The Slovak diaspora refers to both historical and present emigration from Slovakia, as well as from the former Czechoslovakia. The country with the largest number of Slovaks living abroad is the United States.
Approximately 17,000-21,000 ethnic Slovaks live in Romania. The largest Slovak communities live in the following counties:
The Slovak diaspora in Romania could be divided into two major groups:
This group could be found in the flat Romanian county of Banat, especially around the town of Nădlac, RO (Nadlak, SK). In the sense of economy and culture, this is quite a developed society, in Nădlac, RO (Nadlak, SK), there is a Slovak school operating and Slovak books get printed there. The Slovaks in the county of Arad are descendants of the secondary colonizing generations - meaning, the Slovak communities re-settled there from Békéscsaba, HU (Békečská Čaba, SK), in Hungary in the 19th century. Today, Slovaks create in the town of Nădlac alone almost half of its population.
According to the 2011 census, the ethnic structure of Nădlac is:
Munții Plopiș, RO (Plopišské Vrchy, SK) are a part of the Romanian mountains located to the east of the city of Oradea, on a border of two counties - Bihor, RO (Bihar, SK) and Sălaj, RO (Salaš, SK). The Slovaks living there are the descendants of the colonials arriving in three waves between 1790 and 1838. A big part of the Plopiš highlands Slovaks took part in the Czecho-Slovak emigration after the World War 2. They settled in Czechia, along the border of Slovakia, where they create a specific society today.[1] [2] Bihor county is mostly mountainous. Localities where the Slovak communities live can be found on these mountains, such as Șinteu, RO (Nová Huta, SK); Făgetu, RO (Gemelčička, SK); Șerani, RO (Šarany, SK); Sacalasău Nou, RO (Nový Šastelek, SK); Marca Huta, RO (Bojovksé, SK); Budoi, RO (Bodonoš, SK); Valea Cerului, RO (Čerpotok, SK); Borumlaca -Vărzari, RO (Boromlak - Varzaľ, SK); Fegernic RO & SK; Lugașu de Jos, RO (Lugaše, SK); Zăuan-Băi, RO (Zavaň, SK).
A village with the highest number of Slovaks is a part of this group - Șinteu, RO (Nová Huta, SK), located in the Bihor county, according to census in 2002, from the total number of inhabitants 1.287, the Slovaks were numbered at 1.264. There is a Slovak school or a kindergarten in almost every village. The Slovak highschool Jozef Kozáček High School is also located in Budoi. Teachers are sent to two schools by the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sports of the Slovak Republic (in Șinteu and Făgetu), who work in the area as support for Slovak compatriots. In almost every village there are Slovak priests who are natives of this area.[3]
The religious structure of Slovaks in Romania could be also divided into two sections. The majority of Bihor county Slovaks are Roman Catholics, meanwhile the majority of Arad county Slovaks are Lutherans. Due to intermarriages, we can also see some Orthodox and Byzantine Catholics among them.
According to the census from 2020, this is religious structure of the Slovak diaspora in Romania overall:[4]
Since the Slovaks are officially recognised as an ethnic minority in Romania, they share together with Czechs a common representative Adrian Merka since 2008 for Democratic Union of Czechs and Slovaks in Romania.
In 1995, the second Slovak lyceum in Romania was established in the Slovak locality of Budoi, RO (Bodonoš, SK) in the Bihor-Sălaj county, which was named after the important Slovak canon in Oradea, RO (Veľký Varadín, SK) Jozef Kozáček (Jozef Kozáček High School). This high school is focused on the study of languages and is studied mainly by students from the surrounding Slovak communities.
At present, there are 2 Slovak high schools in Romania (in Nădlac and in Budoi) - and there are also primary schools for the I. - VIII. year, another 3 primary schools for I. - VIII. years are in Huta Voivozi, RO (Stará Huta, SK); Făgetu, RO (Gemelčička, SK) and Șerani, RO (Šarany, SK), and in addition, there are also 12 other primary schools in Slovakia for Slovaks for years I. - IV. and 14 nurseries as well. On top of that, Slovak as a mother tongue is taught in several other schools as well.[5]
| Aleșd | Alešď | 10,415 | 645 | 6.2% | |
| Aştileu | Aštileu | 3,791 | 173 | 4.6% | |
| Auşeu | Aušeu | 3,049 | 198 | 6.5% | |
| Borod, mainly the settlement of Şerani | Borod, mainly the settlement of Šarany | 4,173 | 500 | 12% | |
| Brestovăţ | Brestovac | 818 | 151 | 18.5% | |
| Budoi, including Vărzari and Voivozi | Bodonoš, including Varzaľ a Vojvoz | 1,127 | 821 | 72.8% | |
| Butin | Butín | 463 | 380 | 82% | |
| Făgetu | Gemelčička | 842 | |||
| Fântânele | Fantanele | 5,692 | 159 | 2.8% | |
| Iosifalău | Iosifalva | ||||
| Ipp | Ip | 3,946 | 111 | 2.8% | |
| Lugaşu de Sus & Lugaşu de Jos | Lugaše - Nižný a Vyšný | ||||
| Lugoj | Lugoš | 44,636 | 77 | 0.2% | |
| Luncşoara | Lunkšora | ||||
| Marca | Markasek | 2,966 | 96 | 3.2% | |
| Mădăras | Madarás | 3,020 | 226 | 7.5% | |
| Marca Huta | Bojovské | ||||
| Marghita | Margita | 17,291 | 82 | 0.5% | |
| Mocrea | Mokrá | ||||
| Nădlac | Nadlak | 8,154 | 3,844 | 47.1% | |
| Nusfălau | Nadfaluby | ||||
| Oradea | Veľký Varadín | 206,614 | 474 | 0.2% | |
| Pădurea Neagră | Bystrá | ||||
| Peregu M.are | Veľký Pereg | 1,800 | 329 | 18.3% | |
| Peştiş | Peštiš | 1,454 | 155 | 11.7% | |
| Plopiş | Plopiš | 2,791 | 901 | 32.3% | |
| Popeşt | Popešť | 8,488 | 1,305 | 15.4% | |
| Sacalaşău Nou | Derma, mainly the settlement of Nový Šastelek | 3,020 | 288 | 9.5% | |
| Suplacu de Barcău, Borumlaca, Foglaş, Vâlcelele | Siplak, Boromolaka, Fogaš, Ritoblaga | 4,610 | 934 | 20.3% | |
| Şemlac | Semlak | 3,787 | 42 | 1.1% | |
| Şimleu Silvaniei | Šomľov | 10,137 | 39 | 0.4% | |
| Șinteu and Huta Voivozi; Socet and Valea Tîrnei | Nová Huta and Stará Huta; Huta Sočet including Zachotár and Židáreň | 1,287 | 1,264 | 98.2% | |
| Ţipar | Cipár | 1,410 | 413 | 29.3% | |
| Tileagd | Telegda | ||||
| Topolovăţul Mare | Topoľovec | ||||
| Teş | Teš | ||||
| Urvind | Urvinda | ||||
| Valea Cerului | Čerpotok | 444 | 427 | 96.2% | |
| Varasău | Harasov and Termezov | ||||
| Vagaše | |||||
| Vucova | Vuková | ||||
| Zăuan-Băi | Zavaň |
The majority of the Slovak diaspora in Serbia is concentrated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, with the capital Novi Sad.
Slovaks are the third most numerous nationality in the province of Vojvodina. According to the 2011 census, they form an absolute majority in the Bački Petrovac SRB, Báčsky Petrovec SK district (65.37%) and they are the most numerous nationality in the Kovačica district (41.85%).[8] [9]
The Vojvodina Slovaks are descendants of mostly Lutheran emigrants from the 18th and 19th centuries, who settled in the Vojvodina fertile territory, sparsely inhabited after its devastation by the Ottoman Turks. The main causes of Slovak emigration were difficult economic and social conditions, considerable overcrowding and a lack of existential opportunities in their native regions.[10]
According to the 2020 census, the largest Slovak communities are in:
| Padina | Падина (Padina) | 5,760 | 5,575 | 96.8% | |
| Lug | Луг (Lug) | 801 | 772 | 96.4% | |
| Jánošík | Јаношик (Janošik) | 1,171 | 1,073 | 91.6% | |
| Selenča | Селенча (Selenča) | 3,279 | 2,990 | 91.2% | |
| Báčsky Petrovec | Бачки Петровац (Bački Petrovac) | 6,727 | 5,949 | 88.4% | |
| Hložany | Гложан (Gložan) | 2,283 | 1,985 | 86.9% | |
| Kovačica | Ковачица (Kovačica) | 6,764 | 5,697 | 84.2% | |
| Kysáč | Кисач (Kisač) | 5,471 | 4,505 | 82.3% | |
| Pivnica | Пивнице (Pivnice) | 3,835 | 2,935 | 76.5% | |
| Slankamenské Vinohrady | Сланкаменачки Виногради (Slankamenački Vinogradi) | 266 | 199 | 74.8% | |
| Kulpín | Кулпин (Kulpin) | 2,976 | 2,116 | 71.1% | |
| Laliť | Лалић (Lalić) | 1,646 | 796 | 48.4% | |
| Hajdušica | Хајдучица (Hajdučica) | 1,375 | 579 | 42.1% | |
| Aradáč | Арадац (Aradac) | 3,461 | 1,376 | 39.8% | |
| Belo Blato | Бело Блато (Belo Blato) | 1,477 | 583 | 39.5% | |
| Silbaš | Силбаш (Silbaš) | 2,849 | 1,018 | 35.7% | |
| Bingula | Бингула (Bingula) | 906 | 306 | 33.8% | |
| Stará Pazova | Стара Пазова (Stara Pazova) | 18,645 | 5,848 | 31.4% |
The Slovak diaspora in Croatia is concentrated mainly in the area of the town of Osijek in the Osijek-Baranja County (districts of Našice, Djakovo, Novska, Osijek, Vukovar). A number of Slovaks also live in the Sisak area. Despite its small number, the Slovak minority in Croatia has significant cultural rights.[12] There are some important Slovak institutions such as Matica Slovenská.
| Osijec-Barajn County: | 305,032 | 2,293 / 0.75% | |
| Našice | 16,224 | 1,078 / 6.64% | |
| Koška | 3,980 | 55 / 1.38% | |
| Punitovci | 1,803 | 666 / 36.94% | |
| Sisak-Moslava County | 172,439 | 212 / 0.12% | |
| Lipovljani | 3,455 | 106 / 3.07% | |
| Vukovar-Sriem County | 179,521 | 1,185 / 0.66% | |
| Ilok | 6,767 | 935 / 13.82% | |
| Vrbanja | 3,940 | 69 / 1.75% |
Slovaks are the third largest ethnic minority in Hungary. According to the official census, their number ranges from 17.693 to 110.000, which is an estimate of the Slovak organizations with seat in Hungary.[14]
Slovaks lived in what is today's modern Hungary, especially northern Hungary, in many villages at least until the late Middle Ages as a remnant of Slavic settlement living there already before the arrival of the Hungarians.[15] Developments in the coming period remain unexplored due to lack of objective interest from the Hungarian authorities for the time being, with the exception of Hungarian biased nationalist circles spreading inaccurate information. Most Slovaks came to the territory of today's Hungary as part of the settlement of the so-called Lower Lands (Serbia, Romania, Croatia) after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire, more precisely from the end of the 17th to the 19th century. In addition to the traditional Slovak-language islands in Hungarian territory, the former Pest County in 1790 was 52% Slovak.,[16] in Pest in 1829 there were just as many Slovaks as there were Hungarians and in 1900 there were about 100,000 Slovaks living in Budapest, the capital of Hungary (Budapest was the city with the largest number of Slovaks in Europe, hence the negative perception from the Hungarians today). In the area between Budapest and today's Slovak border, Slovaks still lived in about half of the villages in 1880s and 1890s, in several areas they even made up more than 50% or 100%. In Nyíregyháza (founded in 1749 as a Slovak settlement) in the 1980s, 8,600 Slovaks lived in addition to more than 13,000 Hungarians, and these Slovaks were called Tirpák. Szeged also had a large Slovak population at the beginning of the 19th century.[17] [18]
In 1920, according to the official Hungarian census, Slovaks still lived as a minority in Hungary in 78 municipalities, with the majority in 41 municipalities (50-75% 21 municipalities, 75-100% 20 municipalities). At that time, more than 500 Slovaks lived in the counties of Székesfehérvár HU (Stoličný Belehrad SK), Komárno SK (Komárom, HU), Veszprém HU (Vesprém SK), Esztergom HU (Ostrihom, SK), Hont SK & HU, Novohrad SK (Nógrád HU), Csongrád HU (Čongrad SK), Heves HU (Heveš SK), Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok HU (Jasovsko-Veľkokumánsko-Solnocká župa SK), Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun HU (Peštiansko-pilišsko-šoltsko-malokumánska župa SK), Budapest HU (Budapešť SK), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén HU (Abovsko-Turnianska, Boršadská SK). In 1920, 59.464 of the officially led Slovaks were Roman Catholic, 75.229 were Lutherans, 7.723 were Calvinists, 734 were Jews, the rest (approx. 850) were of other religions.[19] The exchange of population between Czechoslovakia and Hungary in the late 1940s reduced their number by about 70.000.
Today, Slovaks still live in Békés HU (Békešská župa SK), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén HU (Abovsko-Turnianska, Boršadská župa SK), Komárom-Esztergom HU (Komárno-Ostrihom SK), Novohrad SK (Nógrád HU) and Pest HU (Pešť SK) counties and in the capital Budapest. Their center is Békéscsaba HU (Békešská Čaba SK). Since the 1990s, they have had national Slovak self-government and self-government at the regional level. The weekly newspapers Ľudové noviny also has an online edition. There are two national Slovak grammar schools in the country - in Budapest and in Békešská Čaba (Békesczaba HU), compared to the 19 Hungarian ones functioning in Slovakia. The modern settlement of Slovaks in Hungary is mainly related to the hinterland of Bratislava, the Slovak capital, while the percentage of approximately 50% was reached by ethnic Slovaks in the village of Rajka.[20]
Number of Slovaks in Hungary according to official Hungarian Kingdoms / Hungarian statistics:
Data up to 1920 are from,[22] [23] [24] later data are generally available in several sources.
According to contemporary Czech-Slovak sources, 630,000 lived in present-day Hungary at the time of the disintegration of Hungarian Kingdom,[25] 350 000 – 450 000,[26] 450,000 / 500,000 – 550,000 [27] of Slovaks. The above-mentioned sums of Slovaks and Hungarians speaking Slovaks also speak in favor of a number between 400,000 and 500,000 in 1918 (this number has been growing steadily in recent Hungarian censuses, although the teaching of Slovak has been declining - in the end it was practically non-existent) and thus Hungarians had no reason to learn the language) according to the Hungarian censuses, as well as the fact that in 1946 the Czech-Slovak commission preparing for the exchange of the population directly in Hungary counted 473,556 Slovaks applying for the exchange. As of 1990 and 2001, it is stated that the actual number of Slovaks in Hungary is 70,000 [28] or respectively 110,000.[29] In summary, according to statistics, the number of Slovaks in Hungary decreased, depending on the source, from 400,000 - 500,000 / over 300,000 / 145,000 at the beginning of the 20th century to today's official 18,000 people, a decrease in the number of nationalities by 95.5% / 94.2% / 87.5% in only 80 years [without deducting population change. at a height of approx. 70,000 people]. Today, the number of Slovaks is paradoxically higher in distant Serbia or Romania, although there were significantly fewer Slovaks in these countries than in Hungary at the time of the disintegration of Hungarian Kingdom.
* The "mother tongue" was officially mentioned here, but this mother tongue was de facto defined in the official instructions for the census commissioners as the most frequently used language, the language the person spoke "most willingly". (It was not possible to determine whether this also applies to the 1930 census and later)
** Census data from 1910 (similarly from 1900) are skewed to the detriment of non-Hungarians mainly due to a specially defined issue implemented by Hungarian census commissioners (see *), further distortion proves the discrepancy of numbers with the development of birth rates and mortality of individual nationalities[30] and demographically impossible increases of the Hungarian population in individual municipalities compared to previous censuses (so-called statistical Hungarianization) [31]
*** If we compare this number with the data from 1941 and the numbers of the population exchange, we will also get a "deficit" of 22,037 Slovaks at the level of official statistics.
See main article: category and Slovak diaspora.
See main article: category.