Muslims constitute the world's second largest religious group. According to a 2010 study and released January 2011, Islam has 1.57 billion adherents, making up over 23% of the world population.
Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, and some parts of Asia. Large communities of Muslims are also found in China, the Balkans, India and Russia. Other parts of the world host large Muslim immigrant communities; in Western Europe, for instance, Islam is the second largest religion after Christianity, where it represents 6% of the total population.
According to the Pew Research Center in 2010 there were 49 Muslim-majority countries. Around 62% of the world's Muslims live in South and Southeast Asia, with over 1Â billion adherents. The largest Muslim population in a country is in Indonesia, a nation home to 12.7% of the world's Muslims, followed by Pakistan (11.0%), India (10.9%), and Bangladesh (9.2%). About 20% of Muslims live in Arab countries. In the Middle East, the non-Arab countries of Turkey and Iran are the largest Muslim-majority countries; in Africa, Egypt and Nigeria have the most populous Muslim communities. The study found more Muslims in the United Kingdom than in Lebanon and more in China than in Syria.
Countries
Figures indicated in the first four columns below are based on the demographic study by the Pew Research Center report of The Future of the Global Muslim Population, as of 27 January 2011.
Table
See also
- Muslim world
- Muslim population growth
- Shia Muslims in the Arab world
- Ahmadiyya by country
Other religions by country
- Christianity
- Buddhism
- Hinduism
- Judaism
- Sikhism
General
- List of religious populations
References
Further reading
External links
- Official website of the Pew Forum study on Global Muslim Population
- Muslim Population-A Site with Extensive information regarding worldwide Muslim population
