Ethnic groups and communities, Munich

In July 2007, Munich had 1.34 million inhabitants; 300,129 of those did not hold German citizenship.  The city has strong Turkish and Balkan communities.  The largest groups of foreign nationals were Turks (43,309), Albanians (30,385), Croats (24,866), Serbs (24,439), Greeks (22,486), Austrians (21,411), and Italians (20,847).  37% of foreign nationals come from the European Union.

With only 24,000 inhabitants in 1700, the population doubled roughly every 30 years.  For example, it had 100,000 people in 1852 and then 250,000 people in 1883; by 1901, the figure had doubled again to 500,000.  Since then, Munich has become Germany's third largest city.  In 1933, 840,901 inhabitants were counted and in 1957, Munich's population passed the 1 million mark.

47.4% of Munich's residents are not affiliated with any religious group, and this group represents the fastest growing segment of the population.  As in the rest of Germany, the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches have experienced a continuous, slow decline in their memberships.  38.3% of the city's inhabitants are Roman Catholic, 14.0% Protestant, and 0.3% Jewish (as of 31 December 2008).  There is also a small Old Catholic parish and an English speaking parish of the Episcopal Church in the city.