The Muslim diaspora is the diasporic group of Muslims whose ancestors emigrated from the long-standing regions of the Muslim world and the national homes of the Muslim peoples, including Asia, the Palestinian and Israeli regions, and others, although mainly comprise the Middle East and North Africa along with parts of South and Southeast Asia. [1] [2]
African Muslim slaves were brought to the Americas during the Atlantic slave trade. From the 19th century onwards, Muslims began voluntarily migrating to the United States, with the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 greatly opening up immigration to nonwhite communities in general. [3]
Since the 1960s, many Muslims have migrated to Western Europe. They have arrived as immigrants, guest workers, asylum seekers or as part of family reunification. As a result, the Muslim population in Europe has steadily risen.
A Pew Research study from 2020 estimates that approximately 80 million Muslims make up 29% of all international migrants, slightly above their 25% share of the global population. The majority of these migrants are concentrated in the Middle East-North Africa region (40%), followed by the Asia-Pacific area (24%), Europe (20%), and sub-Saharan Africa (10%), with only 6% in North America. Nearly half of the Muslim migrant population originates from Asia and the Pacific, with one-third from the Middle East and North Africa and 13% from sub-Saharan Africa. Syria has the highest number of Muslim migrants at about 8.1 million, largely due to the Syrian civil war since 2011, with many relocating to Turkey and Lebanon. India is the second-largest source of Muslim migrants, contributing around 6 million, and Afghan migrants number approximately 5.5 million, primarily in Iran and Pakistan, fleeing decades of conflict and instability. [4]
A 2020 Pew Research study highlights that Saudi Arabia, is the leading destination for Muslim migrants, hosting around 10.8 million, which accounts for 13% of all Muslim migrants globally. The kingdom also ranks third for overall migration, with nearly 40% of its population being foreign-born, the vast majority of whom (80%) are Muslim. Following closely is the United Arab Emirates, which is home to over 6 million foreign-born Muslims, making it the second most popular destination. Like Saudi Arabia, the UAE is a wealthy Muslim nation with a significant demand for foreign labor, with international migrants comprising 94% of its population. Most Muslim migrants in both countries primarily come from India. [5]
As with immigrants in general, Muslim immigrants have come to Canada for a variety of reasons. These include higher education, security, employment, and family reunification. Others have come for religious and political freedom, and safety and security, leaving behind civil wars, persecution, and other forms of civil and ethnic strife. In the 1980s, Canada became an important place of refuge for those fleeing the Lebanese Civil War. The 1990s saw Somali Muslims arrive in the wake of the Somali Civil War as well as Bosniaks fleeing the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. However Canada has yet to receive any significant numbers of Iraqis fleeing the Iraqi War. But in general almost every Muslim country in the world has sent immigrants to Canada – from Pakistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania to Yemen and Bangladesh. [6]
Islam is the second-largest religion in Europe after Christianity. [7] Although the majority of Muslim communities in Western Europe formed as a result of immigration, [8] there are centuries-old indigenous European Muslim communities in the Balkans, Caucasus, Crimea, and Volga region. [9] [10]
From 1990 to 2020, the percentage of Muslims among all migrants residing in Europe rose from 16% to 18%, making them the third-largest religious migrant group in Europe. This increase is primarily attributed to higher migration rates from Algeria, Morocco, Syria, Turkey and Pakistan. In contrast, the proportion of religiously unaffiliated migrants declined, while the share of Christians remained constant. This stability among Christians can be linked to the earlier waves of migration from Russia, with many individuals relocating or passing away. [11]
The exact number of Muslims in Europe is unknown but according to estimates by the Pew Forum, the total number of Muslims in Europe (excluding Turkey) in 2010 was about 44 million (6% of the total population), including 19 million (3.8% of the population) in the European Union. A 2010 Pew Research Center study reported that 2.7% of the world's Muslim population live in Europe. [12]
A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2010 [update] found that Muslims make up 0.1% of all of Latin America's population. [13] Based on other estimates, there are 100,000 Muslims in Latin America, mainly concentrated in Brazil, Mexico, Jamaica and Argentina, with smaller concentrations in Venezuela, Haiti, Colombia and Paraguay. Most of these Latin American Muslims are from either Lebanese, Syrian origin. [14]
Suriname has the highest percentage of Muslims in its population for the region, with 13.9% or 75,053 individuals, according to its 2012 census. [15] Islam came to Suriname with immigrants from Indonesia (Java) and South Asia (today India, Pakistan and Bangladesh).
Islam is the third-largest religion in the United States (1.1%), behind Christianity and Judaism. [16] The Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies in its 2017 US Religion census estimated that 1.1% (or 3,450,000) of the population of the United States are Muslim. [17] In 2017, twenty states, mostly in the South and Midwest, reported Islam to be the largest non-Christian religion. [18]
From the 1880s to 1914, several thousand Muslims immigrated to the United States from the former territories of the Ottoman Empire and British India. [19] The Muslim population of the U.S. increased dramatically in the second half of the 20th century due to the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which abolished previous immigration quotas. [20] About 72 percent of American Muslims are immigrants or "second generation". [21] [22] By race, in 2014, 38% were non-Hispanic white (including Arabs and Iranians, up from 32% in 2007), 28% were Asian (mostly Indians, Pakistanis, and Bangladeshis, up from 20% in 2007), 28% were black (down from 32%), 4% Hispanic (down from 7%), and 3% of mixed or other race (down from 7%). Since 2007, the black proportion had shrunk, while the white and Asian proportions had grown, mainly due to immigration as most black Muslims were native U.S. blacks. [23]
The intersection between the Muslim diaspora's relationship with its ancestral homelands and the Muslim diaspora's relationship with foreign Islamic communities as part of the global Ummah has been called into question by some in the host countries of the diaspora, with scholars offering different ways of approaching the connections between the two relationships. [24]
Muslims have become an integral part of almost every Western country. There is sometimes a journey to seek understanding between the diaspora's Islam-influenced values and the Western values of their host countries, [25] with some European countries having growing far-right populist movements against Muslims, such as with Geert Wilders in the Netherlands. [26]
A February 2017 poll of 10,000 people in 10 European countries by Chatham House found on average a majority (55%) were opposed to further Muslim immigration, with opposition especially pronounced in a number of countries: Poland (71%), Austria (65%), Hungary (64%), Belgium (64%), and France (61%). Except for Poland, all of those had recently suffered jihadist terror attacks or been at the centre of a refugee crisis. Of those opposed to further Muslim immigration, 3/4 classify themselves as on the right of the political spectrum. Of those self-classifying as on the left of the political spectrum, 1/3 supported a halt. [27]
Muslims are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraham as it was revealed to Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. Alongside the Quran, Muslims also believe in previous revelations, such as the Tawrat (Torah), the Zabur (Psalms), and the Injeel (Gospel). These earlier revelations are associated with Judaism and Christianity, which are regarded by Muslims as earlier versions of Islam. The majority of Muslims also follow the teachings and practices attributed to Muhammad (sunnah) as recorded in traditional accounts (hadith).
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In a modern geopolitical sense, these terms refer to countries in which Islam is widespread, although there are no agreed criteria for inclusion. The term Muslim-majority countries is an alternative often used for the latter sense.
Islam is the third-largest religion in the United States (1.34%), behind Christianity (67%) and Judaism (2.4%). The Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies in its 2020 US Religion census estimated that 1.34% of the population of the United States are Muslim. In 2017, twenty states, mostly in the South and Midwest, reported Islam to be the largest non-Christian religion.
According to the Book of Idols by the medieval Arab scholar Hisham ibn al-Kalbi, Hinduism was present in pre-Islamic Arabia. Ibn Al-Kalbi explains the origins of idol worshipping and the practice of circumambulation as rooted in India and Hinduism.
The phenomenon of large-scale migration of Christians is the main reason why Christians' share of the population has been declining in many countries. Many Muslim countries have witnessed disproportionately high emigration rates among their Christian minorities for several generations. Today, most Middle Eastern people in the United States are Christians, and the majority of Arabs living outside the Arab World are Arab Christians.
Cultural Muslims, also known as nominal Muslims, non-practicing Muslims or non-observing Muslims, are people who identify as Muslims but are not religious and do not practice the faith. They may be a non-observing, secular or irreligious individuals who still identify with Islam due to family backgrounds, personal experiences, ethnic and national heritage, or the social and cultural environment in which they grew up.
Islam is the second-largest religion in Europe after Christianity. Although the majority of Muslim communities in Western Europe formed as a result of immigration, there are centuries-old indigenous European Muslim communities in the Balkans, Caucasus, Crimea, and Volga region. The term "Muslim Europe" is used to refer to the Muslim-majority countries in the Balkans and the Caucasus and parts of countries in Eastern Europe with sizable Muslim minorities that constitute large populations of indigenous European Muslims, although the majority are secular.
Between 2015 and 2060, Muslim population is projected to increase by 70%, from 1.76 billion to 3 billion. This compares with the 32% growth of world population during the same period.
Asia is the largest and most populous continent and the birthplace of many religions including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism, Taoism, and Zoroastrianism. All major religious traditions are practiced in the region and new forms are constantly emerging. Asia is noted for its diversity of culture. Islam and Hinduisms are the largest religion in Asia with approximately 1.2-1.3 billion adherents each.
Mass migration refers to the migration of large groups of people from one geographical area to another. Mass migration is distinguished from individual or small-scale migration; and also from seasonal migration, which may occur on a regular basis.
Growth of religion involves the spread of individual religions and the increase in the numbers of religious adherents around the world. In sociology, desecularization is the proliferation or growth of religion, most commonly after a period of previous secularization. Statistics commonly measure the absolute number of adherents, the percentage of the absolute growth per-year, and the growth of converts in the world.
Latin American Muslims are Muslims from countries in Latin America. A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2010 found that Muslims make up 0.1% of all of Latin America's population.
Christian population growth is the population growth of the global Christian community. According to a 2011 Pew Research Center survey, there were more than 2.2 billion Christians around the world in 2010, more than three times as many as the 600 million recorded in 1910. However, this rate of growth is slower than the overall population growth over the same time period. In 2020, Pew estimated the number of Christians worldwide to be around 2.38 billion. According to various scholars and sources, high birth rates and conversions in the Global South were cited as the reasons for the Christian population growth. In 2023, it was reported: "There will be over 2.38 billion Christians worldwide by the middle of 2023 and around 2.9 billion by 2050, according to a report published by Pew Pew research centre.
Pakistanis are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as 90% of the population follows Sunni Islam. A majority of around 97% of Pakistanis are Muslims. The majority of Pakistanis natively speak languages belonging to the Indo-Iranic family.
Qatar is an Islamic state with multi-religious minorities like most of the Persian Gulf countries with waves of migration over the last 30 years. The official state religion is Sunni Islam. The community is made up of Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and small groups of Buddhists and Baha’is. Muslims form 65.5% of the Qatari population, followed by Christians at 15.4%, Hindus at 14.2%, Buddhists at 3.3% and the rest 1.9% of the population follow other religions or are unaffiliated. Qatar is also home to numerous other religions mostly from the Middle East and Asia.
Islam is a minority religion in all of the countries and territories of the Americas, around 1% of North America population are Muslims, and 0.1% of Latin America and Caribbean population are Muslims.
This article delineates the issue of immigration in different countries.
Adherents of Islam constitute the world's second largest and fastest growing major religious grouping, maintaining suggested 2017 projections in 2022. As of 2020, Pew Research Centre (PEW) projections suggest there are a total of 1.9 billion adherents worldwide. Further studies indicate the worldwide spread and percentage growth of Islam, may be attributed to high birth rates followed by a trend of worldwide adoption and conversion to Islam.
The demographics of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region show a highly populated, culturally diverse region spanning three continents. As of 2022, the population was around 493 million. The class, cultural, ethnic, governmental, linguistic and religious make-up of the region is highly variable.
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