Hungarian Priority in Network Theory

Frigyes Karinthy (1887–1938) is one of the most significant Hungarian writers of the 20th century. It was quite exciting to discover by chance that Karinthy can also be regarded as the first to recognize the so-called “small world phenomenon.” Until now, three American scientists, Stanley Milgram (who outlined this phenomenon in 1967) ([1][1]), Ithiel de Solla Pool, and Manfred Kochen ([2][2]) have been recognized as the discoverers ([3][3]). However, Karinthy wrote the following in a short story “Lancszemek” (“Chain links”) in his 1929 collection of humorous stories Minden maskeppen van ( Everything Is the Other Way ) ([4][4]): > To prove that nowadays the population of the Earth is in every aspect much more closely interconnected, than it has ever been, one member of our gathering proposed a test. Let us pick at will any given existing person from among the one and one half billion inhabitants of the Earth, at any location.' Then our friend bet that he could establish via direct personal links a connection to that person through at most five other persons, one of them being his personal acquaintance. ‘As people would say, look, you know X.Y., please tell him to tell Z.V., who is his acquaintance….so and so.’ ‘OK,’ said a listener, ‘then take for example Zelma Lagerloff’ (literature Nobelist, 1909). Our friend placing the bet remarked that nothing is easier. He thought only for two seconds. ‘Right,’ he said, ‘so Zelma Lagerloff, as a Nobelist, obviously knew the Swedish king Gustav, since the king handed her the prize, as required by the ceremony. Gustav, as a passionate tennis player, who also participated at large international contests, evidently played with Kehrling (Bela Kehrling, Hungarian tennis champion and winner at the Goteborg olympics 1924, 1891–1937), whom he knew well and respected.’ ‘Myself,’ our friend (he was also a strong tennis player) said, ‘I know Kehrling directly.’ Here was the chain, and only two links were needed out of the stated maximum of five. The story then goes on to give another, more difficult example of the phenomenon. Of course, because this work was never translated into English, and Karinthy's work is not well known outside Hungary, neither de Solla Pool and Kochen in 1978, nor Milgram in 1967, could have read and cited Karinthy. Nonetheless, Karinthy's “priority” is clear. 1. 1.[↵][5]1. S. Milgram , Psychol. Today 1, 61 (1967). [OpenUrl][6][Web of Science][7] 2. 2.[↵][8]1. I. de Sola Pool, 2. M. Kochen , Social Networks 1, 5 (1978). [OpenUrl][9][CrossRef][10][Web of Science][11] 3. 3.[↵][12]1. E. Garfield , Essays of an Information Scientist (ISI Press, Philadelphia, 1981), vol. 4, p. 299. [OpenUrl][13] 4. 4.[↵][14]1. F. Karinthy , Minden maskeppen van (Everything Is the Other Way) (Atheneum Press, Budapest, 1929), p. 85 p. [1]: #ref-1 [2]: #ref-2 [3]: #ref-3 [4]: #ref-4 [5]: #xref-ref-1-1 "View reference 1. in text" [6]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DPsychol.%2BToday%26rft.volume%253D1%26rft.spage%253D61%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [7]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=A1967ZK28400008&link_type=ISI [8]: #xref-ref-2-1 "View reference 2. in text" [9]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DSocial%2BNetworks%26rft.volume%253D1%26rft.spage%253D5%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1016%252F0378-8733%252878%252990011-4%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [10]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1016/0378-8733(78)90011-4&link_type=DOI [11]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=A1978FY60200001&link_type=ISI [12]: #xref-ref-3-1 "View reference 3. in text" [13]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DEssays%2Bof%2Ban%2BInformation%2BScientist%26rft.volume%253D4%26rft.spage%253D299%26rft.atitle%253DESSAYS%2BOF%2BAN%2BINFORMATION%2BSCIENTIST%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [14]: #xref-ref-4-1 "View reference 4. in text"