Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
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Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims comprise the two main sects within Islam. Because data on the percentages of Sunni and Shia Muslims are rough estimates in many countries, this study presents them as ranges. 57 Sunnis will continue to make up an overwhelming majority of Muslims in 2030. The number of Sunnis is projected to […]
Continued fighting in Libya and the union faceoff in Wisconsin fueled the No. 1 and No. 2 stories overall last week. But the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on Friday March 11 quickly overwhelmed every other story—including a controversial hearing on Islamic terrorism.
Overall, the public is divided over whether it is more important for the federal government to reduce the budget deficit or spend to help the economy recover. About half (49%) say that reducing the budget deficit should be the federal government’s higher priority, while nearly as many (46%) say the priority should be spending to […]
Majorities of Egyptian Muslims believe that democracy is preferable to any other kind of government, and by wide margins, Muslims in Egypt say that Islam plays a positive role in their country’s politics.
Domestic and foreign conflicts—from Madison to Tripoli—generated plenty of attention in social media last week, with users opining and relaying breaking news. On YouTube, scenes of Mideast unrest once again made the roster of most popular videos.
Fertility Fertility rates have fallen in most Muslim-majority countries in recent decades. Yet they remain, on average, higher than in the rest of the developing world and considerably higher than in more-developed countries. This is one of the main reasons that the global Muslim population is projected to rise both in absolute numbers and in […]
The story from Egypt seemed to ebb and then peak last week, leading to a rush of coverage once the demonstrations turned into a successful revolution. No other story came close to generating that level of coverage last week. Now comes the hard part—understanding what will happen after Hosni Mubarak.
Overview As President Obama prepares to host Chinese President Hu Jintao next week, Americans increasingly see Asia as the region of the world that is most important to the United States. Nearly half (47%) say Asia is most important, compared with just 37% who say Europe, home to many of America’s closest traditional allies. Views […]