New Survey of the U.S. Religious Landscape

A new survey of religious affiliation in the United States reveals a diverse society with a small but growing Muslim presence. The Pew Forum's U.S. Religious Landscape Survey reports that Muslims make up 0.6% of the U.S. adult population, similar to the numbers of Buddhists and Jehovah Witnesses. The survey also reveals that nearly 2/3 of U.S. Muslims are immigrants, and that they tend to have large families. Muslims are also the most racially-diverse religious group, with the most balanced percentages of white (37%), black (24%), Asian (20%), other/mixed race (15%), and Latino (4%) adherents.

Another survey done in 2007, centering solely on the beliefs and demographics of the U.S. Muslim population, found similar results. (See: "Muslim Americans: Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream")