Fascinating Data about Religion populations world over, current and future, from Pew Research Center

Last updated on 15th April 2015

The data in this blog post is from the report (to be cited as) 'Pew Research Center, April 2, 2015, “The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050”', which is available at http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projections-2010-2050/. The full report pdf file is 245 pages long and 15 MB in size.

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projections-2010-2050/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables8/]

Important note about Religiously Unaffiliated
From Appendix C: Defining the Religious Groups, http://www.pewforum.org/files/2015/04/PF_15.04.02_ProjectionsAppendixC.pdf, "The religiously unaffiliated population includes atheists, agnostics and people who do not identify with any particular religion. However, many of the religiously unaffiliated do hold some religious or spiritual beliefs. For example, surveys have found that belief in God or a higher power is shared by 7% of unaffiliated Chinese adults, 30% of unaffiliated French adults and 68% of unaffiliated U.S. adults."

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/christians/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables60b/]

Figure at http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/christians/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables62/ shows that Russia in 2010 has 73.3% of its population as Christian! What a turnaround for a former "Godless" communist country! In contrast, the percentage of Christians in the USA in 2010 is 78.3%. Not that different from Russia!

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/christians/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables63/]

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/muslims/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables71b/]

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/muslims/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables74/]

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religiously-unaffiliated/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables82b/]

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religiously-unaffiliated/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables85/]


Important note about Religiously Unaffiliated (repeated)
From Appendix C: Defining the Religious Groups, http://www.pewforum.org/files/2015/04/PF_15.04.02_ProjectionsAppendixC.pdf, "The religiously unaffiliated population includes atheists, agnostics and people who do not identify with any particular religion. However, many of the religiously unaffiliated do hold some religious or spiritual beliefs. For example, surveys have found that belief in God or a higher power is shared by 7% of unaffiliated Chinese adults, 30% of unaffiliated French adults and 68% of unaffiliated U.S. adults."

So around 68% of the around 50 million USA religiously unaffiliated (2010 figure) can be considered to believe in God or a higher power i.e. they can be considered as theists.

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/hindus/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables93b/]

[Above figure source: http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/hindus/pf_15-04-02_projectionstables96/]

From http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2010/number/all/ and http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2010/percent/all/

India in 2010 has the following figures:
973,750,000 Hindus (79.5%)
176,200,000 Muslims (14.4%)
031,130,000 Christians (2.5%)
027,560,000 Other (2.3%)
009,250,000 Buddhists (0.8%)
005,850,000 Folk Religions (0.5%)
000,870,000 Unaffiliated (< 0.1%)
000,010,000 Jews (< 0.1%)
---------------
1,224,620,000 All

Note that Other includes Jainism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism and Baha'i (and Shintoism, Taosim, Tenrikyo, Wicca etc.)

I also have given below the list of countries (in alphabetical order) with unaffiliated being < 0.1 % of their population (Clicking on Unaffiliated in the percentages link given above sorts the table in descending order. Clicking again sorts it in ascending order.) These then are the most religiously affiliated countries of the world. Note that the intensity with which the religiously affiliated believe in and practise their faith is not reflected in this list.

1. Afghanistan
2. Azerbaijan
3. Bangladesh
4. Bhutan
5. Burundi
6. Egypt
7. Ethiopia
8. Gambia
9. India
10. Indonesia
11. Jordan
12. Kuwait
13. Maldives
14. Morocco
15. Pakistan
16. Palestinian Territories
17. Papua New Guinea
18. Senegal
19. Somalia
20. Sri Lanka
21. Timor-Leste
22. Tokelau
23. Tonga
24. Vatican City

Not surprisingly India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka figure in the above list besides Bhutan. Nepal (0.3% unaffiliated) is the only country from the Indian sub-continent/South Asia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_subcontinent, that is not in the above list.

One can then conclude that the Indian sub-continent/South Asia is one of the most religious parts of the world.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some additional thoughts of mine on this Pew report:

I think only devoutly religious people believe in a God who intervenes on (intense) prayer. But, for the Pew report, I think what people consider themselves to be, and have declared themselves to be, would be the vital factor. Many of such declared Christians, Muslims, Hindus etc. may not be visiting their churches, mosques, temples etc. regularly, may not believe that intense prayer to their deities/God will help them etc. But they may also not go to the extent of declaring, at least publicly, that they have no faith in divine power associated with their religion/religious figures, and so dissociating themselves from the Christian, Muslim, Hindu etc. community.

Prior to me becoming a devout Hindu with faith in supernatural powers of divine figures like Rama and Krishna, I had stopped going to temples (though that is not obligatory for a Hindu), and removed my Hindu Brahmin sacred thread (wearing which is obligatory for a Hindu Brahmin after his thread ceremony which, from a proper religious point of view, is considered to be his second-birth (spiritual birth)). While I then did doubt the claimed supernatural powers of Hindu divine figures like Rama and Krishna, as mentioned in Hindu scripture, I would not then go to the extent of denying that they were divine. I guess, on that aspect, I was a fence-sitter. But I certainly considered and declared myself to be a Hindu even then. I think it may be similar for many Christians, Muslims, Hindus etc. worldwide, and that is what is reflected in the numbers of this Pew report.