Demographic history of Syrmia

This article is about demographic history of Syrmia .

Prehistory

Between 3000 BC and 2400 BC, Syrmia was a core area of Indo-European Vučedol culture. ^{[1] [2]}

6th-7th century

In 6th-7th century, Syrmia was populated by Slavs. ^[3] According to other sources, it was also populated by Gepids, ^[4] and Avars. ^{[4] [ better source needed ]}

11th-12th centuries

In the 11th and 12th centuries, according to Hungarian sources, the region of Syrmia had partially Slavic and partially mixed Slavic-Hungarian population. ^[5] Around 1154, Al-Idrisi, a Muslim geographer, described Manđelos as a rich town, whose inhabitants pursued a rather "nomadic way of life". By some opinions, Idrisi might have referred simply to stock-breeding that played an important role among the Hungarian inhabitants of the entire region of Syrmia ^[6] This fact was confirmed later by several Byzantine authors in the 12th century (Ioannes Kinnamos, Niketas Choniates, Patriarch Michael). ^[6]

1437

In 1437, the largest part of Syrmia was populated by Serbs, according to Serbian scholars. ^[7] According to other sources Hungarians and Serbs lived mixed in this area in 1437. ^[6]

1495

In 1495, the area of Syrmia had a mixed population of Croats, Hungarians, and Serbs. ^[8]

1857

According to the census from 1857, 59.4% of population of the part of Syrmia under civil administration and 63.2% of population of the part of Syrmia under military administration (Petrovaradin regiment) were ethnic Serbs. The second largest ethnic group were Croats, while other ethnic groups included Germans, Hungarians, etc. ^[9]

1910

According to the 1910 census, the population of the Syrmia region (Syrmia county) numbered 414,234 inhabitants, including: ^[10]

• Serbian language = 183,109 (44.2%)
• Croatian language = 106,198 (25.6%)
• German language = 68,086 (16.4%)
• Hungarian language = 29,522 (7.1%)
• Slovak language = 13,841 (3.3%)
• Rusyn language = 4,642 (1.1%)

1931

According to the 1931 census, the territory of Syrmia included: ^[11]

• Serbs = 210,000
• Croats = 117,000
• Germans = 68,300
• Hungarians = 21,300
• Slovaks = 15,300
• Ukrainians = 5,300

1971

According to the 1971 census, the territory of Serbian part of Syrmia had a population of 313,926 inhabitants, composed of: ^[12]

• Serbs = 228,609 (72.8%)
• Croats = 38,389 (12.2%)
• Slovaks = 14,056 (4.5%)
• Hungarians = 9,376 (3%)
• Yugoslavs = 9,086 (2.9%)
• Rusyns = 3,403 (1.1%)

2011

Serbian part of Syrmia

According to the 2011 census in Serbia, the territory of Serbian part of Syrmia had a population of 370,114 inhabitants, composed of: ^[13]

• Serbs = 310,376 (83.7%)
• Croats = 11,445 (3.1%)
• Slovaks = 9,216 (2.5%)
• Roma = 6,984 (1.9%)
• Hungarians = 4,901 (1.3%)

Note: figures above include Srem district and municipalities of Beočin and Sremski Karlovci that are geographically part of Syrmia but are administratively part od the South Bačka district; and exclude City of Belgrade's municipalities of Novi Beograd, Zemun, and Surčin, that are geographically part of Syrmia.

Croatian part of Syrmia

According to the 2011 census in Croatia, the territory of Croatian part of Syrmia (the Vukovar-Srijem county) had a population of 179,521 inhabitants, composed of:

• Croats = 142,135 (79.1%)
• Serbs = 27,824 (15.5%)
• Hungarians = 1,696 (0.9%)
• Rusyns = 1,427 (0.8%)
• Slovaks = 1,185 (0.6%)

2022

Serbian part of Syrmia

According to the 2022 census in Serbia, the territory of Serbian part of Syrmia had a population of 304,294 inhabitants, composed of: ^[14]

• Serbs = 254,076 (83.5%)
• Slovaks = 6,819 (2.2%)
• Roma = 6,750 (2.2%)
• Croats = 6,386 (2.1%)
• Hungarians = 3,319 (1.1%)

Note: figures above include Srem district and municipalities of Beočin and Sremski Karlovci that are geographically part of Syrmia but are administratively part od the South Bačka district; and exclude City of Belgrade's municipalities of Novi Beograd, Zemun, and Surčin, that are geographically part of Syrmia.

Croatian part of Syrmia

According to the 2021 census in Croatia, the territory of Croatian part of Syrmia (the Vukovar-Srijem county), had a population of 143,113 inhabitants, composed of: ^[15]

• Croats = 116,847 (81.6%)
• Serbs = 19,309 (13.5%)
• Hungarians = 1,180 (0.8%)
• Rusyns = 965 (0.6%)
• Slovaks = 842 (0.6%)

See also

• Demographic history of Vojvodina

References

1. "Vjesnik on-line - Kultura". Archived from the original on 2001-07-29. Retrieved 2011-02-12.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2011-02-12.
3. "Ilirija: Sirenje plemena Slavena oko 500 - 700 II Dio". Archived from the original on 2010-12-14. Retrieved 2011-02-10.
4. Osman Karatay, In search of the lost tribe: the origins and making of the Croatian nation, Ayse Demiral, 2003, p. 46
5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2011-02-10.
6. Derek Keene, Balázs Nagy, Katalin Szende, Segregation, integration, assimilation: religious and ethnic groups in the medieval towns of Central and Eastern Europe, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2009, p. 75-76.
7. Dr. Aleksa Ivić, Istorija Srba u Vojvodini, Novi Sad, 1929.
8. Károly Kocsis: Ethnic Geography of the Hungarian Minorities in the Carpathian Basin
9. Vasilije Đ. Krestić, Iz prošlosti Srema, Bačke i Banata, Beograd, 2003.
10. Szerém (Srijem) County
11. Jovan Pejin, Kolonizacija Hrvata na srpskoj zemlji u Sremu, Slavoniji i Baranji, Sremska Mitrovica, 1992.
12. Dr. Branislav Bukurov, Bačka, Banat i Srem, Novi Sad, 1978.
13. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2015-06-02.
14. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2015-06-02.
15. https://dzs.gov.hr/u-fokusu/popis-2021/88 ^{[ bare URL ]}