Around the World, Many People Are Leaving Their Childhood Religions
In many places surveyed, 20% or more of all adults have left their childhood religious group. Christianity and Buddhism have had especially large losses.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Middle East & North Africa
Comparing Levels of Religious Nationalism Around the World
We asked people in three dozen countries how they see religion’s role in society, government and national identity.
Majority in U.S. Say Israel Has Valid Reasons for Fighting; Fewer Say the Same About Hamas
57% of Americans express some sympathy with both Israelis and Palestinians, including 26% who say their sympathies lie equally with both groups.
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Islam was the world’s fastest-growing religion from 2010 to 2020
From 2010 to 2020, the number of Muslims increased by 347 million people to 2.0 billion people.
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How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020
Christians remain the largest religious group, and Muslims grew the fastest from 2010 to 2020. Read how the global share of Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and the religiously unaffiliated changed.
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Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2020
Find how many people identify with each religious group and what percent each made up in 201 countries and territories, and by region, in 2010 and 2020.
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Israeli Public Is Increasingly Skeptical About Lasting Peace
21% of Israelis think Israel and a Palestinian state can coexist peacefully, the lowest share since 2013.
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Most people across 24 surveyed countries have negative views of Israel and Netanyahu
International views of Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are much more negative than positive.
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Fewer Israelis support Israel taking over Gaza now than in 2024
A third of Israeli adults say Israel should govern Gaza, down from 40% in 2024.
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Believing in Spirits and Life After Death Is Common Around the World
Belief in an afterlife, God and spirits in nature is widespread globally. Older adults are more likely than younger adults to believe in God.
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Free Expression Seen as Important Globally, but Not Everyone Thinks Their Country Has Press, Speech and Internet Freedoms
Across 35 countries, there are some disconnects between how people rate the importance of free expression and how free they feel they actually are.
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Under Pope Francis, the College of Cardinals became less European
There are 135 cardinals who are eligible to vote in the coming papal election, and a plurality (40%) are from Europe. That’s down from 51% in 2013.
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How Americans view Israel and the Israel-Hamas war at the start of Trump’s second term
A slight majority of Americans (54%) say the Israel-Hamas war is either very or somewhat important to them personally.
