Islam in the United Kingdom

Islam has been present in the United Kingdom since its formation in 1707,^[1] though it was not legally recognised until the Trinitarian Act in 1812. Today it is the second largest religion in the country with estimates suggesting that by 2010 the total Muslim population had reached 2.869 million.^[2][3]

The growing number of Muslims has resulted in the establishment of more than 1,500 mosques.^[4] The majority of mosques are Sunni; in 2010, the affiliation of the mosques was, 65% Deobandi, 20% Barelvi, 6% Salafi, 3% Maudoodi-inspired; of the remainder many were part of other Sunni traditions or unaffiliated, while 66 were Shi'a (4%). The majority of mosque managers are of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin, with many Gujarati, and fewer Arab, Turkish and Somali managed entities.^[5]

There are a number of UK-wide Islamic organisations, including; the British Muslim Forum, the Muslim Association of Britain. the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association UK, the Islamic Society of Britain, the Muslim Council of Britain, the United Kingdom Islamic Mission (UKIM), the Sunni Dawat-e-Islami, the World Islamic Mission, the Sufi Muslim Council, the Mosques & Imams National Advisory Board, Minhaj-ul-Quran UK, the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK, the Muslim Parliament of Great Britain and the Muslim Educational Trust.^[6]

A 2009 survey of the attitudes of British Muslims found them to identify more strongly with the UK than the rest of the population, with a much higher regard for the country's institutions, and to be more tolerant towards people of other religions.^[7] However, the vast majority of them have strongly conservative views on moral issues such as homosexuality and extra-marital sex, both differing dramatically from those held by the rest of the British population.^[7]

The vast majority of Muslims in the UK live in England and Wales: of 1,591,000 Muslims recorded at the 2001 Census,^[8] 1,536,015 were living in England and Wales,^[9] where they formed 3% of the population in 2001; 42,557 were living in Scotland, forming 0.84% of the population;^[10] and 1,943 were living in Northern Ireland.^[11]

The emergence of the anti-Islamic English Defence League has resulted in demonstrations in British cities with large muslim populations.^{[12][13][14][15][16]}

See also

• Islam in England
• Islam in Northern Ireland
• Islam in Scotland
• Islam in Wales
• Religion in the United Kingdom

References

External links

• Haq Islam: UK blog
• BBC: Islam and Britain Before the 20th Century
• Islam in the United Kingdom
• Muslim Council of Britain
• Muslim working class struggles, article published in International Socialism, 4 January 2007
• Timeline of Muslims in Britain hWeb
• Muslims In Britain, Guide and Directory