Lithuanians (, singular
lietuvis/lietuve) are the
Baltic ethnic group, native to
Lithuania, where they number around 2,561,300 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian
diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language is
Lithuanian, one of only two surviving members of the
Baltic language family. According to the census conducted in 2001, 83.45% of the population of Lithuania identified themselves as Lithuanians, 6.74
s
Poles, 6.31
s
Russians, 1.23
s
Belarusians, and 2.27
s members of other ethnic groups. Most Lithuanians belong to the
Roman Catholic Church, while the
Lietuvininkai who lived in the northern part of
East Prussia prior to World War II, were mostly
Evangelical Lutherans.