Buddhism in the Middle East

Buddhism in the Middle East

It is estimated that in the Middle East around 900,000 people, perhaps more, profess Buddhism (Buddhist adherents make up just over 0.3% of the total population of the Middle East). Many of these Buddhists have emigrated to the Middle East from Asia in the last 20 years. Large numbers of general workers from East Asian countries with large Buddhist populations such as China, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan have migrated to Middle Eastern countries to work. A small number of engineers, company directors and managers from Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea have also moved to the Middle East.

Demographics

* Theravada Buddhism is the predominant sect of workers from Thailand and Sri Lanka.
* Mahayana Buddhism is the dominant nominal religion of workers from East Asia and Vietnam, although Taoism, Confucianism, and Shinto are also represented among these people.

Buddhism in Saudi Arabia

The International Religious Freedom Report 2007, of U.S. Department of State, estimated that more than 8 million foreigners are living and working in Saudi Arabia, including Muslims and non-Muslims.

There are 400,000 Sri Lankans, as well as a few thousand Buddhist workers from East Asia, the majority of which are: Chinese, Vietnamese, and Thai. There is also a possibility that a percentage of Tibetan-Nepalese immigrants also help make up the estimated 8 million foreign residents in Saudi Arabia.

This amount of foreign inhabitants makes about 1.5% of Saudi Arabia's population Buddhists, or around 400,000 nominal Buddhists. Causing, Saudi Arabia to most likely contain the largest Buddhist community in the Middle East or Arab World. Recently, nearly 46% of total Buddhist population lives there.

Source: [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90220.htm]

Buddhist percentage by country:

* Here is the percentages of Buddhists in some Middle Eastern countries from many different sources:(Rank by percentage)

External links

* Buddhist pagodas or temples in Middle East [http://buddhanet.net/wbd/region.php?region_id=6]

References

* The US State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2006 [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/]
* CIA FactBook [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/]
* Religious Freedom page [http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/nationprofiles/]
* Religious Intelligence [http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/]


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