Romanians in Germany are one of the sizable communities of the

Romanian diaspora The Romanian diaspora is the Romanians, ethnically Romanian population outside Romania and Moldova. The concept does not usually include the ethnic Romanians who live as natives in nearby states, chiefly those Romanians who live in Ukraine, Hun ...

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

. According to German statistics, in 2022, the number of Romanian citizens in Germany was 883,670. The number of people with Romanian ancestry in 2022 (defined as all persons who migrated to the present area of the Federal Republic of Germany after 1949, plus all foreign nationals born in Germany and all persons born in Germany as German nationals with at least one parent who migrated to Germany or was born in Germany as a foreign national) was 1,096,000.

History

Emigration to Germany from Romania was common throughout the 20th century, and continued steadily way into the early 21st century. Large numbers of ethnic

Germans of Romania The Germans of Romania (; ; ) represent one of the most significant historical Minorities of Romania, ethnic minorities of Romania from the Modern era, modern period onwards. Throughout Kingdom of Romania#The interbellum years, the interwar per ...

(most notably

Transylvanian Saxons The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler dialect, Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sa ...

and

Banat Swabians The Banat Swabians are an Germans, ethnic German population in the former Kingdom of Hungary in Central Europe, Central-Southeast Europe, part of the Danube Swabians and Germans of Romania. They emigrated in the 18th century to what was then the ...

) left the country prior, during, and after the events that ultimately led to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In the times of the communist regime in Romania, albeit the borders were officially closed by authorities, significant numbers of Romanian-Germans were allowed to emigrate to

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

, particularly in the later years of the Ceaușescu era. This formed part of a series of ethnic migrations (including

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

), which were tolerated under the then socialist rulership. During the 1980s, more than half of the people who left Romania went to Germany. After the

Romanian Revolution The Romanian revolution () was a period of violent Civil disorder, civil unrest in Socialist Republic of Romania, Romania during December 1989 as a part of the revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several countries around the world, primarily ...

which took place in December 1989, there has been a mass migration of

Transylvania Saxons The Transylvanian Saxons (; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen'' or simply ''Soxen'', singularly ''Sox'' or ''Soax''; Transylvanian Landler: ''Soxn'' or ''Soxisch''; ; seldom ''sași ardeleni/transilvăneni/transilvani''; ) are a people of ...

to Germany, approximately half a million of them immigrated to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Distribution

According to German statistics from 2016, the number of Romanian citizens in Germany on 31 December 2015 was 452,718, which was up from 94,326 in 2008. By 2022, the number had increased to 883,670 Romanian citizens. The distribution of Romanian citizens by

German states The Federal Republic of Germany is a federation and consists of sixteen partly sovereign ''states''. Of the sixteen states, thirteen are so-called area-states ('Flächenländer'); in these, below the level of the state government, there is a ...

is as follows (as of 2022): *

Bayern Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total land area of Germany, and with over 13.08 million ...

209,865 *

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

178,240 *

Nordrhein-Westfalen North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

164,220 *

Hessen Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major historic cities are Da ...

82,010 *

Niedersachsen Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

74,805 *

Rheinland-Pfalz Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

48,975 *

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

27,990 *

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...

20,210 *

Sachsen Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

15,120 *

Thüringen Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany's 16 states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

13,475 *

Sachsen-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the 8th-largest state in Germany by area an ...

10,740 *

Saarland Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...

9,870 *

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

9,790 *

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

8,730 *

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...

5,570 *

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

4,060

Notable people

Art

*, painter *

Adrian Ghenie Adrian Ghenie (; born 13 August 1977 in Baia Mare) is a Contemporary art, contemporary Romanian painter, who lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Early life and education The son of a dentist, he attended the Gheorghe Șincai National College (B ...

, painter *

Petre Hârtopeanu Petre Hârtopeanu (15 June 1913, Dângeni, Botoșani County, Romania — 22 March 2001, Frankfurt-am-Main) was a Romanian-German Painting, painter and art professor. Life Hârtopeanu began his studies and work in Iași. He studied at the Ge ...

(1913–2001), painter * Diet Sayler, painter and sculptor * George Ștefănescu (1914–2007), painter

Entertainment

*, actor, comedian *

Mircea Crișan Mircea Crișan (8 August 1924 – 22 November 2013) was considered to be one of the greatest Romanian comedians and comedic actors. Biography He was born in the Maramureș region of northern Romania to a German jewish father and Romanian mothe ...

(1924–2013), actor, comedian * Maria Drăguș, actress * Marc Dumitru, actor and musician *

Alexandra Maria Lara Alexandra Maria Lara (''née'' Plătăreanu; 12 November 1978) is a Romanian-German actress who has appeared in '' Downfall'' (2004), '' Control'' (2007), '' Youth Without Youth'' (2007), '' The Reader'' (2008), '' Rush'' (2013), and ''Geostor ...

, actress *, film producer * Florian Munteanu, actor, best known for his role as Viktor Drago in the drama film ''

Creed II ''Creed II'' is a 2018 American sports drama film directed by Steven Caple Jr. from a screenplay by Juel Taylor and Sylvester Stallone. It is the sequel to ''Creed'' (2015), a follow-up to '' Rocky IV'' (1985), and the eighth installment in t ...

'' * Călin Netzer, film director *, dancer and former judge for the reality television show ''

Deutschland sucht den Superstar ''Deutschland sucht den Superstar'' (''DSDS''; "Germany is looking for the Superstar") is a German reality talent show. Part of the ''Idol'' franchise, it was created by British media mogul Simon Fuller as a spin-off from the British show ''P ...

'' *

Anny Ogrezeanu Anny Ogrezeanu (born 24 February 2001) is a German-Romanian singer who won the twelfth season of ''The Voice of Germany'' in 2022. Life Anny Ogrezeanu grew up in Wachtberg near Bonn. Ogrezeanu identifies as non-binary and uses they/them prono ...

, singer, winner of

The Voice of Germany ''The Voice of Germany'' is a German reality television, reality talent show created by John de Mol, based on the concept ''The Voice of Holland'' and its The Voice (franchise), international series. It began airing on ProSieben and Sat.1 on 24 ...

in 2022. *

Lupu Pick Lupu Pick (2 January 1886 – 7 March 1931) was a Romanian-German actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter of the silent era. He appeared in 50 films between 1910 and 1928. Born in Romania, Pick's father was a Jewish Austrian,Hans ...

(1886–1931) film director, producer and screenwriter (Romanian mother) *, actress *, actress *

Sabin Tambrea Sabin Tambrea (born 18 November 1984) is a German actor. He is best known for his role as Ludwig II of Bavaria in ''Ludwig II (2012 film), Ludwig II''. Personal life Tambrea was born in Romania and moved to Germany at the age of three. He marrie ...

, actor *

Ana Ularu Ana Ularu (born 26 June 1985) is a Romanian actress based in Germany. Biography Born in Bucharest, daughter of Nicolae Ularu, theatre set designer and decorator, and wife Carmen Mihaela Trifu, theatre costume designer, she graduated with a Bac ...

, actress * Johanna Wokalek, actress

Music

*, hip hop producer, member of the production duo Soulbrotha *, producer and rapper (Romanian mother) *, rapper, best known for his association with

Kool Savas Savaş Yurderi (born 10 February 1975), known by his stage name Kool Savas, is a German rapper of Turkish Origin. Along with Taktlo$$, he formed the highly influential German rap duo Westberlin Maskulin (1997–2000). He was also a founding me ...

Sergiu Celibidache Sergiu Celibidache (; ; 13 August 1996) was a Romanian people, Romanian Conducting, conductor, composer, musical theorist, and teacher. Educated in his native Romania, and later in Paris and Berlin, Celibidache's career in music spanned over fi ...

(1912–1996), conductor and composer *

Roger Cicero Roger Marcel Cicero Ciceu (6 July 1970 – 24 March 2016) was a German jazz and pop musician. Biography Roger Cicero was born in 1970 in Berlin to Romanian jazz pianist Eugen Cicero and dancer Lili Cziczeo. Cicero represented Germany at the ...

(1970–2016), jazz and pop musician *

Michael Cretu Michael Cretu (, ; born 18 May 1957) is a Romanian-German musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He gained worldwide fame as the founder and musician behind the musical project Enigma, which he formed in 1990. Cretu began ...

, music producer, songwriter and founder of Enigma * Damae, singer, former vocalist of trance group

Fragma Fragma is a German Vocal trance, vocal trance music group, originally comprising three producers. The group was successful in the early 2000s when they released several singles that charted successfully across Europe, especially the United Kin ...

(Romanian mother) *, hip hop producer *, singer and composer (Romanian mother) *

Peter Herbolzheimer Peter Alexandru Herbolzheimer (; 31 December 1935 – 27 March 2010) was a Romanian-German jazz trombonist and bandleader. Biography Herbolzheimer was born to a Romanian mother and a German father in Bucharest, Romania. His family emigrated i ...

(1935–2010), jazz trombonist and composer * Nicolae Herlea (1927–2014), baritone *, jazz saxophonist * Ramona Nerra, singer and songwriter *

Miss Platnum Miss Platnum (born Ruth Maria Renner; 27 September 1980), formerly known as Platnum, is a Romanian-German singer, songwriter and musician, currently signed to Virgin Records Germany. Biography Early life Platnum was born in Timișoara, Romania ...

, singer and songwriter * Michael Radulescu, composer *, cellist *, singer and songwriter

Politics

* Joana Cotar, member of the

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (, AfD, ) is a Far-right politics in Germany (1945–present), far-right,Far-right: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative p ...

(AfD) party * Markus Frohnmaier, member of the

(AfD) party * Ramona Pop, member of the

Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance 90/The Greens (, ), often simply referred to as Greens (, ), is a Green (politics), green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of the Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (formed in East Ger ...

* Octavian Ursu, member of the Christian Democratic Union

Sports

* Karim Adeyemi, footballer (Romanian mother) * Michael Andrei, volleyball player *

Alina Astafei Alina Astafei (known before 1995 as Galina Astafei; born 7 June 1969) is a Romanian-German track and field athlete who attained German citizenship in 1995. She was one of the world's leading high jumpers in the 1990s. Representing Romania, she ...

, track and field athlete * Francis Bugri, footballer (Romanian mother) *, basketball coach, who discovered German NBA player

Dennis Schröder Dennis Schröder ( ; ; born 15 September 1993) is a German professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously played for SG Braunschweig and Phantoms Braunschweig in Germany, bef ...

* Călin Colesnic, former managing director of the Hispania Racing F1 Team * Nicolae Firoiu, water polo coach * Ralph Gunesch, footballer * Andreas Ivan, footballer *

Petre Ivănescu Petre Ivănescu (15 April 1936 – 1 April 2022) was a Romanian handball player and coach who played for CS Dinamo București (handball), Dinamo București and for the Romania men's national handball team, Romania national team. Coach Team ...

, handball coach * Simone Laudehr, football player (Romanian mother) *

Mihai Leu Mihai Leu also known as Michael Löwe (born 13 February 1968, in Hunedoara) is a Romanian former professional boxer who competed between 1991 and 1997. He held the WBO welterweight title in 1997. Leu retired after one title defense, against Mich ...

, professional boxer * Elena Leonte, handball player *

Stelian Moculescu Stelian Moculescu (born 6 May 1950 in Brașov) is a Romanian-German volleyball coach and former player. From 1987 to 1990 and from 1999 to 2008 he was also the coach of the Germany men's national volleyball team and the Romania men's national vo ...

, volleyball coach *

Maximilian Nicu Maximilian Nicu (born 25 November 1982) is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder or centre-back. He spent most of his career in Germany, apart from two short spells in Romania and Cyprus. Born in Germany, he played for the ...

, footballer *

Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu (born 1 August 1976) is a Romanian chess grandmaster. His peak FIDE rating was 2707 in October 2005, when he was ranked fifteenth in the world, and the highest rated Romanian player ever. Only in September 2022 his rating ...

, chess grandmaster *, handballer * Gerhard Poschner, footballer * Josef Posipal, footballer, member of Germany's 1954 FIFA World Cup winning team *, professional boxer and IBF European Middleweight Champion * Marcel Răducanu, footballer * Dennis Seimen, footballer *

Albert Streit Albert Streit (born Albert Ursachi 28 March 1980 in Bucharest) is a Romanian-German former professional footballer. Career Streit signed a three-year contract with Eintracht Frankfurt following the relegation of his previous team, 1. FC Köln, ...

, footballer * Romy Tarangul, judoka *

Monica Theodorescu Monica Theodorescu (born 2 March 1963) is a German retired equestrian and dressage rider. Biography Born in Halle, North Rhine-Westphalia, Monica Theodorescu is the daughter of the German, former Romanian, dressage rider George Theodorescu ...

, equestrian * Andreas Toba, artistic gymnast * Alexandra Wenk, swimmer (Romanian mother) * Luminita Zaituc, long-distance runner

Other

Cornel Chiriac Cornel Chiriac (May 8, 1941 March 4, 1975) was a Romanian journalist, radio producer, record producer and jazz drummer. Early life Chiriac was born on May 8, 1941, in , a village in Bessarabia, Soviet Union (previously in Cetatea Albă County, Kin ...

(1941–1975), journalist, radio producer and jazz drummer * Ricarda Ciontoș, curator and production manager * Ruxandra Constantinescu, biophysicist * Eugen Coșeriu (1921–2002), linguist * Miriam Davoudvandi, music journalist * Georg Maurer (1907–1971), poet *

Paul Miron Paul Miron (13 June 1926, Giulești, Suceava County – 17 April 2008, Freiburg, Germany) was a Romanian linguist and philologist, professor at the University of Freiburg, the first professor of Romanian Language and Literature in West Germany ...

(1926–2008), linguist. The first professor of Romanian language and literature in West Germany * Vlad Mugur (1927–2001), theater director * Ion Petrovici, neurologist *, writer * Nicolaus Sombart (1923–2008), sociologist * Catalin Voss, entrepreneur

References

{{Immigration to Germany European diaspora in Germany