Moldovans

Moldovans, sometimes referred to as Moldavians (Romanian: moldoveni, Moldovan Cyrillic: молдовень, pronounced [moldoˈvenʲ]), are an ethnic group native to Moldova, who mostly speak the Romanian language, also referred to locally as Moldovan. Moldovans form significant communities in Romania, Italy, Ukraine and Russia. There is an ongoing controversy in Moldova over whether Moldovans constitute an ethnic group separate from Romanians or not. 77.18% and 7.9% of the Moldovan population declared Moldovan and Romanian ethnicity respectively in the 2024 Moldovan census, with 49.2% declaring their mother language to be Moldovan and 31.3% declaring it to be Romanian. According to opinion polls, around one third of Moldova's population supports unification with Romania. The term "Moldavian" can also be used to refer to the inhabitants of the territory of the historical Principality of Moldavia, currently divided among Romania (47.5%), Moldova (30.5%) and Ukraine (22%). In Romania, natives of Western Moldavia identifying with the term declare Romanian ethnicity, while the natives of the Republic of Moldova are usually called "Bessarabians" (Romanian: basarabeni).