The number of Russians around the world. How many “original Russians” are left in Russia?

Russian has earned the status of one of the world (global) languages ​​a long time ago. Now about 300 million people on the planet speak it, which automatically puts the Russian language in honorable fifth place in terms of prevalence. More than half (160 million) of respondents consider this language their native language. Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russian was the official language of communication for all nationalities. Now he is a worker in the CIS and one of the six official ones at the UN.

Number and territorial distribution of Russian speakers

Before the revolution in Russia, 150 million citizens spoke Russian. By 2000, their number had grown to 350 million. The number of Russian speakers who consider this language their native language was approximately 280 million. Just over 70 million citizens spoke it well and used it in everyday life. For 114 million, Russian was a second language. Basically, these were residents of the union republics.

Now there are many Russian speakers in Ukraine, Georgia and other countries that were once part of the Union. Native speakers live in Germany, the Balkans, Asia, and Israel. A huge Russian diaspora exists in the USA and Canada. Now Russian is in 2nd place after English in terms of prevalence on the global Internet.

Unfortunately, the growth trends in the number of Russian-speaking users do not inspire much hope. The states that separated from the USSR are trying with all their might to revive their national cultures. By 2005, the number of Russian-speaking citizens living in the former territory of the Soviet Union decreased from 350 to 278 million. In 2006, only 140 million people recognized it as their native language. Basically, these are citizens of the Russian Federation.

The Russian diaspora is one of the largest and most widespread in the world. Its population today is about 25 - 40 million people, scattered all over the world outside the Russian Federation. It first began to form in the middle of the 19th century, when some of the nobles created a small ethnic community in Paris.

The Russian diaspora received a special expansion during the unrest and destruction of the Russian Empire, as well as during the Civil War and in the early years of the formation of the Soviet Union. In the next 50 years, the Russian diaspora abroad practically did not grow, since migrating from the USSR at that time was problematic.

The second stage of rapid growth occurred during the “thaw” period in the USSR. However, the largest number of migrants joined the diaspora in the 90s and 2000, when the Union collapsed and the economic, political and crime situation in the country left much to be desired. There was also a significant increase in new immigrants in 2011. Since 2014, the Russian diaspora has been constantly increasing due to the increased number of migrants from Russia.

But it is not entirely clear who should be included in the Russian diaspora - ethnic Russians or simply former citizens of the Russian Federation, whether descendants of migrants from the Empire, as well as immigrants from other countries of the former USSR (especially Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan) belong to this diaspora.

The first subject of the Russian Empire who settled permanently in Australia (more precisely, in Tasmania) was a Belarusian, who was arrested in England in 1804 and sent to hard labor in the Australian colonies. After serving his sentence, the prisoner remained to live in the country on a permanent basis.

It is believed that he was the progenitor of the Russian diaspora in Australia. However, according to the colonial authorities of Australia, in 1820 there were already 4 Russian-speaking families living on the continent, consisting of former prisoners, so it is impossible to accurately identify the progenitor of the Russian diaspora.

The massive flow of immigrants from the Russian Empire (later the USSR and the Russian Federation) and the territories under its control began at the end of the 19th century. The first wave of migration lasted 25 years from 1880 to 1905. During this period, Russian Jews mainly moved from the territory of the Baltic states and the South-Western regions of the Empire, fleeing the wave of anti-Semitism that swept Europe at that time.

In 1901, the year the Commonwealth of Australia declared its formal independence from the British Crown, the number of Russians in the country was about 3.5 thousand people.

There were waves of migration during the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, unrest and Revolution at the end of the Russian Empire and during the Soviet Union. These were mainly people who disagreed with the current political course of the state, deserters and counter-revolutionaries. The movement to the Green Continent continues today.

Today, about 30 thousand people from the countries of the former USSR live in Australia, and about 60 thousand people are descendants of Russian immigrants.

Today in Australia there are 3 newspapers in Russian and two television programs.

If we talk about the Russian diaspora in New Zealand, it is more numerous in relation to the local population than in Australia (20 thousand Russians per 4.6 million indigenous inhabitants in New Zealand and about 30 thousand Russians per 30 million inhabitants of the Union). The first migrants from Russia to New Zealand appeared somewhere in the middle of the 19th century (there is no exact data).

Today, most of the ethnic community is concentrated in Auckland and Wellington. The country has a Russian cultural center in Christchurch.

The first mentions of Russians in China date back to the 14th century. The main peak occurred during the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway, the Russo-Japanese War and during the period of unrest and the overthrow of the monarchy in Russia.
But many Russians became citizens of China not entirely of their own free will, because previously the Russian Empire controlled part of the northern provinces of the Celestial Empire, and after the Soviets came to power, these lands seceded from Russia and for some time were under the control of the Japanese occupation authorities, and later China. However, many Russians left the area.

But also some Russian emigrants considered China as a transit zone for South American countries. During the peak period, the number of Russian immigrants in the Middle Kingdom amounted to 125 thousand people. However, due to the very low standard of living in the country, various unrest, famine and the Cultural Revolution, many migrants moved to other regions or returned to their homeland, which is why their number dropped to 20 thousand people by 1953. And also a big contribution was made by the disdainful attitude of the Chinese towards foreign immigrants, which could be traced until the 80s of the last century.

Today, about 15 - 20 thousand Russians live in China on a permanent basis. China may become an attractive destination for Russians in the foreseeable future, as industry and business are developing at a rapid pace. In addition, the Celestial Empire now treats our compatriots very well.

There is a TV channel that broadcasts 24 hours a day in Russian, several newspapers, as well as the Russian version of the famous Chinese newspaper People's Daily, Russian schools and schools are being opened to adapt to the local environment.

The most “favorite” settlement areas for Russians are Shanghai, Harbin, and Dalian.

Russians in South America

The largest number of Russians in South America in 2019 is concentrated in Argentina and a small part in other countries - Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay.
The first and second waves of migration to South America were Germans, Jews, as well as representatives of various Slavic nationalities who did not want to serve in the Russian army and/or were persecuted in Russia for some reason. By the end of the second wave (approximately 1905), the number of immigrants from Russia in South America was about 160 thousand people (150 thousand of whom lived in Argentina).

During the third wave of immigration, seasonal workers, mostly peasants, came here from Russia, who subsequently remained here for permanent residence. Just at this time, Orthodox churches and churches began to be actively built in the country; by the end of the third wave, the Russian population in South America ranged from 180 to 220 thousand people.

With the advent of the first unrest in the Russian Empire and the beginning of the October Revolution, the flow of emigrants increased significantly.

The fourth and fifth waves are already less global in nature; they have been going on now, since 1917. In the 4th wave, former prisoners of fascist concentration camps left for South America; their number was only about 10 thousand people.

The fifth wave occurs during the years of perestroika, the collapse of the USSR and the modern period. In the first case, migration was more of an illegal nature, since officially citizens of the Union went to work. Today, about 320 thousand Russians live in South America (of which 300 thousand live in Argentina).

France is home to one of the largest Russian diasporas in the world, numbering approximately 500 thousand people. A certain part of the emigrants and their descendants are Russian Jews who, for various circumstances and reasons, settled in France.

The country also reached a peak of Russian immigration of 1.5 million people. Over time, most of the immigrants moved to neighboring states or returned to their homeland.

The first movement to France from Russia arose in the early to mid-19th century, and continues to this day. The first settlers to France from the Empire were Russian aristocrats who loved to vacation in Nice. And at the beginning of the 20th century, the French experienced rapid population growth thanks to Russian emigration, which amounted to 1.5 million people between 1905 and 1930.

The bulk of the settlers were concentrated in Paris and other large cities of the country. In the 30s, the term “Russian Paris” was even introduced. Various schools in Russian, interest groups and Russian newspapers were organized for emigrants. Unfortunately, no one was seriously involved in adapting the settlers to French society.

During the war, some Russians tried to move to the United States, some were sent to concentration camps during the Nazi occupation of France. After the defeat of the Axis countries, some of the Russian prisoners of concentration camps remained for permanent residence in France and other European countries (most often using not very legal methods). During the Soviet era, until the beginning of Perestroika, there was no significant emigration to France. This time has its own difficulties.

During Perestroika, during the collapse of the USSR and in subsequent periods, there was a serious increase in the movement of Russians into the country.

National composition of Russia

Data on the national composition of Russia are determined through a written survey of the population as part of the All-Russian population census. According to the 2010 census, the population of Russia is 142,856,536 people, of which 137,227,107 people or 96.06% indicated their nationality.

Russians have the largest population. There are 111,016,896 Russians living in Russia, which is 77.71% of the Russian population or 80.90% of those who indicated their nationality. Next come the following nations: Tatars - 5,310,649 people (3.72% of all, 3.87% of those who indicated their nationality) and Ukrainians - 1,927,988 people or 1.35% of all, 1.41% of those who indicated their nationality .

Compared to the 2002 population census, the number of Russians decreased by 4,872,211 people or 4.20%.
The number of Tatars and Ukrainians also decreased by 243,952 (4.39%) and 1,014,973 (34.49%), respectively. Of the peoples whose population was more than 1 million people in 2010, a decrease in numbers occurred among all except the Chechens and Armenians. The population of Chechens increased by 71,107 people (5.23%), Armenians - by 51,897 (4.59%). In total, representatives of more than 180 nationalities (ethnic groups) live in Russia.

Some maps of Russia by national composition

Map of the settlement of Russians, Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars in Crimeaaccording to the 2014 census data in Crimea.

According to the table at the link, since the 2001 census, the share of Russians in Crimea has increased from 60.68% up 67.90% (by 7.22%) from persons who indicated their nationality.During the same time, the share of Ukrainians in Crimea decreased from 24.12% up 15.68% (by 8.44%). The total share of Crimean Tatars and Tatars has increased from 10.26% + 0.57% = 10.83% to 10.57% + 2.05% = 12.62% (total 1.79%).

Below is a table of nationalities inRussian Federationindicating the number in 2010 and 2000, the percentage of the total population of the Russian Federation and the number of persons indicating nationality. The table also shows the difference in the number of persons between censuses in quantitative and percentage terms. The table shows only nationalities whose number in the Russian Federation, according to the 2010 census, exceeds 100 thousand people. Full table at .

** - those who did not indicate nationality (2002, 2010), including persons for whom information was obtained from administrative sources (2010).

Director of the Department for Work with Compatriots Abroad of the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexander Chepurin told Interfax about how a new version of the law on compatriots is being prepared and why it is needed

Moscow. 12th of April. website - Director of the Department for Work with Compatriots Abroad of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Alexander Chepurin spoke in an interview with Interfax about the preparation of a new version of the law on compatriots and the situation in this area in the post-Soviet space

Alexander Vasilyevich, as you know, a new version of the law on compatriots is currently being prepared. Why is it needed?

The fact is that the current law was adopted more than ten years ago. Since then, many changes have occurred, and its provisions, at times declarative, sometimes unrealizable, are behind the times, and do not take into account the realities of modern Russian policy in this area.

For example, in the 90s, the most pressing problem was the provision of humanitarian assistance to compatriots who found themselves in difficult situations in the CIS. Such assistance has increased in recent years, and it will continue to be provided in the future to those who find themselves in an extreme or particularly difficult situation by contacting the humanitarian commission of Russian foreign institutions.

Meanwhile, today the main emphasis is on building relations of cooperation and partnership with foreign Russia. The priority is to strengthen the ethnocultural community, the foundations of community self-organization, protect the rights and legitimate interests of compatriots, and expand its ties with its historical homeland. Work with the diaspora today extends not only to neighboring countries, but also to foreign countries. Moreover, as a result of migration processes, a significant part of Russians, Russian-speaking people now live in distant foreign countries, and, objectively speaking, over time these compatriots will make up half, and perhaps more than half, of the foreign Russian world.

Will the new edition strengthen the position of our compatriots abroad, including in problem countries such as the Baltic states and in what specifically? When will it be submitted to the State Duma?

All innovations meet the interests of compatriots and Russia. Let's take the issue of protecting the rights of compatriots. This is a current thing. At the last World Congress of Compatriots in Moscow, the President of Russia stated that he supports the idea expressed by his compatriots to create a fund for the protection of the rights of foreign compatriots. Now this idea is supported by concrete decisions and deeds. At a meeting of the Government Commission for the Affairs of Compatriots Abroad on April 8 this year. the procedure for forming such a fund was reviewed and generally approved. There is great interest in it, especially from compatriots living in a number of “problem” countries.

By introducing amendments, it is proposed to legislatively consolidate the system of constant communication between Russia and compatriots created in recent years, as well as between compatriots themselves at the country, regional and global levels.

The new edition proposes to introduce a new provision that establishes the possibility of compatriots entering Russian educational institutions on equal terms with Russians, incl. and training at the expense of the Russian budget.

In the last 3 years, more than 20 thousand compatriots have moved to Russia as part of the State Resettlement Program. The bill legislates the right of compatriots to receive assistance when relocating to permanent residence in Russia.

The law introduces a provision that defines the possibilities of moral encouragement on the part of the Russian state for those compatriots who make a significant contribution to the preservation of the ethnocultural space, native language, and the development of ties with Russia.

The amendments consolidate the powers of state authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and local governments in working with compatriots. And this is a huge resource for the development of such work, especially in the field of culture and education.

All this is designed to increase the level of our interaction with compatriots, strengthening their status, be it in foreign countries, the CIS or the Baltic states.

The proposed changes to the law on compatriots passed all the necessary approvals, the bill was approved by the Government and in March of this year. submitted to the State Duma. We hope that its parliamentary discussion will begin in the coming weeks.

According to some reports, the new version of the law will sharply limit the circle of people who fall under the concept of “compatriot.” Is this so and won’t many of those who associate themselves with Russia remain “overboard”?

The main thing we encounter when implementing the existing 1999 law is the amorphousness and vagueness of the provisions relating to the very concept of “compatriot”. It turned out that 150-200 million people could be automatically included in the number of people falling under this concept. These are not only compatriots themselves, but also the titular population of the states of the post-Soviet space, not only residents of Finland and Poland, as territories that were previously part of the Russian state, but - in theory - also residents of Alaska.

The new edition is more realistic. The initial premise is self-identification: an emigrant or, say, a Russian living in the near abroad, from whom “the homeland has left” - does he associate himself spiritually, culturally, mentally with Russia, the Russian ethnocultural environment? The ethnic element - taking into account the multinationality of Russia - is secondary, although a compatriot, as a rule, is ethnically connected with the peoples historically living on the territory of Russia. There may, of course, be exceptions to this rule.

In other words, compatriots are those who actually, in accordance with global practice, are such. In this sense, if you like, the new edition is more specific and as close as possible to those who associate themselves with Russia and Russian civilization.

Does Russia provide financial support to compatriots abroad, in particular to NGOs? What amounts are allocated for this in 2010?

In recent years, the Law on the Federal Budget has allocated 350-400 million rubles annually to support the activities of compatriots living abroad, which are carried out primarily by organizations, if you like - NGOs of compatriots. Three quarters of this amount is spent by Russian foreign institutions in 91 countries, which determine the most important areas and maintain direct and daily contacts with organizations of compatriots. In this regard, the interaction between Russian foreign institutions and the diaspora, established in recent years, is extremely important. Support is directed towards more effective protection of the rights of compatriots in their countries of residence, preservation of the ethnocultural identity of the Russian diaspora and its ties with their historical homeland, structuring of communities, the study and dissemination of the Russian language as an integral part of world culture and an instrument of interethnic communication, provision of humanitarian assistance to compatriots, in including veterans of the Great Patriotic War and labor.

In recent years, the volume of funds allocated to support compatriots has increased many times, although, taking into account the size of the foreign community, they are small in absolute terms. Events are not always held on a grand scale, but they are always met with interest by the diaspora. Therefore, in my opinion, things need to be done in the direction of using for these purposes the significant capabilities of the communities themselves, local “Russian business,” and putting into practice the experience of other diasporas.

With the participation of compatriots in the Russian Federation and abroad, conferences, festivals, thematic round tables and other forums are also held, also aimed at uniting compatriots. Amendments to the law stipulate that the World Congress of Compatriots will be held every three years. In recent years, compatriots, with the assistance of PKDSR, have been organizing network festivals such as “Vivat, Russia!”, “With Russia in the Heart”. In Crimea, from June 6 (A.S. Pushkin’s birthday) to June 12 (Russia Day), a large festival “The Great Russian Word” is held annually, jointly with the Crimean authorities.

In recent years, educational trips to historical places of the Russian Federation “Hello, Russia!” have been conducted for young compatriots - winners of olympiads and competitions on knowledge of the history and culture of Russia. In 2010, about 1,300 young compatriots will arrive in Russia under this program.

Rossotrudnichestvo is actively working in this field in those countries where there are Russian centers of science and culture, the Governments of Moscow, St. Petersburg and Tatarstan, and the Russkiy Mir Foundation. They have their own budgets and their activities are aimed at implementing cultural and educational programs.

When comparing the work with the diaspora carried out by Russia with similar work in other countries, we can say that the Russian Federation looks very worthy.

The celebration of the next anniversary of Victory Day is approaching. Does Russia intend to in any way assist in the celebration of this event by compatriots abroad, for example, to honor and reward veterans?

Organizations of compatriots in the near and far abroad, with the support of the Government Commission for the Affairs of Compatriots Abroad, are taking an active part in their countries in the international action "St. George's Ribbon", they will hold cleanup days to tidy up the burial places of Russian soldiers, "memory watches" and laying flowers at the places burials and monuments. An international youth conference of compatriots “And the saved world remembers...” will be held in Moscow, the participants of which will travel to the places of military glory of Russia. Of course, many embassies will host holiday receptions in honor of veterans. The media of compatriots publish materials about significant events and people who contributed to the Victory.

After the abolition of the institution of dual citizenship in Turkmenistan, many of our compatriots found themselves in a difficult situation. What is it like today, does it cause concern?

The well-being of our compatriots in the post-Soviet space varies from country to country. We closely monitor ongoing processes, the status of the Russian language, and violations of ethnocultural rights. In a number of countries, the scope of application of the Russian language and Russian-language education is narrowing, and pockets of Russian culture are disappearing.

We cannot, of course, not be concerned about the fate of our fellow citizens and compatriots when a situation arises in certain countries that poses a potential threat to their security. We have been closely monitoring the development of the situation in Kyrgyzstan recently.

The situation in Turkmenistan has recently had, in my opinion, positive dynamics. In the capital of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, there is a Russian-Turkmen gymnasium named after A.S. Pushkin, which is the only educational institution of general education in the post-Soviet space that works according to Russian educational standards and Russian textbooks. An agreement was reached on the arrival of Russian higher professional education in Turkmenistan: branches of the Gubkin Institute of Oil and Gas and Lomonosov Moscow State University were opened. In 2009, an agreement was signed between the Russian Federation and Turkmenistan on the mutual recognition of educational documents. Support is provided to the Ashgabat Russian Drama Theater named after Pushkin, which operates in Russian and has been operating since 1926.

It is important that compatriots integrate into the society of their countries of residence, maintaining their “Russianness”, being worthy citizens, but not losing ties with their historical homeland. It is necessary to realize that Russian compatriots are citizens and taxpayers of their countries of residence and have the right to have their national and cultural needs taken into account.

After the recent terrorist attacks in the Moscow metro, the question of working with our compatriots, immigrants from the North Caucasus who now live abroad, has again arisen. According to experts, they, being predominantly anti-Russian, are often a breeding ground for terrorism. Is any work being done with them to return them to normal interaction with the Russian Federation?

The North Caucasian diaspora living outside Russia did not emerge today, but in the last century and is concentrated mainly in the states of the Middle East and Turkey. A dialogue is being established with them. Conferences of compatriots held in recent years show the growing interest of diaspora associations of the peoples of the North Caucasus living in Jordan, the Gulf countries, and Turkey in contacts and interaction with the Russian Federation. We support their desire to preserve their national and cultural identity and provide some assistance within the framework of programs to support compatriots. We strongly welcome more active work in this direction by the mother republics. At the end of last year, we held a conference in Kazan on issues of interaction between the republics and foreign communities with the participation of representatives of the leadership of almost all Russian national republics and their foreign diasporas.

As for representatives of the peoples of the North Caucasus who found themselves abroad in the 90s of the last century, communities are actively working in a number of countries, seeking to maintain their traditions and ties with their homeland. Work with the Chechen diaspora is carried out, in particular, by the leadership of the Chechen Republic, calling on emigrants to return home, renounce their support for terrorism and join peaceful life.

In general, the concept of “compatriot abroad” is not a legal, but rather a spiritual term, implying a positive attitude of a native of Russia, an emigrant, towards his historical homeland.

In which countries do most of our compatriots currently live? In which states is their situation most difficult? Are there statistics on the return of compatriots to Russia for permanent residence?

About 30 million of our compatriots live outside Russia. The majority of them are citizens of post-Soviet states. The problems they faced after the collapse of the USSR are close and similar: a reduction in opportunities to communicate in Russian, receive information in it and conduct office work, the threat of ethnocultural assimilation, displacement from government structures, etc.

Latvia and Estonia have added a problem that is unique to these countries: a significant part of our compatriots do not have any citizenship there and are officially classified as “non-citizens”. These are people who were not born in these countries before 1940 or their descendants and on this basis are deprived of the right to citizenship of the country of residence. This situation is “unique” not only for Europe, but for the whole world. For twenty years now it has been in the field of view of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and other international institutions, but things are still there.

The size of the Russian population living in the newly independent states has decreased by several million people over the past two decades. Most of them moved to Russia. Others - during the latest population censuses - classified themselves as titular nations.

Since 2007, the State Program for Assisting the Resettlement of Compatriots in the Russian Federation began to operate. More than 20 thousand compatriots and members of their families resettled within its framework. They are provided with assistance in settling down, partial coverage of resettlement costs, and simplified conditions for obtaining citizenship of the Russian Federation. More than 90 percent of those resettled under the State Program are compatriots from the CIS countries. At the same time, Kazakhstan accounts for up to 30 percent, Uzbekistan - 15, Ukraine - 14, Moldova - 10, Kyrgyzstan - 9 percent.