Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe
second largest Christian church on the continent
Eastern Orthodoxy constitutes the second largest Christian denomination in Europe. Eastern Orthodox Christians are predominantly present in Eastern and Southeastern Europe, and they are also significantly represented in diaspora throughout the Continent. The term "Eastern Orthodox Europe" is informally used to describe the predominantly Eastern Orthodox countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Serbia, and Ukraine.
Eastern Orthodox majority countries
Eastern Orthodoxy in Moldova, 94.3% (2024 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Greece, 90% (2022 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Georgia, 83.4% (2014 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Serbia, 81.1% (2022 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Cyprus, 74.5% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Romania, 73.4% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Belarus, 73.3% (2011 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Ukraine, 72% (2022 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Montenegro, 71.1% (2023 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Bulgaria, 62.7% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Russia, 61% (2026 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in North Macedonia, 46.1% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodox minority countries
Eastern Orthodoxy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 30.7% (2013 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Estonia, 16.3% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Latvia, 13.3% (2019 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Albania, 7.2% (2023 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Austria, 4.9% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Lithuania, 4.4% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Slovenia, 3.7% (2019 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Croatia, 3.3% (2021 census)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Italy, 3% (2023 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Germany, 1.5% (2024 est.)
Eastern Orthodoxy in Finland, 1% (2025 census)
See also
Byzantine commonwealth
References
Sources
Victoria Clark (21 November 2011). Why Angels Fall: A Journey Through Orthodox Europe from Byzantium to Kosovo. Pan Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-4472-1639-1.
Jonathan Shepard (2007). The Expansion of Orthodox Europe: Byzantium, the Balkans and Russia. Ashgate Variorum.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe” as second largest Christian church on the continent. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as second largest Christian church on the continent. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q24649512. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2024, 2022, 2014 and 2021.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe primary sources, Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe archive and Eastern research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.