The Romanian language has become the third most spoken language in England and Wales, according to the latest UK census.
Around 472,000 people (0.8% of the population) speak Romanian in England and Wales, out of the total population of 57.7 million, according to the 2021 census cited by G4Media. The rise in number of Romanian speakers is the most pronounced in comparison to other languages. The previous census, from 2011, included only Romanian speakers 68,000, placing the language in 19th position.
The increase in Romanian speakers matches similar increases regarding country of birth (459,000) and Romanian national identity (405,000). The number of people with Romanian citizenship in England and Wales was 550,000 in the 2021 census.
In England, 466,000 people (0.9%) speak Romanian, of which 159,000 are located in London (1.9%), the most Romanian speakers being in the Harrow sector in the northwest of the capital – 19,000 (7.5%).
Polish remained the most spoken language after English in England and Wales with 612,000 or 1.1%, followed by Punjabi, Urdu, Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, and others. The number of speakers of English or Welsh as their primary language was 52.6 million or 91.1% in 2021, down from 92.3% in 2011.
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