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Goulash Communism (Hungarian: gulyáskommunizmus), also known as refrigerator communism (Hungarian: fridzsiderkommunizmus),^[1] Kádárism or the Hungarian Thaw, is the variety of state socialism in the Hungarian People's Republic following the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. During János Kádár's period of leadership, the Hungarian People's Republic implemented policies with the goal to create a high standard of living for the people of Hungary coupled with economic reforms. These reforms fostered a sense of well-being and relative cultural freedom in Hungary, giving it the reputation of being "the happiest barracks"^[2] of the Eastern Bloc during the 1960s to the 1970s. With elements of regulated market economics as well as an improved human rights record, it represented a quiet reform and deviation from the Stalinist principles applied to Hungary in the previous decade.

The name is a metaphor derived from goulash, a traditional Hungarian dish. Goulash is made with an assortment of dissimilar ingredients; here, it represents how Hungarian communism became a mixed ideology, no longer strictly adhering to the Marxist–Leninist interpretations of the prior decade.^[3] Nikita Khrushchev was the first to use the term when he wanted to highlight Hungary's economic developments.^[4] This period of "pseudo-consumerism" saw an increase of consumption of consumer goods as well.^[2] During the Kádár era, Hungary became the most consumption-oriented country of the Eastern Bloc, with the highest standard of living.^[5]

The phrase "the happiest barracks" was coined in the 1970s to describe the socialist state during this period. The word "happiest" referred to the Hungarian People's Republic having the highest standard of living of all the Soviet-bloc countries. It was the easiest place to travel abroad and the quickest to get access to Western products and culture. The country, however, remained under firm party control.^[6]

^ Árpád von Klimó [de], Hungary Since 1945, Routledge, 2018, ISBN 9780367884369, Ch. 6: "Lifestyles in transition"
^ ^a ^b Nyyssönen, Heino (1 June 2006). "Salami reconstructed". Cahiers du monde russe. 47 (1–2): 153–172. doi:10.4000/monderusse.3793. ISSN 1252-6576.
^ Matveev, Yuri V.; Trubetskaya, Olga V.; Lunin, Igor A.; Matveev, Kirill Y. (2018-03-23). "Institutional aspect of the Russian economy regional development". Problems and Perspectives in Management. 16 (1): 381–391. doi:10.21511/ppm.16(1).2018.36. ISSN 1727-7051.
^ Shu, Wang. "The Origins of Goulash Communism". Archived from the original on December 9, 2020.
^ Henry Kamm Special to The New York Times (June 12, 1975)
^ Bence, Mezey (2022-04-25). "A "legvidámabb barakk" – Kerekasztal a Kádár-rendszer (újra)értékeléséről". Ujkor.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2023-02-27.