ChristianityS Declining Global Majority: A New Pew Research Center Map Reveals Shifts
A recently published map illustrates a decrease in the number of countries where Christians constitute the majority population. While a important portion of nations still identify as predominantly Christian, data reveals a notable decline between 2010 and 2020.
According to data released by the Pew Research Center, the United kingdom, France, Uruguay, and Australia no longer qualify as countries with a Christian majority.This shift marks a significant change in the religious landscape of these nations.
as of 2020, Christians remained the majority in 120 out of 201 nations and territories analyzed, a decrease from 124 in 2010. This represents a shift from 62% to 60% of all countries surveyed having a Christian majority over the decade.
Over the past ten years, the percentage of individuals identifying as Christian in the U.K., France, Uruguay, and Australia has fallen below 50%, while the number of those identifying as religiously unaffiliated has increased.
uruguay is now the first country in the Americas to no longer have a Christian majority,with 52% of its population identifying as religiously unaffiliated and only 44% as Christian. In the U.K., France, and Australia, no single religious group currently holds a clear majority.
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The Netherlands and New Zealand also joined the ranks of countries with religiously unaffiliated majorities during the same period. These nations joined a pre-existing group of seven countries-China, North Korea, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Macao, and Japan-that were already religiously unaffiliated as of 2010.
In 2020, Christians comprised 29% of the global population, yet they were the majority in 60% of countries. Despite being the most geographically widespread religion, Christianity‘s share of the world’s population is smaller than the number of countries where Christians are the majority.
Conversely, othre major world religions, such as Islam and Hinduism, have majorities in fewer countries, aligning more closely with their overall global population shares. These religions tend to be more concentrated in specific regions of the world.
According to Pew Research, the waning influence of Christianity in certain parts of the world is a continuation of a broader global trend toward religious disaffiliation, particularly in countries with historically Christian majorities.
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