Hortobagy National Park is one scene of the traditional Hungarian cowboys of the great Hungarian plain - the Cziskos.
Here is the explaination this YouTube video poster wrote : In this video I proudly represent the CSIKÓS (Hungarian horse-herder) from the region of HORTOBÁGY and HAJDÚ county. We´ve been using the whip since ancient times to push the horse herd in the favoured direction. The animals react to the sound but aren´t touched by the whip. Due to the oppressive rule of the Habsburg dynasty, many herdsmen of the Hungarian lowlands became highwaymen or/and joined the freedom fight of 1848. The light cavalry evolving from the csikós used the whip as a weapon. The act of laying down the horse derives from ancient Hungarian warfare. It was a way of staying unseen by the enemy. The highwaymen also applied this technique to perform robberies on surprise.
Standing on the horse doesn´t cause pain, it simply demonstrates the close connection between man and animal.
In today´s time, there are still a few traditional horsemen left, who do the work. Cracking the whip during a demonstration like this is also an act of honoring the land and its people. The herdsman is a symbol for freedom and independence and carries the old spirit of the nation.
