MINORITIES
In the Republic of Slovenia there are two traditional national minorities - Italian and Hungarian national minority - and special Roma community. All three are protected by constitution (article 64 and 65 of the Slovenian Constitution).
The Republic of Slovenia with two million inhabitants is among the smallest European countries. It is relatively homogeneous. The Slovenes represent 87.5 per cent of the population of the Republic of Slovenia. The Hungarian National Community represents 0.32 per cent (6243 persons) of the total population in the Republic of Slovenia, whilst the Italian National Community represents 0.11 per cent (2258 persons) of the total population in the Republic of Slovenia. In the Republic of Slovenia live also 7000-10000 members of the Roma Ethnic Community, who have been living on the territory of today’s Republic of Slovenia since 15th century and are granted special protection by the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia (see web page www.stat.si).