Elek is a town located in Békés County within the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary. It serves as a regional settlement characterized by its historical demographic shifts and cultural heritage.
Until the Second World War, Elek was notable for hosting the largest concentration of Germans in Békés County, with a population composed almost entirely of Swabians. The town also had an established Jewish community dating back to as early as the 19th century; however, many of these residents were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust in 1944.