The Republic of Kosovo has a population of around 1.8 million inhabitants. The majority of these inhabitants are ethnic Albanian (around 87%), while the Serb population makes up about 8%, equally divided between southern and northern Kosovo. The remaining 5% of the population is made up of other communities, including Turkish, Bosniak, Gorani, Roma, Ashkali, Egyptian, Croat and Montenegrin communities.

The term ‘community’ operates on two levels in Kosovo. In the first place, it has the standard meaning of a group of people who share common characteristics, for example, ethnicity, language or religion. In this sense it can be used to refer to all groups in Kosovo, regardless of whether they are in the numerical minority or majority in a given area. However, it is also used to refer to Kosovo’s minority groups, which includes members of the majority (Albanian) community who are in a minority in a given municipality.