Religion

Islam

al-Islam · Submission to God

Sacred bookThe Quran
Origin7th century, Arabian Peninsula
FounderMuhammad
2.0 billion
Followers worldwide
25.6%
Of world population
Indonesia
Where most live
Branches
Where most live
Pakistan 244.8M followers Indonesia 231.3M followers India 198.8M followers Bangladesh 158.4M followers Nigeria 109.1M followers Egypt 104M followers Iran 91.7M followers Türkiye 84.5M followers Ethiopia 47.4M followers Algeria 46.7M followers Iraq 46M followers Sudan 45M followers Afghanistan 44.9M followers Yemen 42.4M followers Morocco 37.9M followers Uzbekistan 36.6M followers Saudi Arabia 33.8M followers Niger 27.4M followers China 26.8M followers Mali 24.1M followers Syria 23.5M followers Tanzania 22.5M followers Malaysia 21.9M followers Somalia 20.2M followers

Estimate: the religion's percentage in each country multiplied by the country's population.

What it is
Overview

Islam arose in the 7th century in the Arabian Peninsula through the preaching of Muhammad, whom Muslims regard as the last of the prophets sent by God. The Quran, its holy book, contains what Muslims believe to be the revelation Muhammad received over more than two decades, and it is the foundation of Islamic faith and practice throughout the world.

According to the Pew Research Center, there were about 2.0 billion Muslims in 2020, or 25.6% of the world’s population, and Islam is present in practically every country. Indonesia has the most Muslims, followed closely by Pakistan, then India and Bangladesh: countries outside the Arab world that together are home to a very large share of the world’s Muslims. The Middle East and North Africa, the historical cradle of the religion, also have large Muslim populations.

Islam shares with Christianity belief in one God and recognizes biblical figures such as Abraham, Moses and Jesus, whom it calls a prophet, though it denies his divinity and his death on the cross. This partial common ground opens the door to dialogue, but it also calls for clarity about the central differences between the two faiths, especially regarding the person of Jesus and salvation.

In many Muslim-majority countries, leaving Islam to follow Christ carries a high social and family cost, and sometimes a legal one. Even so, the number of Muslims who have dreams, visions and personal encounters with Jesus has been growing in many parts of the world.

Pillars and practices
1
Shahada (profession of faith)
The declaration "There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God" is the act that makes someone a Muslim. Saying it sincerely is enough for conversion, and many do so before witnesses. It is repeated daily in prayer as a constant reminder of submission to the one God.
2
Salat (ritual prayer)
Five obligatory prayers a day, at dawn, midday, afternoon, sunset and night, said facing the Kaaba in Mecca. They involve a fixed cycle of postures (standing, bowing, prostrating) and recitations in Arabic, and may be said alone or in a group, with the Friday congregational prayer at the mosque especially valued.
3
Zakat (obligatory almsgiving)
A yearly contribution, usually calculated at about 2.5% of accumulated wealth, given to the poor, the needy, those in debt, stranded travelers and other groups named in the Quran. It is understood not as voluntary charity but as a purification of one's possessions and a duty of social justice within the community of faith.
4
Sawm (the Ramadan fast)
Fasting from dawn to sunset throughout the month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, abstaining from food, drink and marital relations during the day. It is seen as an exercise in self-discipline, spiritual purification and solidarity with the hungry, and each day ends with a shared meal called iftar.
5
Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca)
The pilgrimage to the city of Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, required at least once in a lifetime for every Muslim who is physically and financially able to make it. It takes place on fixed dates of the Islamic calendar and includes specific rituals, such as circling the Kaaba seven times and standing on the plain of Arafat, and it marks the high point of the devotional life of those who complete it.
Main branches
Sunni Islam
about 85 to 90%
The largest branch of Islam, made up of those who accepted as Muhammad's successors, after his death in AD 632, the leaders called caliphs, chosen by the community's leaders rather than by kinship with the Prophet. It mostly follows four classical schools of Islamic jurisprudence and recognizes a broad set of collections of sayings attributed to Muhammad, the hadith, as a source of authority alongside the Quran.
Shia Islam
about 10 to 13%
The second-largest branch, rooted in the belief that the leadership of the community should have remained in Muhammad's family, beginning with his son-in-law and cousin Ali. The division between Sunnis and Shia arose from this succession dispute in the seventh century and deepened with the martyrdom of Husayn, Muhammad's grandson, an event still central to Shia memory and liturgy today.
Sufism
a minority, present within both branches
The mystical current of Islam, more a spiritual dimension than a separate third branch, which seeks a direct and intimate experience of God through disciplines such as repeating the divine names, devotional poetry and the guidance of spiritual masters. It is found among both Sunnis and Shia, although more literalist Islamic currents view it with suspicion.
Beliefs and practices
What is believed
Tawhid (the oneness of God)
The central, non-negotiable belief in the absolute oneness of God (Allah, the same word Arabic-speaking Christians use for God), who has no partners, sons or associates of any kind. Attributing divinity to any other being, including Jesus, is considered the greatest possible sin in Islam, called shirk.
Prophets sent by God
Islam recognizes a long line of prophets chosen by God to guide humanity, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, regarded as a great prophet and messenger but not as the Son of God. Muhammad is considered the last in the line, the seal of the prophets, whose message closes and completes the earlier revelations.
Angels as messengers
Angels are spiritual beings created by God to carry out specific tasks, among them bringing revelations to the prophets. The angel Gabriel, called Jibril in Arabic, holds a central place because, according to Islamic tradition, he revealed the Quran to Muhammad over more than two decades.
Earlier revealed books
Besides the Quran, Islam holds that God revealed earlier scriptures, such as the Torah given to Moses, the Psalms given to David and the Gospel given to Jesus. The traditional Islamic belief, however, is that these texts were altered or corrupted over time by their copyists, which, in the Muslim view, would explain the need for a final, definitive revelation in the Quran.
The Quran as the uncreated word of God
In traditional Islamic theology, the Quran is not merely an inspired book but the literal, eternal word of God itself, existing before creation and passed on to Muhammad with no human interference in its content. For this reason the original Arabic text is treated as sacred in itself, and translations into other languages are seen only as approximate interpretations.
The Day of Judgment and resurrection
A firm belief that there will be a final day when all human beings will be raised and judged by God according to their deeds, their faith and their obedience to the five pillars. This judgment determines each person's eternal destiny, paradise or hell, and it carries great weight in Islamic preaching and popular piety.
Predestination (qadar)
Trust that God's sovereign will governs all events, good or bad, and that nothing happens outside his decree and foreknowledge. In everyday practice this belief coexists with the idea of personal responsibility for one's own choices, and the expression "God willing" (in sha' Allah) reflects that balance in the daily speech of Muslims.
Dates and practices
Ramadan
The ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, devoted to fasting from dawn to sunset, reading the Quran and a deepening of the life of prayer. For most Muslims it is the most spiritually intense time of the year.
Eid al-Fitr (festival of breaking the fast)
The celebration that marks the end of Ramadan, with community prayer in the morning, festive meals, new clothes and visits among relatives. It is one of the two greatest festivals of the Islamic calendar.
Eid al-Adha (festival of sacrifice)
A festival that recalls Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son at God's command, a son who was replaced by an animal at the last moment, according to the Islamic account. Muslims who can afford it sacrifice an animal and give part of the meat to the poor, and the date coincides with the period of the Hajj.
Hajj (the annual pilgrimage to Mecca)
The great pilgrimage that brings millions of Muslims from all over the world to Mecca for a few fixed days of the Islamic calendar, fulfilling the fifth pillar of the faith. It is the largest yearly religious gathering in Islam and one of the most visible events of the global Muslim calendar.
How they live
The five prayers as the rhythm of the day
A practicing Muslim's day is structured by the five daily prayers, which divide the routine into blocks marked by the call to prayer. Before each prayer comes a ritual washing called wudu, which covers the hands, mouth, nose, face, forearms, head and feet, and the prayer itself is said facing Mecca, wherever the person may be.
Halal food
Muslims follow dietary rules that define what is permitted, called halal, and what is forbidden, called haram, such as pork and alcoholic drinks. The meat they eat must come from animals slaughtered according to a specific ritual, and finding halal food is a constant practical concern for Muslims living outside Muslim-majority countries.
Modest dress
Modesty in dress is valued for both men and women, with wide variation by culture and country. For women this may include wearing a veil that covers the hair, the hijab, or, to varying degrees, the face and body, while men usually avoid clothing considered ostentatious, always with wide differences in practice between families and regions.
The mosque and Friday prayer
The mosque is the center of worship, teaching and community life. The Friday midday congregational prayer, with a sermon, is the community's largest weekly gathering, comparable in social importance to Sunday worship for many Christians.
Religious education of children
From an early age, Muslim children are taught to memorize passages of the Quran, learn the prayers in Arabic and take part in family rites, often in religious schools alongside their regular education. Memorizing the entire Quran, which some young people achieve, is a matter of great honor for the family.
The role of the extended family
Social life revolves largely around the extended family, with parents and elders carrying great authority in personal decisions, including marriage and matters of faith. This close-knit family structure is at the same time a source of support and a safety net, and one of the factors that make the decision to leave Islam socially harder.
Brief history
around AD 570
Muhammad is born in Mecca, in the Arabian Peninsula, into a family of the Quraysh tribe.
AD 610
Muhammad reports receiving the first revelation from the angel Gabriel in a cave near Mecca, the traditional beginning of Islam.
AD 622
The Hijra: Muhammad and his first followers migrate from Mecca to Medina, fleeing persecution. This year became year 1 of the Islamic calendar, which was adopted a few years later.
AD 630
Muhammad returns to Mecca, takes the city and dedicates the Kaaba as the central shrine of Islam, now cleared of the idols that had stood there before.
AD 632
Muhammad dies in Medina without having clearly designated a successor, which leads to the succession dispute behind the division between Sunnis and Shia.
7th and 8th centuries
Islam spreads rapidly through conquest and trade, reaching from the Iberian Peninsula in the west to parts of Central Asia in the east.
9th to 13th centuries
An era of great scientific, philosophical and cultural output in Islamic centers such as Baghdad and Córdoba, with lasting influence on mathematics, astronomy and medicine.
20th and 21st centuries
Islam establishes itself as the second-largest religion in the world, present in practically every country, with the largest numbers of followers today concentrated outside the Arab world, in South and Southeast Asia.
How to engage in dialogue
Countries where it is the majority religion 39
Pakistan Türkiye Sudan Yemen Uzbekistan Morocco Saudi Arabia Malaysia Niger Mali Burkina Faso Chad Somalia Senegal Guinea Tunisia Tajikistan Azerbaijan United Arab Emirates Sierra Leone Turkmenistan Libya Kyrgyzstan Lebanon Palestine Oman Mauritania Kuwait Qatar Gambia Albania Kosovo Bahrain Djibouti Comoros Western Sahara Maldives Mayotte Cocos Islands
Unreached peoples of this religion 1.871 in total
Shaikh +5

Shaikh

103.9M people
8 unreached locations

Turk +35

Turk

66.8M people
38 unreached locations

Hausa +13

Hausa

59.1M people
16 unreached locations

Persian +36

Persian

48.4M people
36 unreached locations

Sunda

Sunda

37.3M people
1 unreached location

What to pray for
Intercession
For dreams and revelations among Muslim peoples, a means God has been using to make himself known where the gospel cannot be preached openly.
For freedom for Muslims to seek and follow Christ without fear of family, social or legal persecution.
For the millions of Muslims in Indonesia, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, the countries with the most Muslims in the world.
For Christians who live as a minority in Muslim-majority countries, that they would have courage and bear faithful witness.
For clarity in dialogue between Christians and Muslims about who Jesus is, without hostility and without compromising the truth.

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