The principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia - for centuries under the suzerainty of the Turkish Ottoman Empire - secured their autonomy in 1856; they were de facto linked in 1859 and formally united in 1862 under the new name of Romania. The country gained recognition of its independence in 1878. It joined the Allied Powers in World War I and acquired new territories - most notably Transylvania - following the conflict. In 1940, Romania allied with the Axis powers and participated in the 1941 German invasion of the USSR. Three years later, overrun by the Soviets, Romania signed an armistice. The post-war Soviet occupation led to the formation of a communist “people’s republic” in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of dictator Nicolae CEAUSESCU, who took power in 1965, and his Securitate police state became increasingly oppressive and draconian through the 1980s. CEAUSESCU was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept from power. Romania joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
land: 229,891 sq km
water: 8,500 sq km
border countries (5): Bulgaria 605 km; Hungary 424 km; Moldova 683 km; Serbia 531 km; Ukraine 601 km
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
mean elevation: 414 m
arable land: 39.1% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 1.9% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 19.7% (2018 est.)
forest: 28.7% (2018 est.)
other: 10.6% (2018 est.)
18,326,327 (2023 est.)
noun: Romanian(s)
adjective: Romanian
Romanian 89.3%, Hungarian 6%, Romani 3.4%, Ukrainian 0.3%, German 0.1%, other 0.9% (2021 est.)
note: data represent individuals who declared an ethnic group in the 2021 national census; 13% did not respond; Romani populations are usually underestimated in official statistics and may represent 5–11% of Romania’s population
Romanian (official) 91.6%, Hungarian 6.3%, Romani 1.2%, other 0.7% (2021 est.)
note: data represent individuals who declared a maternal language in the 2021 national census; 13.1% did not respond
major-language sample(s):
Cartea informativa a lumii, sursa indispensabila pentru informatii de baza. (Romanian)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Romanian Orthodox 85.3%, Roman Catholic 4.5%, Reformed 3%, Pentecostal 2.5, other 4.7% (2021 est.)
note: data represent individuals who declared a religion in the 2021 national census; 13.9% did not respond
0-14 years: 15.63% (male 1,472,449/female 1,391,671)
15-64 years: 62.13% (male 5,689,908/female 5,696,224)
65 years and over: 22.24% (2023 est.) (male 1,682,695/female 2,393,380)
total dependency ratio: 53.7
youth dependency ratio: 24.6
elderly dependency ratio: 29.1
potential support ratio: 3.4 (2021 est.)
total: 45.1 years (2023 est.)
male: 43.6 years
female: 46.5 years
-1.01% (2023 est.)
8.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
14.9 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
-3.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
urbanization is not particularly high, and a fairly even population distribution can be found throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger and denser populations; Hungarians, the country’s largest minority, have a particularly strong presence in eastern Transylvania
urban population: 54.7% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: -0.15% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
1.776 million BUCHAREST (capital) (2023)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
27.1 years (2020 est.)
10 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
total: 5.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 5.9 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.4 deaths/1,000 live births
total population: 76.3 years (2023 est.)
male: 72.9 years
female: 80 years
1.63 children born/woman (2023 est.)
0.79 (2023 est.)
NA
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
6.3% of GDP (2020)
2.98 physicians/1,000 population (2017)
6.9 beds/1,000 population (2017)
improved: urban: 96.9% of population
rural: 76% of population
total: 87.3% of population
unimproved: urban: 3.1% of population
rural: 24% of population
total: 12.7% of population (2020 est.)
22.5% (2016)
total: 10.96 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 5.33 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 3.38 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 2.25 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total: 28% (2020 est.)
male: 35.9% (2020 est.)
female: 20% (2020 est.)
NA
54.8% (2023)
3.7% of GDP (2020 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.9%
male: 99.1%
female: 98.7% (2021)
total: 14 years
male: 14 years
female: 15 years (2020)
soil erosion, degradation, and desertification; water pollution; air pollution in south from industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta wetlands
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms
agricultural land: 60.7% (2018 est.)
arable land: 39.1% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 1.9% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 19.7% (2018 est.)
forest: 28.7% (2018 est.)
other: 10.6% (2018 est.)
urban population: 54.7% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: -0.15% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
0.16% of GDP (2018 est.)
0.03% of GDP (2018 est.)
particulate matter emissions: 13.3 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
carbon dioxide emissions: 69.26 megatons (2016 est.)
methane emissions: 27.62 megatons (2020 est.)
municipal solid waste generated annually: 4.895 million tons (2015 est.)
municipal solid waste recycled annually: 277,547 tons (2015 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 5.7% (2015 est.)
Dunărea (Danube) river mouth (shared with Germany [s], Austria, Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine) - 2,888 km note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Atlantic Ocean drainage: (Black Sea) Danube (795,656 sq km)
municipal: 1.09 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
industrial: 3.9 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
agricultural: 1.43 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
212 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
high-income, service- and industrial-based European economy; EU member but non-euro user until convergence criteria met; sustained growth prior to COVID-19; major FDI recipient; flat taxation structure; digital hub of Eastern Europe
$588.451 billion (2021 est.)
$559.896 billion (2020 est.)
$581.272 billion (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
5.1% (2021 est.)
-3.68% (2020 est.)
3.85% (2019 est.)
$30,800 (2021 est.)
$29,100 (2020 est.)
$30,000 (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
$249.543 billion (2019 est.)
5.05% (2021 est.)
2.63% (2020 est.)
3.83% (2019 est.)
Fitch rating: BBB- (2011)
Moody’s rating: Baa3 (2006)
Standard & Poors rating: BBB- (2014)
note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
agriculture: 4.2% (2017 est.)
industry: 33.2% (2017 est.)
services: 62.6% (2017 est.)comparison rankings:
household consumption: 70% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 7.7% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 22.6% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 1.9% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 41.4% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -43.6% (2017 est.)
maize, wheat, milk, sunflower seed, potatoes, barley, grapes, sugar beet, rapeseed, plums/sloes
electric machinery and equipment, auto assembly, textiles and footwear, light machinery, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining, mining, timber, construction materials
4.07% (2021 est.)
8.381 million (2021 est.)
5.17% (2021 est.)
5.03% (2020 est.)
3.91% (2019 est.)
total: 20.6% (2021 est.)
male: 20.9%
female: 20.1%
23.8% (2018 est.)
34.8 (2019 est.)
on food: 27.3% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
on alcohol and tobacco: 5.7% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
lowest 10%: 15.3%
highest 10%: 7.6% (2014 est.)
revenues: $72.193 billion (2019 est.)
expenditures: $83.59 billion (2019 est.)
-2.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
57.11% of GDP (2020 est.)
43.21% of GDP (2019 est.)
42.56% of GDP (2018 est.)
note: defined by the EU’s Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities: currency and deposits, securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives, and loans; general government sector comprises the subsectors: central government, state government, local government, and social security funds
14.18% (of GDP) (2020 est.)
calendar year
-$20.627 billion (2021 est.)
-$12.535 billion (2020 est.)
-$12.184 billion (2019 est.)
$115.879 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$93.024 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$100.901 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Germany 22%, Italy 10%, France 7% (2019)
cars and vehicle parts, insulated wiring, refined petroleum, electrical control boards, seats (2019)
$132.056 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$103.899 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$111.184 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Germany 19%, Italy 9%, Hungary 7%, Poland 6%, China 5%, France 5% (2019)
cars and vehicle parts, crude petroleum, packaged medicines, insulated wiring, broadcasting equipment (2019)
$51.886 billion (31 December 2021 est.)
$52.191 billion (31 December 2020 est.)
$42.007 billion (31 December 2019 est.)
$117.829 billion (2019 est.)
$115.803 billion (2018 est.)
lei (RON) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
4.16 (2021 est.)
4.244 (2020 est.)
4.238 (2019 est.)
3.942 (2018 est.)
4.052 (2017 est.)
electrification - total population: 100% (2021)
installed generating capacity: 20.528 million kW (2020 est.)
consumption: 50,039,421,000 kWh (2019 est.)
exports: 5.459 billion kWh (2020 est.)
imports: 8.252 billion kWh (2020 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 6.501 billion kWh (2019 est.)comparison rankings:
fossil fuels: 32.1% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
nuclear: 20.4% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
solar: 3.4% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
wind: 13.4% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
hydroelectricity: 29.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
biomass and waste: 0.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Number of operational nuclear reactors: 2 (2023)
Number of nuclear reactors under construction: 0
Net capacity of operational nuclear reactors: 1.3GW (2023)
Percent of total electricity production: 18.5% (2021)
Percent of total energy produced: 12.9% (2021)
Number of nuclear reactors permanently shut down: 0
production: 15.002 million metric tons (2020 est.)
consumption: 16.412 million metric tons (2020 est.)
exports: 2,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
imports: 1.384 million metric tons (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 291 million metric tons (2019 est.)
total petroleum production: 74,000 bbl/day (2021 est.)
refined petroleum consumption: 222,200 bbl/day (2019 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate exports: 1,400 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate imports: 161,600 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 600 million barrels (2021 est.)
232,600 bbl/day (2015 est.)
103,000 bbl/day (2015 est.)
49,420 bbl/day (2015 est.)
production: 10,367,941,000 cubic meters (2019 est.)
consumption: 11,087,528,000 cubic meters (2019 est.)
exports: 11.185 million cubic meters (2019 est.)
imports: 2,800,985,000 cubic meters (2019 est.)
proven reserves: 105.48 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)
68.746 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke: 20.891 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 27.268 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from consumed natural gas: 20.588 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
71.736 million Btu/person (2019 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 8 (2020)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 60
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 4,908,235 (2018)
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 2.71 million (2018) mt-km
YR
45 (2021)
26
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
19
note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control
2 (2021)
3,726 km gas, 2,451 km oil (2013)
total: 10,628 km (2020) 4,030 km electrified
total: 84,185 km (2012)
paved: 49,873 km (2012) (includes 337 km of expressways)
unpaved: 34,312 km (2012)
1,731 km (2010) (includes 1,075 km on the Danube River, 524 km on secondary branches, and 132 km on canals)
total: 125 (2022)
by type: general cargo 11, oil tanker 6, other 108
major seaport(s): Constanta, Midia
river port(s): Braila, Galati (Galatz), Mancanului (Giurgiu), Tulcea (Danube River)
manyapis