“Put a Stop to the Excessive Influx”: The Rhetoric of Restriction Regarding Female and Jewish Students at Budapest University, 1900–1930

The idea of a numerus clausus at Hungarian universities was first directed against female students, the majority of whom were of Jewish origin. This intersectional study of the justifications articulated in favor of restricting the university admission of Jewish and female students highlights the shifting political and social ideas of the period. Based on archival and press sources, and drawing in particular on the faculty council minutes of the Faculties of Medicine and Humanities at Budapest University, this article explores both the common and distinct features of the rhetoric directed against female and Jewish students, respectively, and focuses on the interconnected interests and fears regarding the two social groups.