Alföld

Large area of flat open land in Hungary, between the River Danube and the Carpathian Mountains. Cereals, vines, tobacco, hemp, and flax are produced, and livestock is reared. The plain occupies about half the area of Hungary, with small areas in Romania, Croatia, and Serbia. The Great Alföld (Hungarian Nagyalföld) is the central plain; the Little Alföld (Hungarian Kisalföld) is in northwest Hungary, northwest of the Transcaucasian highlands.

The land is traditionally barren, containing the steppe lands (Hungarian puszta) of the Hortobagy, but has been extensively irrigated, aided by the damming of the River Tisza at Tiszalök. Two national parks have been created to preserve the open puszta: Hortobágy (1973), on the left bank of the River Tizsa, and Kiskunság (1974).

By the Treaty of Trianon 1920, parts of the southern Alföld were ceded to Romania and Yugoslavia.