Dr. habil. Kyra Tomay
Associate Professor and Deputy Head of Department
Head of the Local Society Research Centre
🚪 A 335
📑 Urban and rural sociology, socio-spatial mobility, migration, social inequalities, gentrification
Kyra Tomay has been working at the Department of Sociology of the University of Pécs since 2017, and has been Associate Professor since 2024. She is also Head of the Local Society Research Centre. She earned both her MA degree in Sociology and her PhD from Eötvös Loránd University. After completing her studies, she taught urban sociology and research methods at ELTE University in Budapest. Between 2008 and 2012, she worked as a planner-analyst at the Spatial Planning and Evaluation Directorate of VÁTI, a governmental policy background institution. Her main research interests include urban and rural sociology, socio-spatial mobility, migration, and social inequalities. She is a member of the editorial boards of the journals Területi Statisztika and Szociológiai Szemle, and serves as President of the Space–Settlement–Society Section of the Hungarian Sociological Association.
Publication Highlights
- Tomay, K. (2025). Bebírók és gyüttmentek: A városból vidékre költözők motivációi, percepciói és a költözésük következményei a vidék fejlődésére. Budapest: L’Harmattan Kiadó. Open access.
- Nemes, G., & Tomay, K. (2025). Split realities: Dilemmas for rural/gastro tourism in territorial development. Regional Studies, 59(1), Article 2084059. MTMT; DOI.
- Tomay, K., & Berger, V. (2024). Inclusion or Exclusion? The Spatial Habitus of Rural Gentrifiers. Social Inclusion, 12, Article 7787. DOI.
- Tomay, K., & Tuboly, E. (2023). The role of social capital and trust in the success of local wine tourism and rural development. Sociologia Ruralis, 63(1), 200–222. MTMT; DOI.
- Csanádi, G., Csizmady, A., Kocsis, J., Kőszeghy, L., & Tomay, K. (2010). Város, tervező, társadalom. Budapest: Sík Kiadó. ISBN: 9789639270275.
Projects
- Researcher in The New Neighbours: Long-Term German Settlers in Hungary Since the 2010s, 2024–2025, and New Neighbours: The Media Background of Contemporary Long-Term German Settlement and Its Impact on Rural Identity, 2025–2026, supported by the University of Pécs Research Fund Grant.
- Principal investigator of The Role of Gentrification in Rural Development, NKFI FK 138098, 2021–2025. Project page.
- Researcher in Myths and Realities of Local Food Systems, NKFI K_129097, 2020–2022.
- Researcher in the Social Science Research Group on Trust and Social Capital, Excellence Program, University of Pécs, 2018–2021.
