Russians
Sign in to saveRussians ( ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian, the most spoken Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Orthodox Christianity, ever since the Middle Ages. By total numbers, they compose the largest Slavic and European nation.
AI overview
Russians are an East Slavic ethnic group from Eastern Europe who speak Russian, the most widely spoken Slavic language, and most follow Orthodox Christianity since medieval times. They represent the largest Slavic and European nation by population.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Ethnic group.group
- Russians
- Ethnic group.native_name_lang
- ru
- Ethnic group.popplace
- center|frameless|260x260px Russia 105,620,179 (2025)
- Ethnic group.region1
- Germany
- Ethnic group.pop1
- approx. 7,500,000 (including Russian Jews and Russian Germans)
- Ethnic group.region2
- Ukraine
- Ethnic group.pop2
- 7,170,000 (2018) (including Crimea)
- Ethnic group.region3
- United States
- Ethnic group.pop3
- 3,072,756 (2009)(including Russian Jews and Russian Germans)
- Ethnic group.region4
- Kazakhstan
- Ethnic group.pop4
- 2,983,317 (2024 government est.)
- Ethnic group.region7
Article
25 sectionsContents
- Ethnonym
- History
- Ancient history
- Medieval history
- Modern history
- Geographic distribution
- Ethnographic groups
- Genetics
- Assimilation and immigration
- Language
- Culture
- Literature
- Philosophy
- Science
- Painting
- Music
- Cinema
- Architecture
- Religion
- Sports
- See also
- References
- Citations
- Bibliography
- External links
Russians ( ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian, the most spoken Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Orthodox Christianity, ever since the Middle Ages. By total numbers, they compose the largest Slavic and European nation.
Genetic studies show that Russians are closely related to Poles, Belarusians, Ukrainians, as well as Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, and Finns. They were formed from East Slavic tribes, and their cultural ancestry is based in Kievan Rus'. The Russian word for the Russians is derived from the people of Rus' and the territory of Rus'. Russians share many historical and cultural traits with other European peoples, and especially with other East Slavic ethnic groups, specifically Belarusians and Ukrainians.