Czech migration to the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
Czech migration to the United Kingdom refers to the phenomenon of Czech people
migrating to the United Kingdom
from the Czech Republic
or from the political entities that preceded it, such as Czechoslovakia
. There is a substantial number of people in the UK who were either born in the Czech lands or have Czech ancestry.
in May 2004, Czechs gained the right to live and work elsewhere in the EU, and substantial numbers moved to the UK for work, although there has been substantial return migration. The Office for National Statistics
estimates that, as of 2009, 24,000 Czech-born people were living in the UK.
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
migrating to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
or from the political entities that preceded it, such as Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. There is a substantial number of people in the UK who were either born in the Czech lands or have Czech ancestry.
Population
The 2001 UK Census recorded 12,220 Czech-born people resident in the UK. With the accession of the Czech Republic to the European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
in May 2004, Czechs gained the right to live and work elsewhere in the EU, and substantial numbers moved to the UK for work, although there has been substantial return migration. The Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
estimates that, as of 2009, 24,000 Czech-born people were living in the UK.
Notable people with Czech links
Bold indicates a non-citizen immigrant and normal text indicates a British citizen with Czech ancestry.- Milan BarošMilan BarošMilan Baroš is a Czech footballer who plays as a striker for Galatasaray and the Czech national football team.In the 2008–09 season, Baroš scored 20 goals in Turkish Süper Lig, the highest total in the league...
, footballer - Roman BednářRoman BednárRoman Bednář is a Czech footballer who plays for West Bromwich Albion as a striker. He has courted controversy in his career off the pitch.-Czech Republic:...
, footballer - Patrik BergerPatrik BergerPatrik Berger is a retired Czech footballer. He has played in Czech Republic, Germany, and England. He is best remembered for his time at Liverpool....
, footballer - Georgina BouzovaGeorgina BouzovaGeorgina Bouzová is an English television actress best known for her former role as Ellen Zitek in the BBC One medical drama Casualty...
, actress - Dan LugerDan LugerDaniel Darko Luger MBE is a former English rugby union international who was a member of the squad that won the Webb Ellis Cup in 2003.- Club career:...
, English rugby unionRugby unionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player - Petr ČechPetr CechPetr Čech is a Czech footballer who plays for Chelsea and the Czech Republic as a goalkeeper. Čech previously played for Viktoria Plzeň, Chmel Blšany, Sparta Prague, and Rennes. He was voted into the all-star team of Euro 2004 after helping his country reach the semi-finals...
, footballer - Josef FrancJosef FrancJosef Franc is an international motorcycle speedway rider who rides in the UK for the Newcastle Diamonds in the Premier League....
, motorcycle speedway rider - Jan KaplickýJan KaplickýJan Kaplický was a world-renowned Czech architect who spent a significant part of his life in the United Kingdom. He was the leading architect behind the innovative design office, Future Systems. He was best known for the futuristic Selfridges Building in Birmingham, England, and the Media Centre...
, architect - Jan KavanJan KavanJan Kavan is a Czech diplomat and politician.-Biography:Kavan was born in London, the son of a Czech diplomat, Pavel Kavan, and a British teacher, Rosemary Kavan. His father was arrested and tried in a Czech show trial in the 1950s; his mother later wrote a memoir, Love and Freedom.He is a member...
, diplomat and politician - Čeněk KottnauerCenek KottnauerČeněk Kottnauer was a Czech British chess master.At the beginning of his career, he tied for 11-12th at Prague 1933 , and took 7th at Prague 1939 .During World War II, he took 6th at Prague 1942 , tied for 7-8th...
, chess master - Karel KuttelwascherKarel KuttelwascherKarel Miloslav Kuttelwascher, "Kut" was a Czech fighter pilot, a flying ace of the UK's Royal Air Force in World War II. He was the most successful RAF pilot of Czech nationality.-Pilot:...
, fighter pilot - Herbert LomHerbert LomHerbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
, actor - Marek MatějovskýMarek MatejovskýMarek Matějovský is a Czech footballer who currently plays for SpartaPrague in the Gambrinus liga and internationally for the Czech Republic...
, footballer - Jan PinkavaJan PinkavaDr. Jan Jaroslav Pinkava, Ph.D. is the director and writer of the Pixar Oscar-winning 1997 short film Geri's Game and the originator and co-director of Pixar's Oscar-winning 2007 film Ratatouille....
, animator, film director - Karel ReiszKarel ReiszKarel Reisz was a Czech-born British filmmaker who was active in post–war Britain, and one of the pioneers of the new realist strain in 1950s and 1960s British cinema.-Early life:...
, film director - Tom StoppardTom StoppardSir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
, screenwriter, playwright