Minorities of Romania


About 10.5% of Romania's population is represented by minorities. The principal minorities in Romania are Hungarians and Romani people, with a declining German population and smaller numbers of Poles in Bukovina, Serbs, Croats, Slovaks and Banat Bulgarians, Ukrainians, Greeks, Jews, Turks and Tatars, Armenians, Russians, Afro-Romanians, and others.
To this day, minority populations are greatest in Transylvania and the Banat, historical regions situated in the north and west of the country which were former territorial possessions of either the Kingdom of Hungary, the Habsburgs, or the Austrian Empire.
Before World War II, minorities represented more than 28% of the total population. During the war that percentage was halved, largely by the loss of the border areas of Bessarabia and northern Bukovina, Black Sea islands, and southern Dobrudja, as well as by the postwar flight or deportation of ethnic Germans.
In the Romanian election law, government-recognized ethnic minorities in Romania are subject to a significantly lower threshold and have consequently won seats in the Chamber of Deputies since the fall of the Nicolae Ceauşescu regime.

Overview

In the table below are enlisted all minority ethnic groups from Romania with more than 1,000 persons :
MinorityPopulation Percentage of the
total population 		Population Percentage of the
total population 		County
Hungarians 1,431,807 6.60% 1,227,623 6.10% Mainly Transylvania, but also Bucharest
Roma535,140 2.46% 621,573 3.08% Mureș, Călărași
Ukrainians 61,091 0.28% 50,920 0.25% Maramureș, Timiș, Suceava
Germans59,764 0.28% 36,042 0.17% Timiș, Sibiu, Satu Mare, Caraș-Severin, Brașov, Mureș, Maramureș, Hunedoara, Alba, Bihor, Suceava, Bistrița-Năsăud, Transylvania
Russians 35,791 0.17% 23,487 0.11% Tulcea, Constanța, Iași, Suceava
Turks32,098 0.15% 27,698 0.13% Constanța
Crimean Tatars23,935 0.11% 20,282 0.10% Constanța
Serbs22,518 0.10% 18,076 0.08% Timiș, Arad, Caraș-Severin, Mehedinți
Slovaks17,199 0.08% 13,654 0.06% Sălaj, Arad, Bihor, Suceava
Bulgarians8,025 0.04% 7,336 0.04% Timiș
Croats 6,786 0.03% 5,408 0.03% Caraș-Severin
Greeks6,472 0.03% 3,668 0.02% Constanța, Brăila, Transylvania
Jews5,785 0.03% 3,271 0.02% Bucharest
Czechs3,938 0.02% 2,477 0.01% Caraș-Severin, Mehedinți, Suceava
Poles3,559 0.02% 2,543 0.01% Suceava, Bucharest
Italians3,288 0.02% 3,203 0.02% Bucharest, Constanța, Timiș
Chinese2,243 0.01% 2,017 0.01% Bucharest
Armenians1,780 0.01% 1,361 >0.01% Cluj
Csángós1,266 0.01% 1,536 >0.01% Bacău
Other lesser minorities and/or recent immigrants:13,653 0.06% 18,524 0.10% All counties of Romania
Total:2,276,138 10.49% 2,091,96310.39% Romania

Hungarian minority in Romania

The Hungarian minority in Romania consists of 6.1% of the total population, being thus the largest ethnic minority of the country.
Most ethnic Hungarians live in what is today known as Transylvania, an area that includes the historic regions of Banat, Crișana, and Maramureș. They form a large majority of the population only in Harghita and Covasna counties and a large percentage in the Mureș county.

Greek community

Among the towns and communes in Romania with the highest proportions of Greeks as of 2011 are Izvoarele and Sulina, both in Tulcea County.
According to the Romanian census of 2002, the Greek community numbered 6,472 persons, most of whom live in Bucharest and its surrounding area. Next in line come the Dobruja counties of Tulcea and Constanța, and the Danube-facing ones of Brăila and Galați. The 1992 census however found 19,594 Greeks; this shows the tendency of assimilation. According to the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad the Greek community in Romania numbers 14,000.
The Hellenic Union of Romania, founded in 1990, represents the political and cultural preservation interests of the community, notably by providing its representatives in the Chamber of Deputies of Romania.