Islam in the United Arab Emirates
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More than 80% of the population of the UAE are non-citizens. Virtually all of the country's citizens are Muslims; approximately 85% are Sunni and the remaining 15% are Shi'a. Foreigners are predominantly from South and Southeast Asia, although there are substantial numbers from the Middle East, Europe, Central Asia, the former Commonwealth of Independent States, and North America. According to a ministry report, which collected census data, 76 percent of the total population is Muslim, 9 percent is Christian, and 15 percent is "other." Unofficial figures estimate that at least 15 percent of the population is Hindu, 5 percent is Buddhist, and 5 percent belong to other religious groups, including Parsi, Bahá'í, and Sikh. These estimates differ from census figures because census figures do not count "temporary" visitors and workers, and Bahá'ís and Druze are counted as Muslim.[1][2]
Most of the citizen Sunni adhere to the Maliki legal tradition. Some followers of the Salafi group live in the Al Buraymi Oasis, and some who follow the Shafi'i legal school live along the Al Batinah coast.
Although varying from emirate to emirate, the degree of religious freedom afforded non-Muslims is greater in the UAE than in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. For example, non-Muslims are permitted to worship but not to proselytize. There are several large Christian churches and schools in the UAE, primarily in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
[edit] References
- ^ United Arab Emirates: International Religious Freedom Report 2007. U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (2007-09-14). Retrieved on 2008-01-10.
- ^ United Arab Emirates: International Religious Freedom Report 2006. U.S. Department of State: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (2006-09-15). Retrieved on 2008-02-17.
[edit] See also
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- This article contains material from the Library of Congress Country Studies, which are United States government publications in the public domain.
