Europe

Languages and cultures

There are several linguistic groups widely recognised in Europe. These sometimes (but not always) coincide with cultural and historical connections between the various nations, though in other cases religion is considered a more significant distinguishing factor.

Romance languages

Romance languages are spoken more or less in south-western Europe, as well as Romania and Moldova which are situated in Eastern Europe. This area consists of: Andorra, Italy, Portugal, France, Spain, Romania, Moldova, French-speaking Belgium (Wallonia, partly Brussels), French-speaking Switzerland (Romandy), Romansh-speaking Switzerland, and Italian-speaking Switzerland. All Romance languages are derived from the Roman language, Latin.

Germanic languages

Germanic languages are spoken more or less in north-western Europe and some parts of central Europe. This region consists of: Norway, Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands, Dutch-speaking Belgium (Flanders, partly Brussels), Austria, Liechtenstein, most of Switzerland, Iceland and the German-speaking areas of Wallonia, the Faroe Islands, Luxembourg, the Swedish-speaking municipalities of Finland, and South Tyrol in Italy.

Slavic languages

Slavic languages are spoken in Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. This area consists of: Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, regions of Saxony and Brandenburg in Germany(Sorbs), Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.

Uralic languages

The Uralic languages are divided into three main groups, two of which have representatives in Europe. The Finno-Permic languages are spoken in Finland, Estonia, and parts of Sweden, Norway, Latvia, and European Russia while the Ugric languages are spoken in Hungary and parts of Romania, Slovakia, Serbia, Ukraine, and Siberian Russia. These two groups comprise the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic language family.

Baltic languages

Baltic languages are spoken in Lithuania and Latvia. Estonia's national language is part of the Finno-Ugric family even though it is a Baltic state geographically.

Celtic languages

"Celtic language" was originally used only to describe the Scottish and Irish Gaelic language; however, the term now extends to the other Gaelic and Brythonic languages. Celtic Europe is comprised of those countries and regions where Celtic languages are spoken. The Celtic nations are: Scotland and Ireland, Wales, Cornwall (UK County), the Isle of Man (a British Crown dependency) and Brittany (a department in France). These are all nations where a Celtic language is spoken and share in Celtic organisations (see Pan Celticism).

Considered Celtic nations are Galicia and Asturias (both autonomous communities of Spain), as well as northwest Portugal. Scotland, Ireland and Wales and Some regions of England (in addition to Cornwall) have retained a degree of Celtic influence in their regional dialects (see Cumbric, Highland English and Hiberno-English), although England's Celtic languages died out as recently as the 18th century in Devon and Cornwall.

Other languages

Outside of these six main linguistic groups one can find:

• The Greek language, an Indo-European language spoken in Greece, Cyprus, and parts of Turkey, Albania, and Italy, and in Greek diaspora communities in several other European countries (most notably Germany).
• The Albanian language, which, like the Greek language, forms its own independent branch of the Indo-European language family with no close living relatives. Major Albanian-speaking communities outside Albania live in Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Greece, Turkey, and southern Italy.
• The North Caucasian, a group that includes ethnic groups throughout the Caucasus region (both North and South). North Caucasian languages are divided into two main branches: Northeast Caucasian and Northwest Caucasian. This group includes Abkhaz, Chechens, Ingush, Bats, and a number of other smaller ethnic groups that reside in the Caucasus.
• The South Caucasian, or Kartvelian languages, a group that includes the Georgian language.
• The Maltese language, a heavily Romanticized Semitic language, is spoken in Malta. Unlike other Semitic languages, Maltese is written in the Roman alphabet.
• The Basque language is spoken in parts of southern France and northern Spain, i.e. the Basque Country.
• Turkic languages are spoken in Turkey, Azerbaijan, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, parts of Bulgaria, parts of Greece, parts of Romania, parts of Macedonia, parts of Kosovo, parts of Moldova, parts of Russia, parts of Ukraine, parts of the Caucasus and in Turkish diaspora communities in several other European countries (most notably Germany, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands).
• The Mongolic branch of the Altaic phylum is represented in Europe by the Kalmyk language, which is spoken by the Kalmyk people in Kalmykia, a constituent republic of the Russian Federation.
• English is spoken fluently by the majority of Europeans.

Religions

The most popular religions of Europe are the following:

• Christianity
  • Roman Catholicism: Countries or areas with significant Catholic populations are Albania, Andorra, Austria, west Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, south and west Germany, Hungary, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Latgale region in Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, south Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, central and south Switzerland, and Vatican City. There are also large Catholic minorities in Great Britain: England, Scotland, Wales and most European countries.
  • Eastern-Rite Catholicism: including west Ukraine, the "Uniates" or minority churches follow its version of Catholicism in Bulgaria, Hungary, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia, and the so-called "Greek Catholic" sects of southern Italy (Sardinia and Sicily) and Corsica, France.
  • Orthodox Christianity: The countries with significant Orthodox populations are Greece, Russia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Armenia, Serbia, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, easternmost Hungary, a small minority in Southern Italy, Kazakhstan, sizable minorities in Albania, Latvia and Lithuania, small minority in Poland, Finland (Karelia), A relatively small minority in the European part of Turkey belong to the Greek Orthodox church.
  • Protestantism: Countries with significant Protestant populations include Denmark, Estonia, Finland, north and east Germany, Iceland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden; east, north and west Switzerland; and the United Kingdom. There are significant minorities in France, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and the Republic of Ireland. Smaller Protestant churches and their missionairy work are found in Belgium, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine.
• Islam: Countries with significant Muslim population are Albania, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Montenegro, several republics of Russia, Serbia (especially in Kosovo), Turkey, Crimea in Ukraine. Also, as of 2005, about 5% of EU residents identify themselves as Muslims, with well-established immigrant communities in Germany, the United Kingdom, Benelux countries, Sweden and France, and small but fast-growing minorities of Muslims by recent immigration in Germany, Denmark, Greece, Italy and France.

Other religions are practised by smaller groups in Europe, including:

• Judaism, mainly in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Russia and Turkey. Judaism is said to have made a minor comeback in the Czechia, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia in recent years.
• Hinduism, mainly among Indian immigrants in the United Kingdom, an estimated 500,000 Hindu adh