Rîșcani (, also spelled ''Râșcani'') is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in Moldova. It is located in the north-western part of the country, in the old

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...

region. It is the largest city and administrative center of Riscani District. Spread across an area of , the town had a population of 9,259 inhabitants in 2014.

Geography

Rîșcani is located in Rîșcani District of Moldova. It is located in the

southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe is a geographical sub-region of Europe, consisting primarily of the region of the Balkans, as well as adjacent regions and Archipelago, archipelagos. There are overlapping and conflicting definitions of t ...

and in the north-western part of Moldova. Spread across an area of , it is the largest center of the district. It is one of 27 sub-divisions (two cities and 25 communes) in the district. It is part of the

region.

Demographics

According to the 2014 census, the population of Rîșcani amounted to 9,259 inhabitants, a decrease compared to the previous census in 2004, when 12,117 inhabitants were registered. Of these, 4,318 were men and 4,941 were women. The population is further projected to reduce over the next few decades. The city had a

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income i ...

of 0.699 in 2015. About 1,554 inhabitants were under the age of fourteen, and 1,242 inhabitants were above the age of 65 years. About 91.3% of the population lived in urban areas. The town had an expatriate population of 598 individuals, of whom 22 belonged to the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

and 486 belonged to the

Commonwealth of Independent States The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional organization, regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an ar ...

Moldovans Moldovans, sometimes referred to as Moldavians (, , ), are an ethnic group native to Moldova, who mostly speak the Romanian language, also referred to locally as Moldovan language, Moldovan. Moldovans form significant communities in Romania, It ...

formed the major ethnic group (53%), with

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

(31%) forming a large minority. Others include

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

(7.3%), and

Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...

(4.6%). The town had a significant

Jewish 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 ...

population before the

Second World War 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 ...

Moldovan language Moldovan or Moldavian (Romanian alphabet, Latin alphabet: , Moldovan Cyrillic alphabet: ) is one of the two local names for the Romanian language in Moldova. ''Moldovan'' was declared the official language of Moldova in Article 13 of the Cons ...

was the most spoken language, spoken to by 3,828 (41.8%) inhabitants, with Russian (28.6%) and Ukrainian (18.2%) spoken by significant minorities. About 96.6% of the population followed

Eastern Orthodox Christianity Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

, and 3.4% of the population followed other religions.

''Footnotes'': * ''There is an ongoing controversy regarding the ethnic identification of Moldovans and Romanians.'' * ''Moldovan language is one of the two local names for the

Romanian language Romanian (obsolete spelling: Roumanian; , or , ) is the official and main language of Romania and Moldova. Romanian is part of the Eastern Romance languages, Eastern Romance sub-branch of Romance languages, a linguistic group that evolved fr ...

in Moldova. In 2013, the

Constitutional Court of Moldova The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova () represents the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in the Moldova, Republic of Moldova, autonomous and independent from the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. The task of the ...

interpreted that Article 13 of the constitution is superseded by the Declaration of Independence, thus giving official status to the name ''Romanian''.''

References

External links

Rîșcani Stadium
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riscani Cities and towns in Moldova Beletsky Uyezd Bălți County (Romania) Rîșcani District