fg
Volume XVII |

Post-communist Romanian migration patterns: dynamics and territorial perspectives

Abstract: The paper addresses a problem of great importance for Romania, that of the international migration that is in a continuous process of exacerbation after the collapse of the communist regime, but with important spatial differences. The analysis of the situation has led to the need for a series of spatial representations to highlight the typology and structure of migratory flows across the country in the post-communist period, as well as changes in direction or intensity. In almost three decades, more than 550,000 people emigrated from Romania, while almost 240,000 were temporarily abroad in 2017, according to official statistics, but in fact, their number is much higher. The international migration of Romanians has particular characteristics, with four distinct periods, characterized by demographic characteristics and specific territorial distribution. Overall, a mutation of emigrant areas from the west and centre of the country is noticeable after the fall of communism to the eastern and southern regions in recent years, with predominant involvement of young adults.