During the second half of the 1990's the modernization processes in Hungary concentrated mainly in the capital and the northern part of Transdanubia (Western Hungary). This paper attempts to answer the question what happened to the settlements and agricultural entrepreneurs in small towns and villages of South and West Transdanubia which left at the periphery of modernization. Chances to modernization for settlements in the South and Western Transdanubia included in this study are bad, with the exception of Keszthely and Hévíz. This situation is rooted in their geographical situations and existing and renewing differences in the hierarchy of settlements, and in the structures of different firms can be found in settlements. There are considerable structural processes taking place, the class of lumpen-proletariat starting to disappear earlier has reappeared. At the same time process of development of middle-class mentality are going on much slower than it was supposed by some researchers.

agricultural and non-agricultural entrepreneurs; development of middle-class mentality; modernization; regional development; social stratification; impoverishment

Published by University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagreb, CROATIA
Sponsored by Ministry Science and Education of the Republic of Croatia