A háború után kezdődik a helyreállítás.

Both a words are the Hungarian definite article, meaning the.

• a háború = the war
• a helyreállítás = the reconstruction / the restoration

Hungarian uses the definite article much like English does, though not always in exactly the same places. Here, both nouns are definite, so both take a.

A small pronunciation note:

• a is used before words that start with a consonant
• az is used before words that start with a vowel

So:

• a háború
• but az iskola

Because után is a postposition, not a preposition.

English uses prepositions that come before the noun:

• after the war

Hungarian often uses postpositions, which come after the noun:

• a háború után = literally the war after

This is very common in Hungarian. Some other examples:

• a ház előtt = in front of the house
• az asztal alatt = under the table
• a város mellett = next to the city

So the word order here is completely normal for Hungarian.

Because után does not require a case ending on the noun in this structure. The noun stays in its basic form, and the postposition carries the meaning.

So:

• a háború után = after the war

This is different from Hungarian case endings like:

• háborúban = in the war
• háborúra = onto the war / for the war
• háborút = accusative form

With után, you normally just use:

• article + noun + után

Kezdődik means begins or starts in an intransitive sense: the subject itself begins.

• A helyreállítás kezdődik. = The reconstruction begins.

By contrast, kezd is usually transitive, meaning to start something.

Compare:

• A koncert kezdődik. = The concert begins.
• A zenekar kezdi a koncertet. = The band starts the concert.

So in your sentence, the reconstruction is what begins, so kezdődik is the natural choice.

The subject is a helyreállítás.

So the sentence is structured like this:

• A háború után = time expression, after the war
• kezdődik = begins
• a helyreállítás = the reconstruction

Even though a helyreállítás comes after the verb, it is still the subject.

Hungarian word order is much freer than English word order, so the subject does not always have to come before the verb.

Hungarian word order is based less on fixed grammatical position and more on topic, focus, and what the speaker wants to emphasize.

In this sentence:

• A háború után is placed first because it sets the time frame: after the war
• then comes the verb
• then the subject

This is very natural in Hungarian.

A more English-like order is also possible:

• A helyreállítás a háború után kezdődik.

That still means the same basic thing, but the emphasis is a little different. This version puts the reconstruction more clearly in the topic position.

So the original sentence is not strange at all—it just foregrounds the time expression.

Yes, kezdődik is grammatically present tense. But in Hungarian, the present tense is often used for future meaning when the time is clear from context.

So depending on the situation, this sentence can mean something like:

• Reconstruction begins after the war
• or Reconstruction will begin after the war

Because a háború után already gives a time reference, Hungarian does not always need a separate future form.

Hungarian does have ways to express the future, but very often the simple present is enough.

Yes. Helyreállítás is a noun formed from the verb helyreállít, which means to restore or to reconstruct.

A rough breakdown is:

• helyreállít = restore / reconstruct
• helyreállítás = restoration / reconstruction

The ending -ás / -és or -ítás / -ítés often creates an action noun, similar to English -ing, -tion, or -ment in some contexts.

For example:

• fordít = translate / turn
• fordítás = translation
• javít = repair
• javítás = repairing / repair

So helyreállítás is the noun meaning the process or act of restoring.

A rough pronunciation guide:

• kez- sounds like kez
• -dő- has a long ő, somewhat like a long rounded vowel; English does not have an exact equivalent
• -dik sounds like deek with a short i

Very roughly:

• KEZ-duh-deek is not exact, but helps as a first approximation

A few important sounds in the whole sentence:

• á = a long a, more open than English short a
• ú = long oo
• ő = long rounded front vowel
• gy in kezdődik is not present, but if you are looking at other Hungarian words, it is a single consonant sound

The sentence as a whole is roughly:

• A HAA-bo-roo oo-TAAN KEZ-duh-deek a HELY-re-aal-lee-taash

That is only approximate, but it may help you get started.

Yes, you can, and it can sound quite natural in some contexts.

Compare:

• A háború után kezdődik a helyreállítás.
• Háború után kezdődik a helyreállítás.

The version with a háború is more explicitly after the war. The version without the article can sound a little more general, more like after war or after the war depending on context.

Hungarian sometimes omits the article in expressions where English would strongly prefer one, but the version with a is perfectly standard and clear.

It is fairly neutral, but it gives initial prominence to the time phrase A háború után.

That means the sentence naturally answers a question like:

• When does the reconstruction begin?

Answer:

• A háború után kezdődik a helyreállítás.

So the first part sets the frame, and the rest tells what happens in that frame.

If you wanted to make the reconstruction the starting point of the sentence, you could say:

• A helyreállítás a háború után kezdődik.

That is also correct, just with a slightly different information flow.