In 2020, around 28.8 percent of the global population were identified as Christian. Around 25.6 percent of the global population identify as Muslims, followed by 14.9 percent of global populations as Hindu. The number of Muslims increased by 347 million, when compared to 2010 data, more than all other religions combined.

The World Religion Project (WRP) aims to provide detailed information about religious adherence worldwide since 1945. It contains data about the number of adherents by religion in each of the states in the international system. These numbers are given for every half-decade period (1945, 1950, etc., through 2010). Percentages of the states' populations that practice a given religion are also provided. (Note: These percentages are expressed as decimals, ranging from 0 to 1, where 0 indicates that 0 percent of the population practices a given religion and 1 indicates that 100 percent of the population practices that religion.) Some of the religions (as detailed below) are divided into religious families. To the extent data are available, the breakdown of adherents within a given religion into religious families is also provided.

The project was developed in three stages. The first stage consisted of the formation of a religion tree. A religion tree is a systematic classification of major religions and of religious families within those major religions. To develop the religion tree we prepared a comprehensive literature review, the aim of which was (i) to define a religion, (ii) to find tangible indicators of a given religion of religious families within a major religion, and (iii) to identify existing efforts at classifying world religions. (Please see the original survey instrument to view the structure of the religion tree.) The second stage consisted of the identification of major data sources of religious adherence and the collection of data from these sources according to the religion tree classification. This created a dataset that included multiple records for some states for a given point in time. It also contained multiple missing data for specific states, specific time periods and specific religions. The third stage consisted of cleaning the data, reconciling discrepancies of information from different sources and imputing data for the missing cases.

The Global Religion Dataset: This dataset uses a religion-by-five-year unit. It aggregates the number of adherents of a given religion and religious group globally by five-year periods.

When asked about their personal attitude towards various religions in Australia, ** percent of Australians surveyed had a negative attitude towards Muslims. Buddhists appeared to be least likely to elicit negative responses and around ** percent of respondents responded negatively to Christians.

 Islam in Australia

Muslims represent almost a quarter of the religious diversity in the Asia Pacific region and Australia’s neighbor, Indonesia, has the largest Muslim population in the world. In Australia, Islam is the second largest religious group but less than ***** percent of the population are Muslim, compared to over ** percent of the population identifying as Christian. The Australian Muslim community is very diverse, consisting of migrants from Bangladesh, Lebanon, Turkey, as well as Australian-born Muslims of European heritage.

 Australians increasingly less religious

The 2016 Australian census revealed that an ever-increasing number of Australians are selecting “no religion” in the optional census question on religious affiliation. This drop in religious affiliation is a common trend in many economically developed countries, although some of Australia’s minority religions like Islam and Buddhism are still showing some growth. In contrast, Christianity appears to be declining, especially amongst people under the age of **, an age group that also recorded higher numbers of people with no religion.

Islam is the major religion in many African countries, especially in the north of the continent. In Comoros, Libya, Western Sahara, at least 99 percent of the population was Muslim as of 202. These were the highest percentages on the continent. However, also in many other African nations, the majority of the population was Muslim. In Egypt, for instance, Islam was the religion of 79 percent of the people. Islam and other religions in Africa Africa accounts for an important share of the world’s Muslim population. As of 2019, 16 percent of the Muslims worldwide lived in Sub-Saharan Africa, while 20 percent of them lived in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Together with Christianity, Islam is the most common religious affiliation in Africa, followed by several traditional African religions. Although to a smaller extent, numerous other religions are practiced on the continent: these include Judaism, the Baha’i Faith, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Number of Muslims worldwide Islam is one of the most widespread religions in the world. There are approximately 1.9 billion Muslims globally, with the largest Muslim communities living in the Asia-Pacific region. Specifically, Indonesia hosts the highest number of Muslims worldwide, amounting to over 200 million, followed by India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Islam is also present in Europe and America. The largest Islamic communities in Europe are in France (5.72 million), Germany (4.95 million), and the United Kingdom (4.13 million). In the United States, there is an estimated number of around 3.45 million Muslims.

The RCS-Dem dataset reports estimates of religious demographics, both country by country and region by region. RCS was created to fulfill the unmet need for a dataset on the religious dimensions of countries of the world, with the state-year as the unit of observation. It covers 220 independent states, 26 selected substate entities, and 41 geographically separated dependencies, for every year from 2015 back to 1900 and often 1800 (more than 42,000 state-years). It estimates populations and percentages of adherents of 100 religious denominations including second level subdivisions within Christianity and Islam, along with several complex categories such as "Western Christianity." RCS is designed for easy merger with datasets of the Correlates of War and Polity projects, datasets by the United Nations, the Religion And State datasets by Jonathan Fox, and the ARDA national profiles.

The "https://sites.duke.edu/nsrl/" Target="_blank">National Survey of Religious Leaders (NSRL) is a survey of a nationally representative sample of 1,600 clergy from across the religious spectrum. It surveyed religious leaders who work in congregations, including full-time and part-time ministerial staff, assistant and specialist ministerial staff (such as youth ministers, religious education directors, and others), and head clergy. Conducted in 2019-2020, the NSRL contains a wealth of information about congregations' religious leaders. There are questions about respondents' jobs and careers, including job satisfaction; religious beliefs and practices; views about and practices related to mental health; attitudes and practices related to end-of-life issues; community involvement; political attitudes and practices; engagement with the larger religious world; knowledge of and attitudes about science, and how science informs their work; primary information sources; mental and physical health; and demographic characteristics such as gender, race/ethnicity, age, education, birthplace, marital status and income. The NSRL constitutes a significant new resource for deepening our knowledge about religious leaders in 21st century America.

ARDA Note: This file was updated on 3/26/24 at the request of the Principal Investigator. The RACE variable was updated.

As of August 2025, approximately 28 percent of people in Great Britain said that they believed in a God / Gods, compared with 38 percent who had no belief in God / Gods at all.

The statistic shows the total population of India from 2020 to 2030. In 2024, the estimated total population in India amounted to approximately 1.44 billion people. Total population in India India currently has the second-largest population in the world and is projected to overtake top-ranking China within forty years. Its residents comprise more than one-seventh of the entire world’s population, and despite a slowly decreasing fertility rate (which still exceeds the replacement rate and keeps the median age of the population relatively low), an increasing life expectancy adds to an expanding population. In comparison with other countries whose populations are decreasing, such as Japan, India has a relatively small share of aged population, which indicates the probability of lower death rates and higher retention of the existing population. With a land mass of less than half that of the United States and a population almost four times greater, India has recognized potential problems of its growing population. Government attempts to implement family planning programs have achieved varying degrees of success. Initiatives such as sterilization programs in the 1970s have been blamed for creating general antipathy to family planning, but the combined efforts of various family planning and contraception programs have helped halve fertility rates since the 1960s. The population growth rate has correspondingly shrunk as well, but has not yet reached less than one percent growth per year. As home to thousands of ethnic groups, hundreds of languages, and numerous religions, a cohesive and broadly-supported effort to reduce population growth is difficult to create. Despite that, India is one country to watch in coming years. It is also a growing economic power; among other measures, its GDP per capita was expected to triple between 2003 and 2013 and was listed as the third-ranked country for its share of the global gross domestic product.

Christianity is the major religion in numerous African countries. As of 2024, around 96 percent of the population of Zambia was Christian, representing the highest percentage on the continent. Seychelles and Rwanda followed with roughly 95 percent and 94 percent of the population being Christian, respectively. While these countries present the highest percentages, Christianity was also prevalent in many other African nations. For instance, in South Africa, Christianity was the religion of nearly 85 percent of the people, while the share corresponded to 71 percent in Ghana. Religious variations across Africa Christianity and Islam are the most practiced religions in Africa. Christian adherents are prevalent below the Sahara, while North Africa is predominantly Muslim. In 2020, Christians accounted for around 60 percent of the Sub-Saharan African population, followed by Muslims with a share of roughly 30 percent. In absolute terms, there were approximately 650 million Christians in the region, a number forecast to increase to over one billion by 2050. In contrast, Islam is most prevalent in North Africa, being the religion of over 90 percent of the population in Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya. Christianity in the world As opposed to other religions, Christianity is widely spread across continents worldwide. In fact, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe each account for around 25 percent of the global Christian population. By comparison, Asia-Pacific and North America make up 13 percent and 12 percent of Christians worldwide, respectively. In several regions, Christians also suffer persecution on religious grounds. Somalia and Libya presented the most critical situation in Africa in 2021, reporting the strongest suppression of Christians worldwide just after North Korea and Afghanistan.

Sri Lanka LK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data was reported at 1.043 Ratio in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.042 Ratio for 2016. Sri Lanka LK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data is updated yearly, averaging 1.042 Ratio from Dec 1962 (Median) to 2017, with 21 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.046 Ratio in 1987 and a record low of 1.035 Ratio in 1967. Sri Lanka LK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Sri Lanka – Table LK.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Sex ratio at birth refers to male births per female births. The data are 5 year averages.; ; United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision.; Weighted average;

1828 Census: Alphabetical return
This is the first census ever to be taken in Australia and the most complete one extant. It records both convicts and free persons but does not include serving military personnel and their families. (1)

The 1828 Census was compiled in six volumes [SZ978-983]. In all but the first volume the title is given as ‘New South Wales Census, taken in the Month of November 1828’.

It is a list in alphabetical order by surname compiled from the census returns for individual householders and government establishments. Each individual has been allocated a running number within his or her letter of the alphabet. Family groups living at the same household are listed together.

Beside running number and name the list records age, free or bond, ship, year, sentence, religion, employment, residence, district, total number of acres, acres cleared, acres cultivated, horses, horned cattle, sheep, remarks.

Inside the cover of the first volume [SZ978] there is a typescript note dated 13 July 1932 and signed by F.M. O’Donohue, Acting Registrar General:

‘These books were handed to Mr Hayce-Williams [sic] by Mr Fosbery, when the latter was retiring from the position of Inspector General of Police. Mr Hayes-Williams told me that they were given over to him on his promise to use the utmost care to see that their contents were not divulged.

‘It will be noticed that entries 1 to 91 are missing. Mr H.J. Rumsey a few weeks ago gave me the loose sheets herein and stated that he had obtained them from the Home Office in London where a copy of the 1828 Census is filed.’

Herbert John Rumsey was the first President of the Society of Australian Genealogists, founded in 1932. (2) He had obtained copies from London from the copy despatched to the Home Office of the 1828 Census now held at The National Archives of the United Kingdom as HO 10/21 to 10/27. (3)

Abbreviations and later inclusions
Abbreviations used in the column ‘Free or Bond’ were specified in the printed ‘Instructions for filling up the Returns for the Census of the Year 1828’ dated 1 September 1828:

B.C. for Born in the Colony.
C.F. for Came Free.
F.S. for Free by Servitude.
A.P. for Holding an Absolute Pardon.
C.P. for Holding a Ticket of Leave.
C. for Convict.
C.S. for Colonial Sentence.
G.S. for Government (or Assigned) Servant. (4)

A list of abbreviations dated 16 April 1931 is also included inside the cover of the first volume.

At the end of the first volume [SZ978] a ‘Report on European Archives, by Mr F.M. Bladen, Barrister-at-Law, printed 26 August 1903 for the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia is included. A newscutting from the Sydney Morning Herald, 16 July 1932 relating to Thomas Kendall is pasted into the third volume [SZ980] near his entry.

Background
On 30 June 1828 the New South Wales Legislative Council passed ‘An Act for ascertaining the Number Names and Condition of the Inhabitants of the Colony of New South Wales and also the Number of Cattle and the Quantity of located cleared and cultivated Land within the said Colony’, known as the Census Act of 1828 (9 Geo. IV No.5). Magistrates were to affix notices in conspicuous places in their districts ‘requiring every householder employer of servants owner or possessor of cattle proprietor or occupier of land’ to answer questions relating to the population and land and stock of the Colony. (5)

The Act also provided that in the case of refusal or neglect to answer these questions or the giving of false or untrue answers the Magistrates were able to impose a fine not exceeding Ten Pounds. (6)

Printed ‘Instructions for filling up the Returns for the Census of the Year 1828’ dated 1 September 1828 were issued by the Colonial Secretary, Alexander McLeay, to the Magistrates together with a circular dated 18 September 1828 specifying the use of printed forms in the taking of the ‘General Census of the Colony’. (7)

Previously Government and General Orders had required convicts to attend a muster to be counted at a specified place on a specific day. (8) For the taking of the census the approach was for constables or other suitable census takers to visit the householders’ properties with the printed forms provided. No date was specified in the Act for the taking of the census but the Magistrates and others were urged to complete their districts as soon as practicable.

The earliest returns were received by the Colonial Secretary on 8 November 1828 from Wallis Plains, followed on 20 November by those for Newcastle. (9) In most areas the returns were completed in November 1828, though some areas took longer to submit them to the Colonial Secretary. Amended returns were received as late as November 1829. (10) A circular to Magistrates dated 29 September 1829 required the Magistrates to confirm the correctness of the Census for their area with the last confirmation received on 17 December 1829. (11)

The householders’ forms (NRS 1273) were returned by the Magistrates to the Colonial Secretary. The clerks in the Colonial Secretary’s Office then compiled a district abstract (NRS 1274) for each district and statistics for government establishments. Summary statistics were compiled of population and land and stock for each district. An Abstract of the population of the Colony of New South Wales, and of the Land and Livestock held therein was also prepared. These statistics were first published in the Sydney Gazette on 26 September 1829. (12)

It is not known when the compilation of the six volumes was completed. In October 1828 the Colonial Secretary Alexander McLeay wrote that ‘it is hoped that when the Returns are abstracted, and the names classed alphabetically, the danger of double entries and omisions will be equally obviated’. (13)

Subsequent history
The volumes of the 1828 Census passed into the possession of the Inspector General of Police. In 1901 the Inspector General made a submission to the Chief Secretary that these records should be placed in the care of the Registrar General. The matter was considered by a committee appointed by the Premier and Chief Secretary. This committee consisted of the Principal Under Secretary of the Premier’s Department (Mr R.C. Critchet Walker), the Inspector General of Police (Mr Edmund Fosbery) and the Registrar General (Mr William Gordon Hayes Williams). It recommended that the records of the 1828 Census be placed in the care of the Registrar General to be kept under lock and key, the Registrar General himself retaining the key. (14) The volumes, along with the case which housed them and its key, were transferred as State archives on 25 March 1965. (15)

UNESCO Australian Memory of the World Register
The records of the 1828 Census were inscribed on the UNESCO Australian Memory of the World Register on 27 February 2019.

Endnotes
1. Census of New South Wales – November 1828, Edited by Malcolm R Sainty & Keith A Johnson. Sydney: Library of Australian History, 1980 and subsequently published, with additional information, on CD-ROM 2001 and Revised Edition 2008, Introduction (PDF) ‘Census of New South Wales November 1828, available from Biographical Database of Australia website, https://www.bda-online.org.au/sources/musters-census/ (accessed 22 February 2019), p.13; NRS 905, Main series of letters received [Colonial Secretary], 1828 [4/2007.2].
2. K. A. Johnson, 'Rumsey, Herbert John (1866–1956)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/rumsey-herbert-john-8297/text14543, published first in hardcopy 1988, accessed online 22 February 2019. This article was first published in hardcopy in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 11, (MUP), 1988.
3. TNA (UK): HO Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania: Records., HO 10/21 to HO 10/27, http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/browse/r/h/C1905858 (accessed 22 February 2019). The Home Office volumes, while including most of the same details, are not identical to the 1828 Census: Alphabetical registers.
4. Instructions of 1 September 1828 in NRS 906, Special bundles [Colonial Secretary], 1826: Census of 1828 – instructions, circulars, and samples of forms to be used [4/1097].
5. Census of 1828 (9 Geo. IV No.5).
6. Ibid.
7. Instructions of 1 September 1828 and Circular, 18 September 1828 in NRS 906, Special bundles [Colonial Secretary], 1826: Census of 1828 – instructions, circulars, and samples of forms to be used [4/1097].
8. For example see Historical Records of Australia Series I, Vol. I, p.678.
9. Colonial Secretary; NRS 922, Registers of letters received, 1828 [5/2342] Reel 2929, q.v. Nos. 28/8991 and 28/9341.
10. Ibid., q.v. Nos. 29/6673 and 29/8653.
11. Ibid., q.v. Nos. 29/8147; NRS 905, Main series of letters received, 1828 Letter No.29/9898 in [4/2056].
12. Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, 26 September 1829, p.1, https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/2193488 (accessed 21 February 2019).
13. NRS 989, Copies of letters to Magistrates, Police etc, 17 October 1828, Out Letter 38/741 [4/3826] pp.493-494, Reel 2807.
14. Archives Authority of New South Wales, Disposal Recommendation (DR631).
15. AO File 65/0120 and

Pakistan PK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data was reported at 1.087 Ratio in 2017. This stayed constant from the previous number of 1.087 Ratio for 2016. Pakistan PK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data is updated yearly, averaging 1.086 Ratio from Dec 1962 (Median) to 2017, with 21 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.096 Ratio in 2002 and a record low of 1.064 Ratio in 1992. Pakistan PK: Sex Ratio at Birth: Male Births per Female Births data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Pakistan – Table PK.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Sex ratio at birth refers to male births per female births. The data are 5 year averages.; ; United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision.; Weighted average;

The Hajj to Mecca in Saudi Arabia is considered among the world’s largest human gatherings, with over **** million pilgrims in 2025. The Saudi government restricted Hajj to residents in Saudi Arabia only during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The number of Hajj pilgrims dropped to about **** thousand in 2021. Like other religious pilgrimages, Hajj is considered an annual rite of passage to renew one's moral and spiritual connection. Approximately a quarter of the human population identify themselves as Muslims. According to their faith of Islam, it is one of their five religious duties to perform the Hajj at least once in their lifetime. Who are the pilgrims? According to Islamic tradition, any Muslim who has reached maturity is due to perform the Hajj. During the last Hajj season before the COVID-19 pandemic, about two thirds of the pilgrims to Mecca came from outside of the Saudi Arabian Kingdom. The government of Saudi Arabia issues each years’ Hajj visas on a country quota system, based on the size of the Muslim population .     Financial aspects   One main condition for a mature Muslim to qualify to perform the Hajj is to be free of debt and other financial and social obligations. Many Muslims around the world spend a significant amount of their life-savings to be able to make this spiritual journey. As an example, the cost of performing Hajj for a Malaysian Muslim was calculated at about ***** thousand Malaysian ringgits. For first time Hajj pilgrims, the Malaysian government subsidizes more than half of that amount. Some Muslims who can’t afford the financial or physical challenges of the Hajj sometimes perform the smaller Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca called Umrah, which can be attempted all year round.

The majority of Japanese adhere to Shintoism, a traditional Japanese religion focusing on rituals and worship at shrines. In 2021, around 48.6 percent of the total population of Japan participated in Shinto practices. Closely behind is Buddhism, with more than 46 percent of the population adhering to its practices. Most Japanese thus practice both religions. The original ShintoShintoism adherents worship spirits or gods at shrines, often publicly, through rituals and traditions. Shintoism is deeply ingrained in the Japanese culture and way of life, but the number of followers has been decreasing over the past years, as has the number of Japanese who are adhering to any kind of religion. Tradition seems to have to make way for modern attitudes and choices – still the number of people who call themselves Shinto adherents is quite high, even if they do not actively practice it. Everything zen in BuddhismWhile Shintoism seems to become a thing of the past, the number of Buddhists, on the other hand, has been stable over the last decade, and if anything, has only slightly decreased. Japan is, in fact, among the countries with the largest Buddhist communities, right after China, of course, and Thailand. This might be due to Buddhism being able to adapt much easier to modern times and its adherents’ everyday lives, as well as a better PR machine – Buddhism is, after all, also quite popular in the Western world.

In 2021, 53.3 percent of the total population in Canada were Christian, 4.9 percent were Muslim, but almost more than a third are not religious at all – with the rest stating they adhere to Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, the Jewish faith, and other Christian denominations. Canada’s religious pluralismCanada is not a very religious country in general. Canadians adhere to a wide variety of beliefs and faiths, with the majority following Christianity, followed by those who do not believe in any deity or religion at all. As with many Western countries, the younger generations are less inclined to identify with faith, and Christianity in particular is not as popular as it is among the older generations. Alternative worship for the younger generations?Canadian teenagers are no less enthusiastic about religion than their parents, and they are just as grounded in their faith as the older generations. They are, however, also just as indecisive when it comes to whether they would call themselves religious or not. Interestingly, they seem much more interested in traditional aboriginal spirituality than in the Judeo-Christian model. They also seem quite interested in another alternative to Christianity: Buddhism is quite popular among the younger generations. Whether this signifies a general trend away from Christianity and towards religious alternatives remains to be seen.

In 2025, North Korea was the country with the strongest suppression of Christians with an index value of 98. Somalia followed behind with 94, with Yemen in third. The World Watch List The index ranges from 0 (complete freedom) to 100 (total suppression). The survey for the World Watch List included various aspects of religious freedom: the legal and official status of Christians, the actual situation of Christians living in the country, regulations from the state as well as factors that can undermine the freedom of religion in a country. Christianity worldwideEven though Christianity is the largest religion worldwide, there are many areas of the world where Christians are persecuted. As the list shows, this is especially the case in countries with larger Muslim populations. Moreover, these countries are characterized by their authoritarian nature. The global distribution of religions varies strongly; whereas almost 100 percent of Hindus and Buddhists are found in the Asia-Pacific, Christians are spread around most world regions except the Middle East and North Africa.

In 1800, the population of the region of present-day India was approximately 169 million. The population would grow gradually throughout the 19th century, rising to over 240 million by 1900. Population growth would begin to increase in the 1920s, as a result of falling mortality rates, due to improvements in health, sanitation and infrastructure. However, the population of India would see it’s largest rate of growth in the years following the country’s independence from the British Empire in 1948, where the population would rise from 358 million to over one billion by the turn of the century, making India the second country to pass the billion person milestone. While the rate of growth has slowed somewhat as India begins a demographics shift, the country’s population has continued to grow dramatically throughout the 21st century, and in 2020, India is estimated to have a population of just under 1.4 billion, well over a billion more people than one century previously. Today, approximately 18% of the Earth’s population lives in India, and it is estimated that India will overtake China to become the most populous country in the world within the next five years.

In 2024, there were around 394,608 divorces involving Muslim marriages, a decrease in compared to the previous year. 2022 saw a peak in divorces, reaching an all-time high for the past decade. The rise in divorce cases indicated a growing acceptance of the practice. Even so, divorcing in Indonesia can have serious consequences, especially for women. Muslim marriages in Indonesia Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population, and they are served by the religious courts with regards to matters concerning marriage and divorce, inheritance, and property. In 2022, almost two million Muslim marriages took place in Indonesia, including informal registrations. Under Syariah law, Muslims are permitted to marry once they reach sexual maturity. This has led to a widespread practice of forced child marriage in Indonesia. In September 2019, the Indonesian parliament passed a bill to raise the minimum age of marriage for women from 16 years to 19 years. Financial burden of divorce Forced marriage was cited as a ground for divorce in *** cases in 2022. The second-most commonly cited grounds for divorce, however, were financial problems and difficulties. Unfortunately, for many women, the financial difficulties would not end with divorce – in fact, it may just be the beginning. Men are typically the primary breadwinner in Indonesia, leaving many women financially dependent on their husbands. As of 2021, only half of Indonesian women had an account in a financial institution. Meanwhile, custody of the children is usually awarded to the woman after a divorce. This leaves many Indonesian women without financial support, and the additional burden of having children to raise alone. Despite the decreasing stigma of divorce, many women might still choose to stay in a bad marriage to avoid being put in a financially precarious situation.

Muslims residing in Oslo, Norway will be fasting in the middle of the month of Ramadan for a total of ** hours and ** minutes, between the times of **** am and **** pm. During the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, observing Muslims worldwide abstain from eating, drinking, smoking, and sexual activities from sunrise to sunset.RamadanThe Islamic calendar is based on the lunar year; therefore, it is ten days shorter than the Gregorian solar calendar. Thus, Ramadan will take place from the 1st to the 29th of March 2025. The fasting hours are calculated from dusk until dawn of each day for the whole of the month of Ramadan. Differing fasting times in different places result from the fact that the length of each day varies based on the latitude of each location and changes each day due to the Earth's orbit around the sun. However, there might be slight interpretational differences between different schools of thought and branches of Islam. Muslim worldAccording to the latest estimations there are over *** billion Muslims worldwide. It is estimated that that by 2026 the Muslim population will increase to over **** billion narrowing the gap with Christianity, whose community is projected to grow to just over ***** billion by then. The majority of Muslims worldwide are located in Asia, though it is only a quarter of the continent’s population.