There are various religions across the globe, and many people adhere to these belief systems. While it’s widely known that Islam is the most widely practiced religion in Turkey, you might be curious about the religious landscape in the rest of the world. In this exploration, we’ll delve into the prevalence of different beliefs worldwide. Despite a recent shift towards secularism, a significant portion of the world’s population still holds religious beliefs, with approximately 84% of the global population adhering to some form of faith. Let’s examine how this 84% is distributed among different belief systems.
Christianity: On a global scale, Christianity boasts the largest number of adherents among all religions. Approximately 31% of the world’s population identifies as Christian, followed closely by Muslims at 25%. Although Islam predominates in the Middle East, it’s interesting to note that Jews make up only 0.2% of the world’s population, representing one of the smallest religious groups. The Christian faith, with a staggering 2.4 billion adherents, is undoubtedly the most practiced religion worldwide. Regions such as the entire Americas, the southern part of Africa, the entire continent of Australia, and all of Europe, including Russia, are predominantly Christian.
Islam: Islam stands as the second most widely practiced religion globally. Islamic belief is reported to be the fastest-growing religion, with an estimated 3 billion Muslims worldwide by 2060. Islam predominates in North Africa, the entire Middle East, Pacific islands, and Central Asia.
Atheism and Agnosticism: Of course, there is also a significant population that does not adhere to any religious faith. For instance, in China, a staggering 720 million people identify as non-religious or unaffiliated with any belief system. The distribution of non-believers is relatively even across almost every part of the world except for Africa and the Middle East.
Hinduism: Hinduism, despite being primarily concentrated in a single region, is the third-largest religion globally. Currently, there are 1.2 billion Hindus worldwide. Although Hinduism rarely serves as a dominant religion in a country, it maintains a global presence. Many regions across the world, including the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, North America, and South America, support significant Hindu populations.
Buddhism: Estimates suggest that half of the world’s Buddhists currently reside in China. However, they represent only 18% of the country’s population. The remaining Buddhists are found in Eastern and Southern Asia. In Asia, Buddhism is both a matter of identity and practice. Scholars and journalists note that many Asian countries can engage in Buddhist practices without necessarily identifying with any organized religion.
Folk Religion: Folk religion refers to any ethnic or cultural religious practices that exist outside organized religious doctrines. This term, sometimes referred to as popular or local religion, signifies how people experience and practice religion in their daily lives. While you may wonder what folk religion means, it’s important to note that a significant portion, approximately 5%, of the world’s population follows such local belief systems.