Montenegrins of Croatia


The Montenegrins of Croatia are a national minority in the republic. According to the 2021 census, there are 3,127 ethnic Montenegrins in Croatia. The highest number of Montenegrins in Croatia is in the Croatian capital Zagreb.
Montenegrins are officially recognized as an autochthonous national minority, and as such, they elect a special representative to the Croatian Parliament, shared with members of four other national minorities.

History

In 1657, the Doge of Venice Bertuccio Valiero, resettled Peroj with five families from the Cernizza region in Montenegro. Following the Cretan War of 1645–1669, twenty other families originally from Montenegro migrated to Peroj. Today Peroj is the centre of the Montenegrins in Istria County.

Demographics

Montenegrins in the 2001 and 2011 censuses:
CountyNumber in the 2001 census% of all Montenegrins
in Croatia		Number in the 2011 census% of all Montenegrins
in Croatia
City of Zagreb1,31326.65%1,19126.37%
Istria County73214.86%75916.80%
Primorje-Gorski Kotar County64313.05%64214.21%
Split-Dalmatia County59312.04%48510.74%
Dubrovnik-Neretva County3707.51%3076.80%
Osijek-Baranja County3527.15%3197.08%
Zagreb County1352.74%1302.88%
Vukovar-Srijem County1192.41%972.15%
Zadar County1122.27%1002.21%
Bjelovar-Bilogora County831.68%631.39%
Šibenik-Knin County751.52%661.46%
Karlovac County741.50%621.37%
Sisak-Moslavina County701.42%681.51%
Brod-Posavina County541.10%410.91%
Virovitica-Podravina County430.87%420.93%
Varazdin County420.85%430.95%
Međimurje County310.63%260.58%
Koprivnica-Krizevci County290.59%360.80%
Pozega-Slavonia County220.45%140.31%
Krapina-Zagorje County130.26%100.22%
Lika-Senj County80.16%160.35%
Total4,926100%4,517100%