| Flag: | Flag of the Croat minority in Serbia and Montenegro.svg |
| Group: | Croats of Montenegro |
| Population: | 6,021[1] |
| Region1: | Bay of Kotor |
| Pop1: | 4,519 [2] |
| Languages: | Croatian, Montenegrin |
| Religions: | Catholicism |
| Related: | Other South Slavs |
The Croats have a minority in Boka Kotorska (Bay of Kotor), a coastal region in Montenegro, the largest of their kind in Tivat. The three municipalities making up the Bay of Kotor (Tivat, Kotor and Herceg-Novi) include 4,519 Croats or 6.70%.[2] They are also known as Bokelji, a common name for all inhabitants for of Boka Kotorska. Tivat is home to the minority political party Croatian Civic Initiative, and to the National Council of Croats in Montenegro. Kotor is home to Croatian Civic Society of Montenegro.
Croats of Montenegro are mainly Catholic. According to the 2011 census, 5,527 (91.80%) Croats declared as such. Since most of them live in the Bay of Kotor, the vast majority of them fall under the Diocese of Kotor.
Settlements in Montenegro with significant Croatian minority (10 percent or more) include (2011):[3]
| Census year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Croats | Percentage | ||
| 1961 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 1,544 | 10.18% | |
| Kotor | 3,483 | 20.92% | |
| Tivat | 3,423 | 57.29% | |
| 1971 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 1,195 | 6.5% | |
| Kotor | 2,612 | 13.8% | |
| Tivat | 3,375 | 48.73% | |
| 1981 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 702 | 3.01% | |
| Kotor | 1,644 | 8.03% | |
| Tivat | 2,876 | 30.87% | |
| 1991 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 630 | 2.28% | |
| Kotor | 1,617 | 7.2% | |
| Tivat | 2,663 | 23.35% | |
| 2003 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 831 | 2.45% | |
| Kotor | 1,842 | 7.84% | |
| Tivat | 2,761 | 19.73% | |
| 2011 | |||
| Herceg-Novi | 662 | 2.14% | |
| Kotor | 1,553 | 7.84% | |
| Tivat | 2,304 | 16.42% | |
The Croatian Civic Society of Montenegro (Croatian: Hrvatsko građansko društvo Crne Gore) is a Croat community organisation in Montenegro. Their headquarters is located in the coastal town of Kotor, in the Boka kotorska region of Montenegro.