Reference Guide
Basic facts and links for Christians seeking to
minister to Muslims.

 

Some Statistics on Islamic Peoples

  • Current estimated number of Muslims worldwide: 1.3 billion, 18% of world population. All forms of Christianity comprise approximately 33% of world population (this includes pseudo-Christian groups.)
  • Percent of Muslims who are members of terrorist groups: less than 1/100th of 1 percent.
  • Number of Muslims in the US: 4 million, 1.5% of population
  • Number of Mosques in the US: approximately 2000
  • Number of Churches in Saudi Arabia: 0
  • Number of predominately Islamic nations: 48
  • Number of nations with governments based on Islamic laws: 21
  • Number of Islamic nations in which open preaching of the Gospel to Muslims is permitted: 0
  • Number of Christian nations that forbid Muslims from proselytizing Christians: 0

    Muslims make up the largest religious group in the following countries:

    Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Angola; Azerbaijan; Bahrain*; Bangladesh; Benin; Bosnia-Herzegovina; Brunei; Bukina Faso;Chechnia; Comoros*; Dagestan; Djibouti; Egypt; Gambia; Gaza Strip (Palestine/Egypt); Guinea; Indonesia; Iran; Iraq; Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire); Jordan; Kuwait*; Kyrgyzstan; Libya; Malaysia; Mali; Maldives*; Mauritania*; Mayotte*; Morocco*; Niger; Oman*; Pakistan; Qatar*; Saudi Arabia*; Senegal; Somalia*; Sudan; Syria; Tajikistan; Tatarstan; Tunisia*; Turkey; Turkmenistan; United Arab Emirates*; Uzbekistan; West Bank (Palestine); Western Sahara*; Yemen*

    *denotes countries that are 99.5% or more Muslim.

    10 countries with the largest Muslim population:
    Indonesia 170,310,000
    Pakistan 136,000,000
    Bangladesh 106,050,000
    India 103,000,000
    Turkey 62,410,000
    Iran 60,790,000
    Egypt 53,730,000
    Nigeria 47,720,000
    China 37,108,000

    More detailed statistics over the past 2 decades

 

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Muslim Peoples of the World

While many Westerners associate Islam with Arab peoples, many other people groups have embraced the "Way of Submission".

Acehnese - 3.1 million on Sumatra, Indonesia.
Algerian Arabs - 18.3 million in Algeria, and France.
Azerbaijani - 18.1 million in Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkey.
Bosnians - 1.7 million in Bosnia.
Bugis - 3.1 million on Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Deccani - 11.7 million in India.
Fulani - 15 milion in Niger, Mali, and Benin.
Hausa - 22 million in Niger and Nigeria.
Hui - 9.1 million in China.
Madurese - 11.2 million on Madura and Java, Indonesia.
Makassarese - 1.7 million on Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Malays - 12+ million in Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore and Indonesia.
Minangkabau - 7 million on Sumatra, Indonesia.
Moroccan Arabs - 11 million in Morocco.
Palestinians - 5.3 million in Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon.
Sindhi - 18 million in India and Pakistan.
Somali - 10 million in Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti.
Sundanese - 27 million on Java, Indonesia.
Turks - 42 million in Turkey, and Germany.
Uighurs - 7.6 million in Northwest China.
Uzbeks - 21 million in Central Asia and Afghanistan.
Wolof - 2.9 million in Senegal.


Some Divisions within Islam

Islam consists primarily of two differing sects, Sunni (940,000,000) and Shia (120,000,000). Sunni belief developed from those who felt that Muhammad did not name a successor. Sunni tradition holds that religious leaders should be chosen by consensus, rather than named by existing imams. Sunnis tend to be more moderate, with the most liberal Sunni nations feeling that governmental rule need not be directly dependent on the strictest interpretations of the Quran and Surrah. Shi'ite Muslims, of which Iran is the predominant country, believe that Muhammad appointed 'Ali his successor. As such, Shi'ites believe that each generation of ayatollahs are caretakers of the true rule of Islam, awaiting the return of the 12th Imam who disappeared in 878 AD. They also believe that religious and governmental rule are one and the same.
There are a number of additional sects of various beliefs and interpretation of the Quran, most notably Amadiyya (10,000,000) and Druze (450,000)

Map showing the distribution of Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims