-from-Motion (SfM) photogrammetry and 3D spatial reconstruction methods at the archaeological site of Pānkān (Iraqi Kurdistan, 36 km northeast of Erbil), conducted by the Kurdish–Hungarian Archaeological Mission (KHAM) between 2014 and 2021. The digital documentation of the late Sasanian and early Islamic architectural complex resulted in high-precision, georeferenced 3D models and geographic information system (GIS) analyses. These integrated models facilitated detailed spatial analyses of the site and ensured digital preservation of cultural heritage, particularly considering the region’s unpredictability and associated risks. This research was supported by the EKÖP-24-4 University Research Grant Program, financed by the National Research, Development, and Innovation Fund.

Research on Innovative Regulatory Methodologies and Tools in the Domestic Wired Communications Market

Attila Fiáth — 2025-12-17

With regard to fixed infrastructures, the main question today is whether regulation with or without access obligations imposed on network operators supports the spread of broadband penetration, which would ultimately serve to increase consumer welfare. The development and spread of platforms other than traditional fixed networks and DSL networks (cable, optical, wireless technologies) raises the question of whether regulation in line with EU regulatory guidelines or a departure from them and new regulatory approaches and instruments would be more effective in promoting broadband penetration.

Regulatory Issues of Telecommunication Convergence

Attila Fiáth — 2025-12-17

One of the most significant trends in the telecommunications industry worldwide is currently the integration of wired and wireless (fixed-mobile) technologies and networks, and the services provided through them, resulting in end users getting different combinations of service offerings through a unified infrastructure and a single access point. This process can be seen as an evolutionary market development with successive stages, the completion of which requires telecommunications companies to meet certain technological and business conditions. The convergence process is leading to the development of new and higher quality telecommunications services and technologies that can meet the market needs of the digital society more efficiently and quickly.

Gender Theory and Practice from a Christian Perspective

Gergely Szilvay — 2025-12-17

The study examines the social, political and philosophical background of gender theory and practice, as well as its domestic and international manifestations, with a particular focus on the LGBTQ movement and discourses related to transgenderism. The author points out that while gender theory originally had feminist roots and interpreted gender roles as a social construct, the trans movement shifted this interpretation towards a new essentialism based on internal identity. This has created tension between classical feminism and certain strands of the LGBTQ movement. The study critically analyses medical, psychological and social interventions related to gender dysphoria, particularly in relation to the transition of minors, raising scientific and ethical concerns. The author also presents a Christian-anthropological perspective, which understands the human person as a unity of body and soul, in harmony with biological sex. Finally, he highlights the moderate and conservative gender perspective of Catholic teaching, which rejects the radical separation of body and personality, while emphasising the equality of male and female dignity within the order of creation.

Creation and Psychometric Testing of the Hungarian Adaptation of the Multicultural Masculinity Ideology Scale

Patrik Pálffy — 2025-12-17

The study presents the development and psychometric evaluation of the Hungarian adaptation of the Multicultural Masculinity Ideology Scale. Following a standard translation–back-translation procedure, the instrument was administered online using a custom data-collection interface (Psinquiry) to a convenience sample of 155 participants (21.9% male; M_age = 26.59). Reliability analyses yielded acceptable internal consistencies for both factors identified in the original scale. Exploratory factor analysis supported a two-factor structure comparable to the original model, labelled “performance” and “hypermasculine posturing”. Group comparisons indicated no gender differences on the performance factor, whereas men scored significantly higher on hypermasculine posturing. Further analyses revealed no differences across categories of relationship status. Overall, the results suggest that the Hungarian MMIS exhibits adequate psychometric properties and can serve as a useful tool for assessing internalised masculinity ideologies in diverse cultural contexts.

Virtuality Instead of Reality

Alíz Csilla Smitnya — 2025-12-17

Review: Gyuris N. (2024). Szimuláció és sci-fi. Líceum Kiadó

A Book on the Medieval Archaeology of Crimea

Igor Kim — 2025-12-17

Review: Türk A. (2023). A Krím-félsziget régészete a késő antikvitástól a késő középkorig (Kr. u. 6-11. század) / The Archaeology of the Crimean Peninsula from Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages (6-11th centuries AD). (Studia ad Archaeologiam Pazmaniensia 29 – Bölcsészettudományi Kutatóközpont Magyar Őstörténeti Kutatócsoport Kiadványok 7). Pázmány Péter Katolikus Egyetem Bölcsészet- és Társadalomtudományi Kar Régészettudományi Intézet, Martin Opitz Kiadó & Bölcsészettudományi Kutatóközpont Magyar Őstörténeti Kutatócsoport.