Islam Amongst World’s Fastest Growing Religions

by Rehan Qamar

According to researchers, by 2040, Islam is estimated to be the second largest religion in the United States. The current largest religion in the US is Christianity followed by Judaism, with Islam rapidly growing as one of the most racially diverse religions.

In many parts of the world, Islam is widely considered as the fastest growing religion not only because of immigration, but because of above average birth rates and convert rates.

Various studies conducted in 2007, 2011 and 2017 including data from US Census research show the Muslim population in the US growing at an accelerated rate.

According to Pew, over three-quarters of the US Muslim population is made predominately from immigrants, with a majority being children of immigrants. Since the Muslim population in the US is mainly millennial and younger than other religious groups, they have a higher fertility rate.The population is estimated to double in the next few decades.

Islam has one of the highest Western conversion rates. According to a 2016 study by Pew Research Center, around 5000 people converted to Islam between 2010-2015. According to the Jerusalem Post, in the United Kingdom and France, up to 100,000 people converted in the last decade in each country.

As of 2010, 31% of all people on Earth are Christian with an estimated 2.2 billion followers. Islam which has the second largest population of followers with an estimated 1.6 billion people, has been estimated to reach an all time high in 2060. The number of Muslims globally is estimated to increase by 70% and nearly double from 2015-2060.

Muslim majority countries within the Middle East and African continents. Have the highest population growth and fertility rates in the world. The muslim population is expected to grow higher in many countries such as India and Nigeria, where Islam is currently the second largest religion