Islam in London

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Angled view of East London Mosque & London Muslim Centre from Whitechapel Road.

Islam is London's largest minority religion. There were 607,083 Muslims reported in the 2001 census in the Greater London area.[3] Most Muslims are concentrated in the east London boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest. 40% of England's Muslims live in London, where they make up 8.5% of the population.

In the 2011 census Office for National Statistics, the proportion of Muslims in London had risen to 12.4% of the population. In Newham and Tower Hamlets the percentages of Muslims were over 30%.

History

The Fazl Mosque in Southfields, the first purpose built mosque in London, inaugurated in 1926

The first Muslims to settle in London were Bengali and Yemeni sailors from the 19th century. Many Muslims from the Commonwealth served in the British Army and British Indian Army in the First and Second World Wars. In the wave of immigration that followed the Second World War, many Muslims emigrated to the UK from these Commonwealth countries and former colonies. Initially, many came from Pakistan especially the Pakistani Punjab and Kashmir and the Indian state of Gujarat. This initial wave of immigration of 1950s and 60s was followed by migrants from Sylhet Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan. Many Muslims also arrived from various other countries, although the percentage is far smaller than from the Indian sub-continent. Amongst those from other countries, Muslims from Yemen, Somalia and Turkey have significant numbers, whereas those from Malaysia, Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya represent smaller fractions. Today, London's Muslims come from all over the world and there is a small but growing group of converts.

21st century

Most of London's Muslims are descendants of immigrants from the Indian subcontinent, particularly Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. There is also a large number of Muslims from Arab countries. Among African Muslims there are large Maghreb (including Algerian and Egyptian) communities and Somali communities. In addition, London is home to large Turkish and Bosnian Muslim communities, both of which comprise over 30,000 members. The city also has a high number of restaurants that serve halal food (around 2,300).

However, this influx of immigrants has led to community relations issues. In the East End of London, there is a lot of tension in the area around East Ham, Barking and Dagenham between Muslims and non-Muslims. The British National Party gained their highest vote by proportion, 16.9%, in the 2005 General Election in Barking[4] and has 12 councillors on Barking & Dagenham Borough Council.[5]

It is also home to The Islamic College, an Islamic college and university which offers A-levels, BA, and MA degrees in coordination with Middlesex University.

Trends

Since most of London's Muslims have roots in South Asia, many follow the Sunni[citation needed] Hanafi school of Fiqh - an expansion of Islamic religious law. Sunni Muslims from North and West Africa continent mostly follow the Maliki school. Somalis, Yemenis, Malaysians and Indonesians follow the Shafi'i madhab. While roughly 90% of Arab Muslims in the London area are Sunni[citation needed], there is a Shia minority from Iraq and Lebanon. Arab Sunnis are either Hanbali (Saudi Arabia), Hanafi (Turkey, Levantine countries, etc.), or Maliki (North Africa).[6]

Ethnic background

The Turkish community in London[1]
The Pakistani community in London[2]

London Muslim population origin

  • Turkish- 250,000 to 300,000[7][8]

(UK: 500,000)[9][10]
(includes people from Cyprus and Turkey)

  • Pakistani - 240,000

(UK: more than 1,000,000)

(UK: around 500,000)

  • Somali - 140,000

(UK: 200,000-250,000)

  • Iraqi - 130,000

(UK: 240,000)

  • Nigerian - 120,000

(UK: 220,000)

(UK: 330,000 that are Muslims and 1,300,000 non-muslims)

  • Afghan - 71,000

(UK: 100,000-150,000)

Most spoken languages

as first language

as second language

  • Urdu language/Hindi language - 133,000 (Pakistani and Indian community)
  • Arabic language - 455,000 (Pakistani, Somali, Indian, Bangladeshi and other communities)

Boroughs

Local municipalities with large Muslim constituencies include: [citation needed]

  • Tower Hamlets - 110,200

- Bangladeshis, Somalis, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Pakistanis, Indians

- Pakistanis, Algerians, Kurds, Nigerians, Afghans, Albanians, Ghanaians, Swahilis, Arabs, Bangladeshis, Indians, Somalis, Iraqis"

- Somalis, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Algerians, Moroccans, Afghans, Indians, Pakistanis, Lebanese, Bangladeshis

- Pakistanis, Somalis, Indians, Afghans, Nigerians,Saudis

  • Waltham Forest - 49,700

- Pakistanis, Somalis, Swahilis, Algerians, Bangladeshis, Indians"

- Pakistanis, Somalis, Indians, Afghans, Iraqis

- Nigerians, Ghanaians, Somalis, Bangladeshis

- Somalis, Pakistanis, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Indians

- Turkish and Turkish Cypriots, Somalis, Kurds, Albanians, Nigerians, Bangladeshis

- Indians, Turks, Pakistanis, Iraqis, Ghanaians

- Jamaicans, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Somalis, Algerians, Moroccans, Bangladeshis, Indians, Pakistanis, Iraqis, Afghans

- Pakistanis, Indians, Somalis, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Iraqis

- Bangladeshis, Iraqis

- Nigerians, Ghanaians, Bangladeshis

- Pakistanis, Somalis, Indians

- Indians; Turks, Ghanaians, Iraqis

See also


References

  1. ↑ The Guardian. "A guide to ethnic communities". London. Retrieved 2009-01-18. 
  2. ↑ The Guardian. "London by ethnicity". Retrieved 2009-06-25. 
  3. ↑ Area: London - Religion (UV15) (Office for National Statistics) accessed 2 March 2009
  4. ↑ Milmo, Cahal (2006-04-20). "How the BNP is gaining ground in Barking with a campaign of lies and distortions". The Independent (London). Retrieved 2010-05-05. 
  5. ↑ Your councillors
  6. ↑ http://islamiclearningmaterials.com/madhhab-schools-of-thought-in-islam/
  7. ↑ Kelami Dedezade. "Teaching Bilingual Science". Retrieved 2010-03-27. 
  8. ↑ Yilmaz, Ihsan (2005). Muslim laws, politics and society in modern nation states: dynamic legal pluralisms in England, Turkey, and Pakistan. p. 6. ISBN 0-7546-4389-1. 
  9. ↑ Federation of Turkish Associations UK. "BRIEF HISTORY OF THE FEDERATION OF TURKISH ASSOCIATIONS IN UK". Retrieved 2010-03-27. 
  10. ↑ Ingiltere Atatürkçü Düşünce Derneği. "İngiltere Atatürkçü Düşünce Derneği’nin tarihçesi, kuruluş nedenleri, amaçları". Retrieved 2010-12-12. 
  11. ↑ BBC Voices Multilingual Nation. "Turkish today by Viv Edwards". Retrieved 2008-10-29. 

External links

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