John Hunyadi: Encyclopedia II - John Hunyadi - Origins

John Hunyadi - Origins

John was born into a Vlach (Romanian) noble family in 1387 (or 1400 according to some sources) as the son of Vojk (alternatively spelled as Voyk or Vajk in English, Voicu in Romanian, Vajk in Hungarian), who in turn was the son of a Vlach Knyaz from Banate of Severin (Szörény in Hungarian). Most reliable sources state that his paternal lineage was Vlach and his mother was Hungarian. Some unfounded speculation suggests he had Cuman anscestry, but this was likely an attempt at propaganda by his enemies. Though widely respected in Europe, he was not without rivals and certainly hated by the Turks. Vlach lineage was common in many Hungarian noble families of Transylvania, but Cuman blood would have been considered a stain on their reputation.

What is certain is that Vojk took the family name of Hunyadi when he received the estate of Hunyad Castle (now Hunedoara in Romania, called Vajdahunyad in Hungarian) from Sigismund, King of Hungary, in 1409. John's Hungarian mother Elizabeth (Erzsébet in Hungarian) is thought to be from the Morzsinay family. The epithet Corvinus was first used by the biographer of his son Matthias Corvinus of Hungary, but is sometimes also applied to John Hunyadi.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Origins", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki