Germany: Muslim community larger, more diverse

Germany: Muslim community larger, more diverse


According to the latest figures, Germany's Muslim community numbers close to 4 million people, or about 5 percent of the entire population. Past estimates put the number of Muslims in the country at 3.1 to 3.4 million.


Additionally, the survey funded by the Interior Ministry found that Germany's Muslim community is very diverse.


To get a better sense of the views and customs of German Muslims, researchers phoned 6,000 households with 17,000 residents. The pollsters asked a variety of questions, such as whether the family ate pork or drank alcohol.


Researchers found that 91 percent of Sunnis said they followed Islamic food and drink practices. For Shiites, the rate was 60 percent and for Alawites the rate was 49 percent.


A third of respondents described themselves as "strongly religious," while half said they were "relatively religious." Respondents from Turkey and Africa most readily described themselves as devout.


The majority (63.2 percent) of German Muslims are of Turkish origin, followed by Muslims from Southeastern Europe (13.6 percent), the Middle East (8 percent) and Northern Africa (7 percent).


The German government funded the survey after complaints that there was no reliable information on the Islamic population or their views.


(more)


Source: DW-World (English)


See also: Netherlands: 5% are Muslims

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