Current Geodemographic Problems in the European Union and Migration Crisis of the 2010s

Abstract

This article demonstrates the effect of the 2010s migration crisis has had on the demographic development of the European Union. Employing statistics and map­ping, the study argues that the demographic development of EU states is not affected by either socioeconomic performance or religious, linguistic, and cultural charac­teristics. Migration inflow differs significantly by country and EU region. The au­thors analyse major irregular migration routes and show that their use cannot be always explained by using traditional demographic approaches. There is also a dif­ference in the proportion of migrants by country, although settlement systems are very similar. Even with decades spent in the destination country, the Muslim popula­tion remains poorly integrated into the local community and its effect on the latter is insignificant (Turks in Germany). The demographic mosaic of the European Union is becoming increasingly fragmented, which makes any national level demographic forecasts inconsequential. However, community-level forecasts are possible and necessary. All this creates a need for geodemographic research.

Keywords

• migrant crisis
• population
• irregular migration routes
• Muslim popu­lation of European Union
• “no-go zones”
• geodemography