A váza a múlt századból van.

Because Hungarian uses the definite article a / az much like English the.

• A váza = the vase
• a múlt századból = from the last century

Hungarian repeats the article where English often would too, so this is completely normal.

A quick note:

• a is used before most consonants
• az is used before vowels

So:

• a váza
• az alma

Váza means vase.

The -a here is part of the basic dictionary form of the noun, not a separate ending added in this sentence. So the word is simply:

• váza = vase

Hungarian nouns can end in vowels or consonants, and many common nouns naturally end in -a or -e.

Hungarian often expresses meanings like from, in, to, with, etc. by adding suffixes to nouns instead of using separate prepositions.

Here:

• század = century
• századból = from a/the century

The ending -ból / -ből means out of, from.

So:

• a múlt századból = from the last century

This is a very common Hungarian pattern:

• a házból = from the house
• az iskolából = from the school

The base word is század.

When the suffix -ból is added, it attaches to the full noun:

• század
  • -ból → századból

So the d stays. Hungarian suffixation is usually very regular in this way.

In this sentence, a múlt század means the last century or the previous century, depending on context.

Breakdown:

• múlt = past, last
• század = century

So:

• a múlt század = the last century
• a múlt századból = from the last century

In normal usage, this often refers to the 20th century if speaking today, but context decides that.

Van is the 3rd person singular form of lenni, the verb to be.

So here:

• A váza a múlt századból van.
• literally: The vase is from the last century.

Hungarian often uses van in sentences like this when saying where something comes from, what period it belongs to, or what something is made from.

Examples:

• Ez fából van. = It is made of wood.
• A kép 1890-ből van. = The painting is from 1890.

Great question. Hungarian omits van in many present-tense sentences when one noun or adjective is simply equated with another:

• A váza szép. = The vase is beautiful.
• Ez a váza régi. = This vase is old.

But van is commonly kept in expressions of origin, source, material, or time reference, such as:

• A váza a múlt századból van. = The vase is from the last century.
• Fából van. = It is made of wood.

So this sentence follows a very normal pattern.

Normally, A váza a múlt századból van is the standard, natural form.

Leaving out van here would sound incomplete or unnatural in standard Hungarian. This is not the same kind of sentence as A váza szép, where the present-tense is is omitted.

Yes, Hungarian word order is flexible, but different orders change the emphasis.

The neutral order here is:

• A váza a múlt századból van.
• The vase is from the last century.

If you change the order, you may highlight a different part:

• A múlt századból van a váza.
  This can emphasize from the last century.

• A váza van a múlt századból.
  This is not the normal way to say it.

So the original version is the safest and most natural for learners.

A simple pronunciation guide:

• váza ≈ vaa-zaw
• századból ≈ saa-zawd-bole

A few useful pronunciation points:

• á is a long vowel, roughly like a longer a sound
• sz is pronounced like English s
• z is like English z
• ó is a long o

So:

• század begins with sz, which is just s, not sh
• ból has a long ó

Hungarian suffixes often follow vowel harmony. That means the suffix changes depending on the vowels in the word.

• Back-vowel words usually take -ból
• Front-vowel words usually take -ből

Since század contains back vowels (á, a), it takes:

• századból

Compare:

• kertből = from the garden
• székből = from the chair

Yes. In context, A váza a múlt századból van usually means the vase dates from the last century, not that it literally traveled out of a century.

So the phrase expresses origin in time:

• it is from that period
• it comes from that era
• it dates back to that century

This is a very natural use of -ból/-ből in Hungarian.

Yes, but it is not exactly the same structure.

• A váza a múlt századból van. = The vase is from the last century.
• A váza múlt századi. = The vase is from the last century / the vase is last-century in style or date.

The second version uses the adjective-forming ending -i:

• századi = from a century / century-era

Both can work, but a múlt századból van feels more like stating its origin, while múlt századi is a descriptive adjective.