Megleno-Romanians

Megleno-Romanians
Total population
	5,000–20,000
Regions with significant populations
Greece	4,000
North Macedonia	1,000
Turkey	4,000–5,000
Romania (Dobruja)	1,200
Serbia (Banat)	Unknown
Languages
	Megleno-Romanian,; Greek, Macedonian
Religion
	Orthodox Christianity, Sunni Islam (in Turkey)
Related ethnic groups
	Aromanians, Istro-Romanians, Romanians

The Megleno-Romanians, also known as Meglenites (Megleno Romanian: Miglinits), Moglenite Vlachs or simply Vlachs (Megleno Romanian: Vlaș), are an Eastern Romance ethnic group, originally inhabiting seven villages in the Moglena region spanning the Pella and Kilkis regional units of Central Macedonia, Greece, and one village, Huma, across the border in North Macedonia. These people live in an area of approximately 300 km² in size. Unlike the Aromanians, the other Romance-speaking population in the same historic region, the Megleno-Romanians are traditionally sedentary agriculturalists, and not traditionally transhumants. Sometimes, the Megleno-Romanians are referred as "Macedo-Romanians" together with the Aromanians.^[2]

They speak a Romance language most often called by linguists Megleno-Romanian or Meglenitic in English, and βλαχομογλενίτικα (vlakhomoglenítika) or simply μογλενίτικα (moglenítika) in Greek. The people themselves call their language vlahește, but the Megleno-Romanian diaspora in Romania also uses the term meglenoromână.

Unlike the other Eastern Romance populations, over time Megleno-Romanians have laid aside a name for themselves which originates in the Latin Romanus, and instead have adopted the term Vlasi or Vlashi, derived from "Vlachs", a general term by which, in the Middle Ages, non-Romance peoples designated Romance peoples and shepherds. The term Megleno-Romanians was given to them in the 19th century by the scholars who studied their language and customs, based on the region in which they live.

Their number is estimated between 5,213 (P. Atanasov, most recent estimate), and 20,000 (P. Papahagi, c. 1900). There is a larger Megleno-Romanian diaspora in Romania (c. 1,500 people), a smaller one in Turkey (c. 500 people) and an even smaller one in Serbia. Greece does not recognize national minorities, thus this approximately 4,000-strong community does not have any official recognition from Greece. Another 1,000 Megleno-Romanians live in North Macedonia. It is believed, however, that there are up to 20,000 people of Megleno-Romanian descent worldwide (including those assimilated into the basic populations of these countries).

^ Kahl (2006), pp. 80–81
^ Țîrcomnicu, Emil (2009). "Some topics of the traditional wedding customs of the Macedo–Romanians (Aromanians and Megleno–Romanians)". Romanian Journal of Population Studies. 3 (3): 141–152.

[1] Kahl (2006), pp. 80–81

[2] Țîrcomnicu, Emil (2009). "Some topics of the traditional wedding customs of the Macedo–Romanians (Aromanians and Megleno–Romanians)". Romanian Journal of Population Studies. 3 (3): 141–152.

[1]

[2]