Due to a chequered history, today Moldova’s society is a colorful mixture of diverse ethnic groups. This cultural variety finds its expression in day-to-day life. A range of different backgrounds, languages and costumes make life in the Republic of Moldova fascinating and complex at the same time. According to the Moldovan census of 2004 the ethnic composition of Moldova – including Transnistria – is the following:
Ethnic composition
|
|
Ethnicity |
Mold. census |
% Mold. |
Trans. census |
% Trans. |
Total |
% |
|
1. |
Moldovans |
2,564,849 |
75.8% |
177,156 |
31.9% |
2,742,005 |
69.6% |
|
2. |
Ukrainians |
282,406 |
8.3% |
159,940 |
28.8% |
442,346 |
11.2% |
|
3. |
Russians |
201,218 |
5.9% |
168,270 |
30.3% |
369,488 |
9.4% |
|
4. |
Gagauzians |
147,500 |
4.4% |
11,107 |
2.0% |
158,607 |
4.0% |
|
5. |
Romanians |
73,276 |
2.2% |
NA |
NA |
73,276 |
1.9% |
|
6. |
Bulgarians |
65,662 |
1.9% |
11,107 |
2.0% |
76,769 |
1.9% |
|
7. |
Others (Jews, Belarusians, Poles, Roma…) |
48,421 |
1.4% |
27,767 |
5.0% |
76,188 |
1.9% |
|
8. |
TOTAL |
3,383,332 |
100% |
555,347 |
100% |
3,938,679 |
100% |