This chapter uses standard demographic methods to project changes in the size of eight major religious groups from 2010-2050. The groups, presented in descending order of their 2010 size, are: Christians, Muslims, the religiously unaffiliated, Hindus, Buddhists, adherents of folk or traditional religions, members of “other religions” (consolidated into a single group) and Jews. Each […]
Countries With the Most Extensive Government Restrictions on Religion Most countries in the world have some form of government restrictions on religion, but each year a few countries stand out as having particularly extensive restrictions. In 2013, 18 countries had a “very high” level of government restrictions, down from 24 countries in 2012. Most of […]
Government Restrictions by Region The median level of government restrictions on religion increased in two of the five regions (Asia-Pacific and sub-Saharan Africa) and decreased in two regions (Middle East-North Africa and Europe). It stayed the same in the Americas. In the latest year studied, the Middle East and North Africa continued to have the […]
In addition to looking at the harassment of specific religious groups, this report, for the first time, looks at the prevalence of restrictions and hostilities that tend to target religious minorities. To measure the extent of these restrictions and hostilities, Pew Research identified three measures on the Government Restrictions Index and three on the Social […]
Seven decades after the end of World War II and a quarter-century after the end of the Cold War, roughly seven-in-ten Americans see Germany as a reliable ally, and about six-in-ten Germans trust the United States, according to a Pew Research Center survey.
Media Contact: Katherine Ritchey, Communications Manager 202-419-4372, kritchey@pewresearch.org Washington, Feb. 26, 2015 — Worldwide, social hostilities involving religion declined somewhat in 2013 after reaching a six-year peak the previous year, but roughly a quarter of the world’s countries are still grappling with high levels of religious hostilities within their borders, according to the Pew […]