Romania

Latin-rite Catholics in Romania are members of an ethnic Hungarian minority, a small community surrounded by Orthodox Christians in one of Europe’s most religiously observant societies. Catholics live mostly in homogenous enclaves in the eastern part of the Transylvania region. There is a sense that these areas are a kind of Catholic homeland. There is a widely-known legend (believed by many ordinary Catholics to be historically true) that the Virgin Mary appeared to a group of Catholics defending this region against an invading Protestant army. An annual pilgrimage to the site of this apparition helps bolster the sense that Catholicism has a “home” in this region. Read more...

In the Journal of Global Catholicism

Marc Roscoe Loustau, "Radio Maria Transylvania: National Representation, Prayer, and Intersubjectivity in a Growing Catholic Media Network," Journal of Global Catholicism 3, no. 2 (2019): 64-87, DOI: 10.32436/2475-6423.1056.

Zsofia Lovei, "Breaching Boundaries: Homogenizing the Dichotomy between the Sacred and Profane in Csíksomlyó," Journal of Global Catholicism 4, no. 2 (2020): 8-35, DOI: 10.32436/2475-6423.1074.

Erika Vass, "Radna: The Holy Shrine of the Multinational Banat Region (Romania)," Journal of Global Catholicism 4, no. 2 (2020): 108-135, DOI: 10.32436/2475-6423.1077

Marc Roscoe Loustau, "Risking a Miracle: Transcendentally-Oriented Improvisation and Catholic Charismatics’ Involvement in a Transylvanian Canonization," The Journal of Contemporary Religion 31 (2016): 335-50, https://doi.org/10.1080/13537903.2016.1206229.

Marc Roscoe Loustau, Hungarian Catholic Intellectuals in Contemporary Romania: Reforming Apostles, Contemporary Anthropology of Religion (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022).

Articles

In the News

A message to Pope Francis: Be wary of right-wing populists when you visit Romania - America Magazine - April 19, 2019

Demographics

National Demographics

Total Population:

21,640,000 1

Urban:

54.39% 1

Rural:

45.61% 1

Immigrants as % of Population:

1.2% 2

Homicides:

1.49 per 100,000 people (global median 6.9) 3

Level of Public Corruption:

57 (1=lowest, 176=highest corruption) 4

Gender Equality in the Economy, Health, Education and Politics:

76 (1=most equal, 144=least equal) 7

Fertility Rate:

1.51 births per adult woman 5

Children Who Do Not Live to Age 5:

1.10% 5

Life Expectancy at Birth:

75 years 5

Adult Literacy Rate:

98.60% 5

Internet Users:

54% 5

Gross National Income per Capita:

US$9,520 5

Population Living Below US$1.90 per Day:

0.0% 5

Catholic Demographics

These statistics are derived from the Vatican's official publication, Statistical Yearbook of the Church, 2017 (Vatican City: Librera Editrice Vaticana, 2019). The numbers may differ from data reported by other sources on this site.

Baptized Catholics:

1,428,000

Baptized Catholics as % of Total Population:

7.36%

Baptisms per Year (Under age 7):

9,678

Baptisms per Year (Over age 7):

324

First Communions per Year:

8,151

Confirmations per Year:

5,418

Students Enrolled in Catholic Primary Schools:

3,503

Students Enrolled in Catholic Secondary Schools:

6,092

Students Enrolled in Catholic Higher Education:

907

Church Marriages per Year:

4,704

Church Marriages in Which Both Spouses are Catholics:

2,765

Priests:

1,949

Women Religious (Nuns & Sisters):

1,001

Catholics per Priest:

733

Parishes:

1,878

Catholic Hospitals:

Homes for Aged, Handicapped, Invalids:

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