Mariska Várkonyi (1878–1924) was a writer, editor, and activist in turn-of-the-century Hungary who dedicated her work to advocating for gender and class equality. Born in the agrarian town of Cegléd, she had a unique background: her father, István Várkonyi, came from a family of poor day-labourers but later became the leader of the agrarian socialist movement and the Independent Socialist Party. Her mother’s family, by contrast, held some property, granting Mariska Várkonyi an awareness of both the struggles and the relative privileges within rural society. Well-educated and eloquent, she stressed the plight of the agrarian poor, especially the women of the agrarian working class, in her activism and writings.

Her political engagement started early, and by the late 1890s, she was already a forceful voice in Hungarian journalism. Between 1896 and 1899, she served as the editor of Agrarian Worker (Földmívelő), founded by her father, which was the first newspaper in Hungary that was aimed solely at agrarian workers. Her articles, including her series Through the Eyes of a Woman in the widely read opposition newspaper Agreement (Egyetértés), expressed radical critiques of class-based and gender-based oppression alike.

Várkonyi’s activism was firmly rooted in the agrarian socialist struggle, which fought to secure better conditions for agrarian labourers. Working alongside her father, she repeatedly defended the right of labourers to form unions and resist exploitation. In Agrarian Worker, she encouraged women readers to organize and participate in activism, praising the “tireless efforts and fervour exerted by the women supporters of our [agrarian socialist] principles”. When the authorities banned a congress of the agrarian socialists in 1897, Várkonyi noted with admiration that women’s participation remained undeterred, even surpassing that of men. She described how, despite the restrictions, over ninety women gathered in a packed room, eager to discuss and take action.

Her writing was not merely theoretical; she was deeply involved in direct activism. When her father, a prominent socialist activist himself, ran for parliament, she documented the election fraud he faced. Mariska Várkonyi denounced the political repression of the socialist movement and defended her father, who was accused of inciting agrarian unrest. The government saw the Várkonyis’ activism as a threat, and while still living with her parents, she endured repeated police harassment, including frequent searches of her home and workplace. Her diary entries reveal the emotional toll of this persecution, detailing her exhaustion and frustration with the constant surveillance and sacrifices required of her.

Even following her marriage in 1902, and the birth of her children, Várkonyi continued her activism. However, after 1905, her public activity completely stopped, likely because her father left her mother and the family was enmeshed in a prolonged legal battle. Her own conflicts with her father added further strain. Mariska Várkonyi died in 1924, just a year after her mother.

Mariska Várkonyi’s contributions to the agrarian labour and women’s movements were significant, if largely forgotten today. At a time when most discussions of women’s emancipation centred on the needs of middle-class women, she brought attention to the struggles of peasant and agrarian working-class women, advocating for a vision of emancipation that took both gender and class into account.