Counting Czechs: 150 years of censuses, from Habsburg Bohemia to 2021

A census is a state looking at itself. In the Czech lands the look has been repeated for a century and a half, with changing methods and awkward questions, and each round says as much about the politics of its day as about the people counted. The figures from the 1930 census fed straight into the arguments over the Sudeten German question and the future of Czechoslovakia. The 2021 census was filled in mostly on phones and laptops.

Here is the history of censuses on the territory of today's Czechia, what they ask and where to find the results.

The Habsburg censuses

The first modern census in the Austrian half of the monarchy, which included Bohemia, Moravia and Austrian Silesia, was held on 31 December 1869, and another followed roughly every ten years: 1880, 1890, 1900 and 1910. They recorded population, age, occupation and language of daily use (Umgangssprache). The language question was political from the start. Czech and German nationalists treated the results as a measure of strength, and towns and districts fought over how to count bilingual people and migrants. The matter stayed contentious until the monarchy ended, and it ties into the Habsburg era in the Czech lands and the Czech national revival.

The Czechoslovak censuses

After 1918 the new Czechoslovakia held its first census on 15 February 1921. It recorded nationality in categories that distinguished Czechoslovaks, Germans, Hungarians, Ruthenians (Ukrainians), Jews and others. The official concept of a Czechoslovak "nation" lumped Czechs and Slovaks together, which was itself a political choice (see creation of Czechoslovakia in 1918 and the First Republic).

The second census took place on 1 December 1930. It recorded a population of about 14.7 million in the whole of Czechoslovakia (as of 1930; check the Czech Statistical Office), of whom around three million declared German nationality, roughly a fifth, concentrated in the border regions of Bohemia and Moravia. That distribution was one of the facts behind the crisis that ended in the Munich Agreement of 1938, told in the Munich Agreement and the occupation. Reliable counts of the Jewish population matter later for Holocaust research (the Czech Jewish heritage).

After the war

The first postwar census, in 1950, found a transformed country. The German-speaking population had largely been expelled or had left under the policies described in the Beneš decrees explained and Czech Germans and the Sudetenland. Czechs, Slovaks and others had resettled the border regions, and the Jewish population had been devastated. Later communist-era censuses took place in 1961, 1970 and 1980. They stressed social and economic data, such as occupation, education and housing, and handled nationality and religion with caution. The era is described in Czechoslovakia under communism.

The last Czechoslovak census was held in March 1991, soon after communism fell, and for the first time it let people declare Moravian or Silesian nationality, a sign of regional identities. More than 1.3 million declared Moravian nationality, a figure that drew wide interest (as of 1991; check the Czech Statistical Office for exact figures). The background is in Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia explained.

Czechia after 1993

After Czechoslovakia split in 1993, the Czech Statistical Office ran censuses in 2001, 2011 and 2021. Each brought changes.

The 2001 census, with a reference date of 1 March, was a traditional paper count delivered by enumerators. It included voluntary questions on nationality and religion.

The 2011 census, with a reference date of 26 March, combined enumerator-delivered and postal forms with an online option. Cooperation was a problem: many respondents left the voluntary questions blank, which made the nationality and religion figures hard to interpret. Those questions are optional, so non-response is high and results must be read with that in mind.

The 2021 census was the first run mainly online. The reference moment was midnight between 26 and 27 March 2021. Most people answered online, with paper forms as a supplement, and administrative registers were used heavily, so residents were spared some questions, such as those about their houses. It counted 10,524,167 people, some 88 thousand more than in 2011 (as of 2021; see the Czech Statistical Office for the full results). Detailed results by municipality are on the census website.

What censuses ask

Over time the questions have widened and narrowed. A modern census records age, sex, family status, place of birth and residence, education, employment, commuting, housing and, in some rounds, ethnicity, language, religion and disability. Some questions are mandatory and others voluntary. Data are published in aggregate form, and the law bars the Statistical Office from releasing personal information.

Censuses matter because they anchor population estimates between rounds, school, healthcare and housing planning, and electoral and administrative decisions. How the figures are used is explained in Czech demographics: how the population is changing and who lives in Czechia. For one city, see Prague's population: what the censuses show, and for a topic where the age bands matter, Czech centenarians and longevity.

How a census is run

A census is a big logistical operation. The Statistical Office prepares for years: it tests questionnaires, builds the address register, recruits and trains staff, runs a publicity campaign and readies the IT systems. In 2021 the online form was the main channel, with an app and a web page, and people who could not use them could ask for help at assistance points or fill in a paper form. Census commissioners visited those who had not responded. Taking part is a legal duty, and failing to complete a census can in principle bring a fine, though the Office leans on persuasion. Statistical confidentiality applies: individual answers are used for statistics only and are not passed to other authorities.

Then comes processing. Data are checked, edited, combined with register data and weighted where needed. First results usually appear within months, detailed tables over the following one to two years, and researchers can use anonymised microdata under conditions set by the Office.

Why censuses are controversial

Three questions return each round. Cost is the first: a census is expensive, and some argue that registers could replace it. The 2021 census went some way in that direction by using registers for part of the data, and the Office has discussed doing more. Privacy is the second: how much the state should ask and keep, especially about religion and ethnicity. Trust is the third, since the low response to voluntary questions in 2011 showed that many people would rather not answer. The Office answers with explanations and legal safeguards, and its methodological reports are published with the results.

Reading old and new figures

Comparing censuses across a century takes care. Borders have changed, definitions of residence have shifted, and categories such as nationality have meant different things in different eras. Some censuses counted the present population, others the resident one. Before using a figure, check which concept and which territory it covers.

Frequently asked questions

When was the first Czechoslovak census?

On 15 February 1921. The second followed on 1 December 1930.

What happened in the 2021 census?

It was the first mainly online census. It counted 10,524,167 people.

Are census questions on nationality compulsory?

In recent rounds the nationality and religion questions have been voluntary, so many people leave them blank.

How often are censuses held?

Roughly every ten years. The most recent were in 2001, 2011 and 2021.

If you need a figure from a particular census, go to the Statistical Office's census pages and write down the reference date beside it.