János Apáczai Csere

János Apáczai Csere (10 June 1625 – 31 December 1659) was a Hungarian polyglot, pedagogist, philosopher and theologian, famous for his work The Hungarian Encyclopedia, the first textbook to be written in Hungarian. The Encyclopædia Britannica calls him "the leading Protestant scholar and writer" of 17th-century Hungary.

Life He was born in Apáca, Principality of Transylvania (today Apața, in Brașov County, Romania) on 10 June 1625; the "Apáczai" in his name is an indication of his birthplace. He married a Dutch woman, Aletta van der Maet, in the same year, but returned with her to Gyulafehérvár in 1652 at the request of Prince George II Rákóczi. is named after Apáczai, as are the Apáczai Csere János High School in Cluj, the Apáczai Csere János Teacher-Training College in Győr, and Apáczai Csere János utca (a street in Budapest). In 1998, the Hungarian government established the Apáczai Public Foundation for the education of Hungarians living in other countries.