Learn Hardcore Hungarian: Télen hatkor még sötét van, nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos. - In winter it is still dark at six, but in summer it is still light even at eight.

The endings -en / -on / -ön are the superessive case, often meaning on or in.
With seasons, Hungarian very often uses this case adverbially to mean “in (that season)”:
- télen – in (the) winter
- nyáron – in (the) summer
- ősszel – in (the) autumn (ősz + -el, a slightly different pattern)
- tavasszal – in (the) spring

You can find télben, nyárban (with the inessive -ban/-ben) in some contexts, but for “in winter / in summer” the normal everyday forms are télen, nyáron.

How does hatkor / nyolckor work? Why the ending -kor?

Hat = six, nyolc = eight.
The ending -kor means “at (a certain time)”.

hatkor = at six (o’clock)
nyolckor = at eight (o’clock)

You can also say:

hat órakor – more explicit, literally at six hours
nyolc órakor – at eight o’clock

But in everyday speech, hatkor / nyolckor are completely normal and very common.

Pattern:

number (or time word) + -kor → “at [that time]”
- délben = at noon (special form)
- éjfélkor = at midnight
- kettőkor / kétkor = at two

What does még mean in még sötét van, and how is it different from már?

In még sötét van, még means “still” or “yet” in a temporal sense:

még sötét van = it is still dark / it is (as of yet) dark

The contrast word is már, which usually means “already” or, in negatives, “any more / any longer”.

Compare:

Még sötét van. – It is still dark.
Már világos van. – It is already light.

Negative examples:

Még nincs világos. – It is not light yet.
Már nincs sötét. – It is no longer dark / It is not dark any more.

In the sentence you gave, még emphasizes that at six in winter, the darkness has not ended yet.

Why do we say sötét van but just világos without van in the second clause?

Two things are happening here:

Weather / light expressions with van
Hungarian often uses van with words that describe general conditions:
- Sötét van. – It is dark.
- Világos van. – It is light.
- Meleg van. – It is warm.
- Hideg van. – It is cold.
So sötét van is a normal fixed pattern.
Dropping van in the present tense
In the 3rd person singular present tense, Hungarian usually drops the verb van when it simply links a subject and a descriptive word:
- Ez nehéz. (not Ez van nehéz.) – This is difficult.
- A ház nagy. (not A ház van nagy.) – The house is big.
Because of this rule, nyolckor is világos (van) is fine with or without van:
- nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos
- nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos van
Both are grammatically correct. The version in your sentence simply omits van in the second clause, which is very natural in speech.

So:

First clause uses the common fixed pattern sötét van.
Second clause follows the general rule where present-tense van may be dropped.

Could the sentence also be “Télen hatkor még sötét, nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos.” without van at all?

Yes, that sentence is also grammatical and natural:

Télen hatkor még sötét, nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos.

Here, van is omitted in both clauses, following the general rule that 3rd person singular van can be left out in simple predicative sentences.

Subtlety:

Télen hatkor még sötét van sounds slightly more like a “condition” description (a very common fixed pattern for weather/light).
Télen hatkor még sötét is a bit more neutral stylistically.

In everyday speech, you will hear all three:

sötét van / világos van
sötét / világos
mixed, as in your original sentence.

What does viszont mean here, and how is it different from de?

In this sentence, viszont means “on the other hand / however / whereas”.

télen …, nyáron viszont …
→ in winter …, in summer, on the other hand, …

Difference from de:

de = “but”, the most general, neutral conjunction:
- Télen hatkor még sötét van, de nyáron nyolckor is világos.
viszont = also “but / however”, but it strongly highlights contrast, often between two parallel elements:
- télen vs nyáron
- hatkor vs nyolckor

You could say:

Télen hatkor még sötét van, nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos.
Télen hatkor még sötét van, de nyáron nyolckor is világos.

Both are correct; viszont just makes the “on the other hand” feeling a bit stronger.

What is the function of is after nyolckor in nyolckor is világos?

The particle is most often means “also / too”, but it can also be translated as “even” when it emphasizes something surprising or extreme.

In nyolckor is világos, it means roughly:

“it is still light even at eight (o’clock)”

So:

nyolckor világos – it is light at eight
nyolckor is világos – it is also / even light at eight (implying: that’s quite late for it still to be light)

In your sentence, this gives the contrast:

télen hatkor még sötét van – at six it is still dark
nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos – but in summer it is even light at eight

The is adds emphasis to how late it can still be light.

Why is there no “it” in Hungarian, like “it is dark”?

Hungarian usually does not use an explicit “it” subject for weather, time, or general conditions.

English:

It is dark.
It is cold.
It is late.

Hungarian:

Sötét van. – (literally) dark is
Hideg van. – cold is
Késő van. – late is

There is no separate pronoun like English “it” here. The structure is basically:

[condition word] + van

So “it is dark” is simply sötét van. The “it” is understood from context and not expressed as a pronoun.

How does the word order “Télen hatkor még sötét van” work? Could I rearrange the words?

Hungarian word order is flexible, but it encodes focus and information structure.

In Télen hatkor még sötét van:

Télen – sets the time frame: in winter
hatkor – gives a more specific time: at six
még – “still / yet”, modifying the predicate
sötét van – the main statement: it is dark

This order feels very natural: it moves from general time → specific time → comment about that time.

Some variants (all grammatical, but with slightly different emphasis):

Télen még hatkor sötét van.
– Emphasizes that already at six it is still dark.
Még télen hatkor sötét van.
– Slightly unusual; sounds like emphasis on “even in winter at six…”.
Télen hatkor sötét van még.
– Possible, but még sounds more natural before sötét van.

The original word order is the most neutral and idiomatic for the intended meaning.

What is van exactly, and when is it omitted in Hungarian?

Van is the 3rd person singular present tense of the verb lenni = to be.

ő van – he/she/it is
a ház nagy (no van) – the house is big
a házban van egy macska – there is a cat in the house

Basic rule for omission:

In 3rd person singular, present tense, when linking a subject to an adjective or noun, van is usually omitted:
- A ház nagy. (not A ház van nagy.) – The house is big.
- Péter orvos. (not Péter van orvos.) – Péter is a doctor.
Van usually stays in:
- existential / locative sentences:
  - Az asztalon van egy könyv. – There is a book on the table.
- many fixed expressions for weather, state, etc.:
  - Sötét van. – It is dark.
  - Meleg van. – It is warm.

In your sentence, sötét van keeps van (a fixed pattern), and világos drops it (where dropping is allowed): both choices are normal Hungarian.

What is the difference between sötét and világos? Are they adjectives?

Yes, sötét and világos are primarily adjectives:

sötét – dark
világos – light / bright / pale (depending on context)

They can describe:

light conditions:
- Sötét van. – It is dark.
- Világos van. – It is light.
colors / shades:
- sötétkék – dark blue
- világoskék – light blue
other things:
- sötét szoba – a dark room
- világos szoba – a bright room

They can also be used as nouns in some contexts:

a sötétben – in the dark
a világosban – in the light (less common as a noun, but possible)

In your sentence, they function as predicative adjectives describing the general outside condition at those times.

What is the literal, word‑for‑word breakdown of the sentence?

Télen hatkor még sötét van, nyáron viszont nyolckor is világos.

télen – in winter
hatkor – at six (o’clock)
még – still / yet
sötét – dark
van – is
nyáron – in summer
viszont – however / on the other hand
nyolckor – at eight (o’clock)
is – too / also / even (emphatic here: “even”)
világos – light / bright

So a close literal rendering would be:

In winter at six still dark is, in summer however at eight even light (is).

Which corresponds idiomatically to:

In winter it is still dark at six, but in summer it’s still light even at eight.