Croats
 | This article may require copy editing for spelling, grammar, style, cohesion, or tone. (July 2026) |
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| Total population | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| c. 7–8 million[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Regions with significant populations | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Croatia3,550,000 (2021)[2]  Bosnia and Herzegovina544,780 (2013)[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 United States | 414,714 (2012)[4]–1,200,000 (est.)[5] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Germany | 500,000 (2021)[6][7] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Chile | 400,000[8] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Argentina | 250,000[9] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Austria | 220,000[10] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Australia | 164,362 (2021)[11]– 250,000 (est.)[12] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Canada | 130,280 (2021)[13]– 250,000 (est.)[14] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 New Zealand | 100,000[15] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Switzerland | 80,000 (2021)[16] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Brazil | 70,000[9] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Italy | 60,000[17] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Slovenia | 50,000 (est.)[18] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Paraguay | 41,502 (2023)[19] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 France | 40,000 (est.)[20] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Serbia | 39,107 (2022)[21] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Sweden | 35,000 (est.)[22] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Europe | c. 5,200,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North America | c. 600,000–2,500,000[a] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South America | c. 500,000–800,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other | c. 300,000–350,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Languages | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Croatian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Religion | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Christianity: Predominantly Catholicism[44] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Related ethnic groups | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other South Slavs[45] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
a References:[46][47][48][49][50][51][52] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Croats (/ˈkroʊæts/;[53] Croatian: Hrvati, pronounced [xr̩ʋǎːti]) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and other neighboring countries in Central and Southeastern Europe. They share a common Croatian culture, ancestry, history, and speak the Croatian language. The ethnic group is predominantly Catholic.
Croats form a sizeable minority in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and Slovenia. Many emigrated from Europe and established a sizable diaspora in the aftermath of World War II for political, social, and economic reasons. Grassroots assistance from earlier communities and the Catholic Church allowed them to settle in the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand.[54][55] 3.9 million people in Croatia identify themselves as Croats, consituting about 90.4% of the population. Another 553,000 live in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where they are one of the country's three constituent ethnic groups. This population is predominantly found in Western Herzegovina, Central Bosnia, and Bosnian Posavina. The Croat minority in Serbia numbers about 70,000 and mostly lives in Vojvodina.[56][57] The ethnic Tarara people, indigenous to Te Tai Tokerau in New Zealand, are of mixed Croatian and Māori Ngāpuhi descent. Tarara Day is celebrated every 15 March to commemorate their "highly regarded place in present-day Māoridom".[58][59]
The Croatian language is official in Croatia, the European Union,[60] and Bosnia and Herzegovina.[61] Croatian is a recognized minority language within Croatian autochthonous communities and minorities in Montenegro, Austria (Burgenland), Italy (Molise), Romania (Carașova, Lupac), and Serbia (Vojvodina).
Etymology
[edit]The foreign ethnonym variation "Croats" of the native name "Hrvati" derives from Medieval Latin Croāt, itself a derivation of North-West Slavic *Xərwate, by liquid metathesis from Common Slavic period *Xorvat, from proposed Proto-Slavic *Xъrvátъ which possibly comes from the 3rd-century Scytho-Sarmatian form attested in the Tanais Tablets as Χοροάθος (Khoroáthos, alternate forms comprise Khoróatos and Khoroúathos).[62] The origin of the ethnonym is uncertain, but most probably is from Proto-Ossetian / Alanian *xurvæt- or *xurvāt-, in the meaning of "one who guards" ("guardian, protector").[63] The earliest preserved mentions of the ethnonym in stone inscriptions and written documents in the territory of Croatia are dated to the 8th-9th century (e.g. Dux Croatorum on Branimir inscription and Dux Chroatorum on Charter of Duke Trpimir),[64] while in native Croatian language the earliest writing is from the Baška tablet (c. 1100), which in Glagolitic script reads: zvъnъmirъ kralъ xrъvatъskъ ("Zvonimir, king of Croats").[65]
History
[edit]Arrival of the Slavs
[edit]Early Slavs, especially Sclaveni and Antae, including the White Croats, invaded and settled Southeastern Europe in the 6th and 7th century.[66]
Early medieval archaeology
[edit]Archaeological evidence shows population continuity in coastal Dalmatia and Istria. In contrast, much of the Dinaric hinterland appears to have been depopulated, as virtually all hilltop settlements, from Noricum to Dardania, were abandoned and few appear destroyed in the early 7th century. Although the dating of the earliest Slavic settlements has been disputed, recent archaeological data established that the migration and settlement of the Slavs/Croats were in the late 6th and early 7th century.