Slavs

The Slavs or Slavic people are groups of people who speak <a href="/facts/Slavic_languages/b5GaeFx1">Slavic languages</a>. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout the northern parts of <a href="/facts/Eurasia/KlLI9GDM">Eurasia</a>; they predominantly inhabit <a href="/facts/Central_Europe/VdxzSbJz">Central Europe</a>, <a href="/facts/Eastern_Europe/f5CDGzNA">Eastern Europe</a>, <a href="/facts/Southeast_Europe/zxgEvCdQ">Southeastern Europe</a>, and <a href="/facts/North_Asia/mKVVcogV">Northern Asia</a>, though there is a large Slavic minority scattered across the <a href="/facts/Baltic_states/s48uxWb6">Baltic states</a> and <a href="/facts/Central_Asia/rB8k0CyT">Central Asia</a>, and a substantial Slavic diaspora in the <a href="/facts/Americas/hEuUTL4K">Americas</a>, <a href="/facts/Western_Europe/YmWlV59w">Western Europe</a>, and <a href="/facts/Northern_Europe/u77t0yJI">Northern Europe</a>.
<a href="/facts/Early_Slavs/SzKC53Jf">Early Slavs</a> lived during the <a href="/facts/Migration_Period/wfQ7PU21">Migration Period</a> and the <a href="/facts/Early_Middle_Ages/9FrTq3rt">Early Middle Ages</a> (approximately from the 5th to the 10th century AD), and came to control large parts of <a href="/facts/Central_Europe/VdxzSbJz">Central</a>, <a href="/facts/Eastern_Europe/f5CDGzNA">Eastern</a>, and <a href="/facts/Southeast_Europe/zxgEvCdQ">Southeast Europe</a> between the sixth and seventh centuries. Beginning in the 7th century, they were gradually <a href="/facts/Christianization_of_the_Slavs/wJh8Q3jA">Christianized</a>. By the 12th century, they formed the core population of a number of medieval Christian states: <a href="/facts/East_Slavs/aNNxqGFq">East Slavs</a> in the <a href="/facts/Kievan_Rus%2527/oYbNWrwR">Kievan Rus'</a>, <a href="/facts/South_Slavs/lvXFR0wc">South Slavs</a> in the <a href="/facts/First_Bulgarian_Empire/3RCq0kUp">Bulgarian Empire</a>, the <a href="/facts/Principality_of_Serbia_(early_medieval)/AqDDAQgT">Principality of Serbia</a>, the <a href="/facts/Duchy_of_Croatia/b3a3MIbb">Duchy of Croatia</a> and the <a href="/facts/Banate_of_Bosnia/kSDy0tMv">Banate of Bosnia</a>, and <a href="/facts/West_Slavs/YGMvKjLA">West Slavs</a> in the <a href="/facts/Principality_of_Nitra/ANzKKe9I">Principality of Nitra</a>, <a href="/facts/Great_Moravia/teYWwg9z">Great Moravia</a>, the <a href="/facts/Duchy_of_Bohemia/7YNLMleB">Duchy of Bohemia</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Kingdom_of_Poland_(1025%25E2%2580%25931385)/vT5922LI">Kingdom of Poland</a>.
Beginning in the mid-19th century, a <a href="/facts/Pan-Slavism/5DKloWLf">pan-Slavic</a> movement has emphasized the common heritage and unity of all the Slavic peoples. The main focus of the movement was in the Balkans, whereas the <a href="/facts/Russian_Empire/hg1g5SpV">Russian Empire</a> was opposed to it.
The Slavic languages belong to the <a href="/facts/Balto-Slavic_languages/1tgXUIgu">Balto-Slavic branch</a> of the <a href="/facts/Indo-European_languages/L34TfgSr">Indo-European language family</a>. Present-day Slavs are classified into three groups:

<ul><li><a href="/facts/West_Slavs/YGMvKjLA">West Slavs</a> (<a href="/facts/Czechs/PsqFMBxp">Czechs</a>, <a href="/facts/Kashubians/638DdDfc">Kashubians</a>, <a href="/facts/Polish_people/SgzNqHKq">Poles</a>, <a href="/facts/Silesians/Yg51NbJt">Silesians</a>, <a href="/facts/Slovaks/Tq71d53c">Slovaks</a>, and <a href="/facts/Sorbs/6ecSfQu5">Sorbs</a>);</li>
<li><a href="/facts/East_Slavs/aNNxqGFq">East Slavs</a> (<a href="/facts/Belarusians/GXQdoLqy">Belarusians</a>, <a href="/facts/Russians/RBG9H1Rj">Russians</a>, <a href="/facts/Rusyns/5IpGTxpJ">Rusyns</a>, and <a href="/facts/Ukrainians/393lUkjj">Ukrainians</a>);</li>
<li><a href="/facts/South_Slavs/lvXFR0wc">South Slavs</a> (<a href="/facts/Bosniaks/Ql7ttxoI">Bosniaks</a>, <a href="/facts/Bulgarians/xa4djST7">Bulgarians</a>, <a href="/facts/Croats/pxr26XCP">Croats</a>, <a href="/facts/Gorani_people/yv8MQYUp">Gorani</a>, <a href="/facts/Macedonians_(ethnic_group)/uA0KNDPA">Macedonians</a>, <a href="/facts/Montenegrins/YzASGGch">Montenegrins</a>, <a href="/facts/Serbs/R4RD6MvE">Serbs</a>, and <a href="/facts/Slovenes/nQphKLCK">Slovenes</a>).</li></ul>
Though the majority of Slavs are <a href="/facts/Christians/15hE11VR">Christians</a>, some groups, such as the Bosniaks, mostly identify as <a href="/facts/Muslims/W2ukq4pg">Muslims</a>. Modern Slavic nations and ethnic groups are considerably diverse, both genetically and culturally, and relations between them may range from "ethnic solidarity to mutual feelings of hostility" — even within the individual groups.

Slavs open-in-new

Slavs