Megleno-Romanians

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Map of Balkans with regions inhabited by Megleno-Romanians in dark yellow

Megleno-Romanians (In Megleno-Romanian: Vlashi, in Greek: Βλαχομογλενίτες Vlachomoglenítes) is an exonym for a people inhabiting six villages in the Moglená (Μογλενά) region spanning the Pella and Kilkis prefectures of Central Macedonia, Greece, as well as some villages across the border in the Republic of Macedonia.

They speak a Romance language most often called Megleno-Romanian or Meglenitic by linguists in English and βλαχομογλενίτικα (vlachomoglenítika) or simply μογλενίτικα (moglenítika) in Greek. In their own language, however, they call their language vlaheshte, but the Megleno-Romanians in Romania also use "megleno-români". It is also spoken in some places in Dobruja, Romania where some Megleno-Romanians moved in the first half of the 20th century and adopted the Megleno-Romanian neologism promoted by the Romanian authorities. Their number is estimated between 12,000 and 20,000.

It is notable that unlike all the other Eastern Romanized populations of the Balkans (generically called Vlachs), they don't have a name for themselves derived from Romanus, but use only the term Vlashi.

Most are Orthodox Christians; few are Muslims. The Muslim Megleno-Romanians of Greece were expelled to Turkey, as part of the population exchange directed by the Treaty of Lausanne, 1923.

In 1926, about 450 families of Megleno-Romanians of Greece moved to Romania and settled in the Southern Dobruja (Cadrilater). After Bulgaria acquired Southern Dobruja, the Megleno-Romanians moved to other regions of Romania, many of them to the village of Cerna in Tulcea County, in which about 1,200 continue to speak Megleno-Romanian. Other Megleno-Romanians migrated to Romania and other countries during World War II and the Greek Civil War, due to the heavy fighting carried out in the Moglená region. As of 1996, in all Romania there were about 820 families that claimed Megleno-Romanian origin.