Muslims will be the second-largest religious group in America by 2040 because of higher birth rates, according to a new study.
The data, published last week by the Pew Research Centre, shows that Islam will pass Judaism as the second biggest religion in the country, behind Christianity, within two decades.
According to Pew, the Muslim population will more than double in that time period, from 3.45 million in 2017 (1.1 percent of the total population) to 8.09 million in 2050 (2.1 percent of the total population).
The study used yearly U.S. Census data, combined with Pew studies the centre conducted in 2007, 2011 and 2017 to form an image of the future of the Muslim population in America.
The majority of the Muslim population is in metropolitan areas, with three times as many followers of the Islamic faith in cities such as Washington D.C. and New York City compared to other areas of the country.
The growth is being fuelled by higher fertility rates and high levels of immigration. Pew’s research said that a record number of Muslims had immigrated to the country in 2016 and that as many as 75 percent of the Muslim population is an immigrant or part of an immigrant family.
The Christian population in 2020 is predicted to be around 252 million, tens of times higher than the Muslim population, and the projected population in 2050 would be 261 million. (Newsweek)
