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Religions of the world, mapped by distribution, with no "sects".

Predominant religions of the world, mapped by state

In the 20th century study of comparative religion, major religious groups or "world religions" were divided up^{[citation needed]} by adherence to a specific philosophy or theology. However, there is no consensus^{[citation needed]} among researchers^[who?] as to the best methodology for determining the religiosity profile of the world's population. A number of fundamental aspects are unresolved:

• Whether to count "historically predominant religious culture[s]"^[1]
• Whether to count only those who actively "practice" a particular religion^[2]
• Whether to count based on a concept of "adherence"^[3]
• Whether to count only those who expressly self-identify with a particular denomination^[4]
• Whether to count only adults, or to include children as well
• Whether to rely only on official government-provided statistics^[5]
• Whether to use multiple sources and ranges or single "best source[s]"

Nonetheless, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism are unquestionably the largest religions by far. However, most lists of major religions include Judaism and other religions who only number in the many millions because of their historic relevance.

[edit] By world population

The table below lists religions classified by philosophy; however, religious philosophy is not always the determining factor in local practice. Please note that this table includes heterodox movements as adherents to their larger philosophical category, although this may be disputed by others within that category. For example, Cao Đài is listed because it claims to be a separate category from Buddhism, while Hoa Hao is not, even though they are similar new religious movements.

The population numbers below are computed by a combination of census reports, random surveys (in countries where religion data is not collected in census, for example USA or France), and self-reported attendance numbers, but results can vary widely depending on the way questions are phrased, the definitions of religion used and the bias of the agencies or organizations conducting the survey. Informal or unorganized religions are especially difficult to count. Some organizations may wildly inflate their numbers.

[edit] Trends in adherence

Map showing relative importance of religion by country. Based on a 2006-2008 worldwide survey by Gallup.

World map showing the percentages of people who regard religion as "non-important" according to a 2002 Pew survey

Since the late 19th century, the demographics of religion have changed a great deal. Some countries with a historically large Christian population have experienced a significant decline in the numbers of professed active Christians. Symptoms of the decline in active participation in Christian religious life include declining recruitment for the priesthood and monastic life, as well as diminishing attendance at church. On the other hand, since the 19th century, large areas of sub-saharan Africa have been converted to Christianity, and this area of the world has the highest population growth rate. In the realm of Western civilization, there has been an increase in the number of people who identify themselves as secular humanists. In many countries, such as the People's Republic of China, communist governments have discouraged religion, making it difficult to count the actual number of believers. However, after the collapse of communism in numerous countries of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, religious life has been experiencing resurgence there, both in the form of traditional Eastern Christianity and particularly in the forms of Neopaganism and Far Eastern religions.

Following is some available data based on the work of the World Christian Encyclopedia:^[28]

Studies conducted by the Pew Research Center have found that, generally, poorer nations had a larger proportion of citizens who found religion to be very important than richer nations, with the exceptions of the United States^[33] and Kuwait.^[34]

[edit] See also

• Claims to be the fastest growing religion
• Category:Religion by country
• List of religions
• Religious text
• Religious conversion
• List of religious populations

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Animated history of World Religions - from the "Religion & Ethics" part of the BBC website, interactive animated view of the spread of world religions (requires Flash plug-in).
• BBC A-Z of Religions and Beliefs
• Major World Religions