How many Muslims are there around the world?
It is estimated that the population of Muslims around the world is around 1.7 billion. According to Pew Research Center Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.
What is Islam?
Muslims follow the guidance of the Quran which is the word of Allah (God) that was revealed to the last Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Muslims also, follow the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
What is the Origin of Islam?
Islam can be traced back to the 7th century in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The prophet Muhammad introduced Islam in 610 A.D, around 1400 years ago, after experiencing what he claimed to be an angelic visitation from Archangel Jibreel (Gabriel).
Muhammad preached and spread the message from God with the people of Mecca.
The tribe leaders of the area persecuted Muhammad and his followers. They were afraid that Muhammad’s ideas about racial equality and monotheism would cause instability and an uprise from the lower class. The constant oppression Muhammad and his followers faced forced some of the new Muslims to migrate to Abyssinia (present-day Ethiopia and Eritrea).
After several years of constant prosecutions, Muhammad and his followers migrated to Madina, Saudi Arabia where they established a state that adhered to the teachings of Islam.
Muslim Refugees
Much of the rhetoric surrounding the topic of Islam today, focuses on the population of Muslims. Many Islamophobes claim the rising numbers of refugees and immigrants from the Middle-East will result in the “Islamization” of the West, and that there exists a hidden conspiracy which “supposedly” will destroy Christian values.
These discussions typically rely on projected or outdated data, and often people on both sides of the debate will have widely varying figures to base their arguments on.
Whilst Muslims are without a doubt a growing population in Western Europe, they are still statistically very small, only accounting for about 5% of the population despite the rising numbers of refugees and asylum seekers from the Middle-East who are in dire need of help.
In other western countries, like the United States, Canada, Australia, and Canada, where Islamophobia is rising dramatically, the Muslim population is even smaller (1-3% of the population).
Countries with the highest Muslim Population
Although many may associate Islam with countries in the Middle East, nearly 62% of Muslims live in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the Pew Research Center analysis. In fact, India and Pakistan’s Muslim population (344 million combined) is larger than the population of Muslims in the entire Middle East-North Africa region (317 million).
The Spread of Muslims around the World
As part of their annual ranking of the 500 most influential figures in the Muslim world, the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre publishes a thorough list of population statistics, highlighting the number of Muslims in every country around the world, as well as what percentage of the total population are Muslim.
| Rank | Country/Region | Muslims | Percentage (%) of World Muslim population |
| 1 | World Total | 1,703,146,000 | 100.0 |
| 2 | South Asia | 507,000,000 | 32.0 |
| 3 | Middle East-North Africa | 321,869,000 | 19.9 |
| 4 | Southeast-East Asia | 257,000,000 | 15.0 |
| 5 | Sub-Saharan Africa | 242,544,000 | 15.0 |
| 6 | Indonesia | 204,847,000 | 12.7 |
| 7 | Pakistan | 178,000,000 | 11.0 |
| 8 | India | 172,000,000 | 10.9 |
| 9 | Bangladesh | 145,607,000 | 9.2 |
| 10 | Nigeria | 93,839,000 | 4.7 |
| 11 | Iran | 74,819,000 | 4.6 |
| 12 | Turkey | 74,660,000 | 4.6 |
| 13 | Egypt | 73,800,000 | 4.9 |
| 14 | Central Asia | 54,000,000 | 3.0 |
| 15 | Europe | 44,138,000 | 2.7 |
| 16 | Algeria | 40,400,000 | 2.7 |
| 17 | Sudan | 39,027,950 | 1.9 |
| 18 | Morocco | 32,381,000 | 2.0 |
| 19 | Iraq | 31,108,000 | 1.9 |
| 20 | Afghanistan | 29,047,100 | 1.8 |
| 21 | Uzbekistan | 26,833,000 | 1.7 |
| 22 | Saudi Arabia | 25,493,000 | 1.6 |
| 23 | Ethiopia | 25,037,646 | 1.8 |
| 24 | Yemen | 24,023,000 | 1.5 |
| 25 | China | 22,000,000-50,000,000 | 1.4 |
| 26 | Syria | 20,895,000 | 1.3 |
| 27 | Niger | 19,502,214 | 1.0 |
| 28 | Tanzania | 19,426,814 | 0.8 |
| 29 | Malaysia | 17,139,000 | 1.1 |
| 30 | Mali | 15,667,704 | 0.8 |
| 31 | Senegal | 14,584,931 | 0.8 |
| 32 | Burkina Faso | 11,270,000 | 0.6 |
| 33 | Tunisia | 11,190,000 | 0.6 |
| 34 | Russia | 9,400,000-16,379,000 | 1.0 |
| 35 | Somalia | 9,231,000 | 0.6 |
| 36 | Kazakhstan | 8,887,000 | 0.5 |
| 37 | Azerbaijan | 8,795,000 | 0.5 |
| 38 | Guinea | 8,693,000 | 0.5 |
| 39 | Ivory Coast | 7,960,000 | 0.5 |
| 40 | Chad | 7,827,653 | 0.4 |
| 41 | Tajikistan | 7,006,000 | 0.4 |
| 42 | Jordan | 6,397,000 | 0.4 |
| 43 | Libya | 6,325,000 | 0.4 |
| 44 | Philippines | 5,896,000 or 11,000,000 | 0.3 |
| 45 | Mozambique | 5,340,000 | 0.3 |
| 46 | Americas | 5,256,000 | 0.3 |
| 47 | Uganda | 5,030,000 | 0.3 |
| 48 | France | 5,020,000 | 0.3 |
| 49 | Cameroon | 4,940,000 | 0.2 |
| 50 | Kyrgyzstan | 4,927,000 | 0.3 |
| 51 | Ghana | 4,914,000 | 0.2 |
| 52 | Turkmenistan | 4,830,000 | 0.3 |
| 53 | Palestine | 4,298,000 | 0.3 |
| 54 | Mauritania | 4,171,633 | 0.2 |
| 55 | Sierra Leone | 4,171,000 | 0.3 |
| 56 | Thailand | 3,952,000 | 0.2 |
| 57 | Congo | 3,648,267 | 0.1 |
| 58 | United Arab Emirates | 3,577,000 | 0.2 |
| 59 | United Kingdom | 3,106,368 | 0.2 |
| 60 | Kenya | 2,868,000 | 0.2 |
| 61 | Benin | 2,710,000 | 0.1 |
| 62 | Kuwait | 2,636,000 | 0.2 |
| 63 | United States | 2,595,000 | 0.2 |
| 64 | Oman | 2,547,000 | 0.2 |
| 65 | Lebanon | 2,542,000 | 0.2 |
| 66 | Burma (Myanmar) | 2,237,495 | 0.1 |
| 67 | Italy | 2,220,000 | 0.1 |
| 68 | Malawi | 2,011,000 | 0.1 |
| 69 | Sri Lanka | 1,967,227 | 0.1 |
| 70 | Eritrea | 1,909,000 | 0.1 |
| 71 | Spain | 1,887,906 | 0.1 |
| 72 | Albania | 1,879,172 | 0.2 |
| 73 | Bosnia-Herzegovina | 1,790,454 | 0.1 |
| 74 | Gambia | 1,669,000 | 0.1 |
| 75 | Germany | 1,600,000-4,500,000 | 0.3 |
| 76 | Kosovo | 1,584,000 | 0.1 |
| 77 | Israel | 1,287,000 | 0.1 |
| 78 | Nepal | 1,253,000 | 0.1 |
| 79 | Qatar | 1,168,000 | 0.1 |
| 80 | Canada | 1,053,945 | 0.1 |
| 81 | Bahrain | 866,888 | < 0.1 |
| 82 | Djibouti | 853,000 | 0.1 |
| 83 | Togo | 827,000 | 0.1 |
| 84 | Netherlands | 825,000/1,000,000 | 0.1 |
| 85 | Comoros | 785,000 | < 0.1 |
| 86 | Argentina | 784,000 | 0.1 |
| 87 | Singapore | 721,000 | < 0.1 |
| 88 | Guinea Bissau | 705,000 | <0.1 |
| 89 | Belgium | 658,463 | < 0.1 |
| 90 | South Africa | 654,064 | < 0.1 |
| 91 | Greece | 610,000 | <0.1 |
| 92 | South Sudan | 610,000 | <0.1 |
| 93 | Rwanda | 589,429 | < 0.1 |
| 94 | Bulgaria | 577,000 | < 0.1 |
| 95 | Austria | 573,876 | < 0.1 |
| 96 | Western Sahara | 528,000 | < 0.1 |
| 97 | Liberia | 523,000 | <0.1 |
| 98 | Macedonia | 500,000 | <0.1 |
| 99 | Zimbabwe | 488,656 | < 0.1 |
| 100 | Australia | 476,291 | < 0.1 |
| 101 | Sweden | 450,000-500,000 | < 0.1 |
| 102 | Georgia | 442,000 | <0.1 |
| 103 | Central African Republic | 403,000 | < 0.1 |
| 104 | Switzerland | 400,000 | < 0.1 |
| 105 | Ukraine | 393,000,- 2,000,000 | < 0.1 |
| 106 | Maldives | 309,000 | <0.1 |
| 107 | Brunei | 295,000 | < 0.1 |
| 108 | Cyprus | 273,000 | < 0.1 |
| 109 | Cambodia | 255,000 | < 0.1 |
| 110 | Burundi | 250,000 | < 0.1 |
| 111 | Mauritius | 230,118 | < 0.1 |
| 112 | Denmark | 230,000 | < 0.1 |
| 113 | Serbia | 227,000 | < 0.1 |
| 114 | Hong Kong | 220,000 | <0.1 |
| 115 | Madagascar | 220,000 | <0.1 |
| 116 | Mongolia | 200,000 | < 0.1 |
| 117 | Mayotte | 197,000 | < 0.1 |
| 118 | Japan | 185,000 | <0.1 |
| 119 | Norway | 163,180 | < 0.1 |
| 120 | Gabon | 145,000 | <0.1 |
| 121 | Zambia | 140,000 | < 0.1 |
| 122 | Swaziland | 129,230 | < 0.1 |
| 123 | Montenegro | 118,477 | < 0.1 |
| 124 | Venezuela | 95,000 | < 0.1 |
| 125 | Angola | 90,000 | < 0.1 |
| 126 | Suriname | 84,000 | < 0.1 |
| 127 | Trinidad and Tobago | 78,000 | < 0.1 |
| 128 | Republic of Congo | 77,736 | < 0.1 |
| 129 | Slovenia | 73,568 | < 0.1 |
| 130 | Romania | 73,000 | < 0.1 |
| 131 | Vietnam | 71,200 | < 0.1 |
| 132 | Ireland | 70,158 | <0.1 |
| 133 | Portugal | 65,000 | < 0.1 |
| 134 | Croatia | 60,000 | < 0.1 |
| 135 | Taiwan | 60,000 | < 0.1 |
| 136 | Guyana | 55,000 | <0.1 |
| 137 | Fiji | 54,000 | <0.1 |
| 138 | Finland | 42,000 | <0.1 |
| 139 | New Zealand | 41,000 | < 0.1 |
| 140 | Colombia | 40,000 to 80,000 | < 0.1 |
| 141 | Brazil | 35,167 | < 0.1 |
| 142 | Reunion | 35,000 | < 0.1 |
| 143 | South Korea | 35,000 | < 0.1 |
| 144 | Equatorial Guinea | 28,000 | < 0.1 |
| 145 | Panama | 25,000 | < 0.1 |
| 146 | Poland | 20,000 | < 0.1 |
| 147 | Belarus | 19,000 | < 0.1 |
| 148 | Moldova | 15,000 | < 0.1 |
| 149 | Honduras | 11,000 | <0.1 |
| 150 | Luxembourg | 11,000 | <0.1 |
| 151 | Slovakia | 10,866 | < 0.1 |
| 152 | Czech Republic | 10,500 | < 0.1 |
| 153 | Cape Verde | 10,000 | < 0.1 |
| 154 | Cuba | 10,000 | < 0.1 |
| 155 | Namibia | 9,000 | < 0.1 |
| 156 | Botswana | 8,000 | < 0.1 |
| 157 | New Caledonia | 7,000 | < 0.1 |
| 158 | Hungary | 5,579 | <0.1 |
| 159 | Mexico | 3,700- 980,000 | < 0.1 |
| 160 | Lithuania | 3,000 | <0.1 |
| 161 | North Korea | 3,000 | < 0.1 |
| 162 | Chile | 2,894 | < 0.1 |
| 163 | Estonia | 2,623 | < 0.1 |
| 164 | Barbados | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 165 | Bolivia | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 166 | Dominican Republic | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 167 | Ecuador | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 168 | El Salvador | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 169 | French Guiana | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 170 | Guadeloupe | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 171 | Haiti | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 172 | Latvia | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 173 | Liechtenstein | 2,000 | <0.1 |
| 174 | Papua New Guinea | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 175 | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 2,000 | < 0.1 |
| 176 | Gibraltar | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 177 | Guatemala | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 178 | Jamaica | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 179 | Laos | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 180 | Lesotho | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 181 | Malta | 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 182 | Nicaragua | 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 183 | Paraguay | 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 184 | Puerto Rico | 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 185 | Timor-Leste | 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 186 | Iceland | 770 | <0.1 |
| 187 | American Samoa | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 188 | Andorra | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 189 | Anguilla | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 190 | Antigua and Barbuda | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 191 | Armenia | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 192 | Aruba | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 193 | Bahamas | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 194 | Belize | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 195 | Bermuda | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 196 | Bhutan | < 7,000 | < 0.1 |
| 197 | British Virgin Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 198 | Cayman Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 199 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | < 1,000[47] | < 0.1 |
| 200 | Cook Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 201 | Costa Rica | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 202 | Dominica | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 203 | Faroe Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 204 | Falkland Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 205 | Federated States of Micronesia | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 206 | French Polynesia | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 207 | Greenland | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 208 | Grenada | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 209 | Guam | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 210 | Isle of Man | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 211 | Kiribati | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 212 | Macau | < 1,000 | <0.1 |
| 213 | Marshall Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 214 | Martinique | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 215 | Monaco | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 216 | Montserrat | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 217 | Nauru | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 218 | Netherlands Antilles | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 219 | Niue | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 220 | Northern Mariana Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 221 | Palau | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 222 | Peru | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 223 | St. Helena | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 224 | St. Kitts and Nevis | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 225 | St. Lucia | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 226 | St. Pierre and Miquelon | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 227 | Samoa | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 228 | San Marino | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 229 | São Tomé and Príncipe | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 230 | Seychelles | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 231 | Solomon Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 232 | Tokelau | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 233 | Tonga | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 234 | Turks and Caicos Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 235 | Tuvalu | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 236 | U.S. Virgin Islands | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 237 | Uruguay | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 238 | Vanuatu | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
| 239 | Vatican City | 0 | 0 |
| 240 | Wallis and Futuna | < 1,000 | < 0.1 |
Islam and Diversity
The perception that Islam is an Arab-centric faith hostile to other ethnicities is numerically false. The Indian sub-continent alone holds 3x as many Muslims (539 Million) as all the ‘Arab’ nations in the Middle-East combined (236 Million), and the country of Indonesia alone has almost as many Muslims (230 Million) as the entire Middle-East.
The fears and propaganda generated in the West are being portrayed to these countries with even smaller and more vulnerable populations, leading to the increasingly troubling violence and hate we see today and the game of “Us Vs. Them”…
Source: One Path Network