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The majority of the 5.3 million inhabitants of Slovakia are Slovak (85.8%). Hungarians are the largest ethnic minority (9.7%) and are concentrated in the southern and eastern regions of Slovakia. Other ethnic groups include Roma, Czechs, Rusyns, Ukrainians, Germans, and Poles.

While both international organizations (the United Nations and the World Bank) and the official Slovak statistics office offer population figures for ethnic groups, these figures seldom come close to agreement. Figures for the Roma population (for a variety of reasons) vary between 1% and 10% of the population. In the most recent survey carried out by the Slovak Government's Roma Plenipotentiary, the figure for the percentage of Roma was arrived at through interview with municipality representatives and mayors, according to how many Roma they think live in their jurisdictions. The figure arrived at by this means was in the region of 300,000 (about 5.6 %). Note that in the case of the 5.6%, however, the above percentages of Hungarians and Slovaks are lower accordingly.

The Slovak constitution guarantees freedom of religion. The majority of Slovak citizens (60.3%) practice Roman Catholicism; the second-largest group consider themselves atheists (9.7%). About 8.4% are Protestants, and 4.1% are Orthodox. There are 5,000 Muslims in Slovakia, and about 2,300 Jews remain of the estimated pre-WWII population of 120,000. The official state language is Slovak, and Hungarian is widely spoken in the southern regions.

Despite its modern European economy and society, Slovakia has a significant rural element. About 45% of Slovaks live in villages with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants, and 14% in villages with fewer than 1,000.

Demographics of Slovakia, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands.

Population: 5 379 455 (2001 census)/ 5,439,448 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure: (2001 census) / (2006 est.)
0-14 years: 18,9% (male ?; female ?) / 16.7% (male 465,304; female 443,967)
15-64 years: 63,1% (male ?; female ?) /71.3% (male 1,929,448; female 1,947,735)
65 years and over: 18% (male ?; female ?) / 12% (male 244,609; female 408,385)

Median age: total: 35.8 years,male: 34.2 years, female: 37.6 years (2006)

Population growth rate: 0.15% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 10.65 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 9.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.26 deaths/1,000 live births
male 8.48 deaths/1,000 live births
female 5.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.73 years
male: 70.76 years
female: 78.89 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.33 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak

Ethnic groups: Slovak 85.8%, Hungarian 9.7%, Gypsy 1.7%, Czech 0,8%, other 2% (mainly Moravian, Silesian, Ruthenian and Ukrainian, German, Polish, Croatian) (2001 census)

Religions: Roman Catholicism in Slovakia 60.3%, atheist 9.7%, Protestant (Evangelic Church of Augsburg Affiliation) 8.4%, Greek catholic 4.1%, Orthodox 4.1%, Reformed Christian Church 2.04%, other 6.37% (2004 survey)

Languages: Slovak (official, 83.9%), Hungarian (10.7%), Roma (1.8%), Ukrainian (1%), other or unspecified (1.8%) (2001 census)

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.6%

• Statistics Office of The Slovak Republic

See also : Slovakia