Ethnic Groups in Germany: No Official 'Races,' But These Ancestries Dominate

The German constitution (Basic Law) rejects the concept of "race"—a deliberate post-WWII stance. Official statistics track nationality, migration background, and citizenship, not race.

However, the largest ancestral/ethnic groups by self-identification and migration background (approximate % of population):

• Germans – 80.3%
• Turkish – 3.7%
• Polish – 1.9%
• Russian – 1.6%
• Italian – 1.5%
• Serbian – 1.3%
• Greek – 1.2%
• Romanian – 1.2%
• Croatian – 1.1%
• Bulgarian – 1.0%

These figures reflect migration background (self or parents born abroad), not citizenship. Over 25% of residents have a migration background; ~13% are foreign citizens.