Index
back to Primal New Religious Movements, North America
| Group | Where | Number of Adherents |
% of total pop. |
Number of congreg./ churches/ units |
Number of countries |
Year | Source | Quote/ Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Primal New Religious Movements | Oceania | - | - | - | - | 1987 | Bishop, Peter & Michael Darton (editors). The Encyclopedia of World Faiths: An Illustrated Survey of the World's Living Faiths. New York: Facts on File Publications (1987); pg. 311. | Graphic: "Number of Primal New Religious Movements (PRINERMS) By Area (All numbers are approximate) "; Number of PRINERMS in Oceania: 600. |
| Primal New Religious Movements | world | 20,000,000 | - | - | - | 1984 | Turner, Harold W. "New Religious Movements in Primal Societies " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984]; pg. 449. | "It is probably safe to say that there are between 12 and 20 million people involved in this development [syncretistic new religious movements in primal societies] across the continents, although any figure depends on how these movements are defined. "; In chapter "New Religious Movements in primal societies " |
| primal-indigenous | Africa | 72,777,000 | 10.00% | - | - | 1995 | The World Almanac and Book of Facts 1997 (K-111 Reference Corp.: Mahwah, NJ), [Source: 1996 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 646. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1995 "; Called "Ethnic religionists " in this table. |
| primal-indigenous | Africa | 70,250,000 | 9.39% | - | - | 1996 | The World Almanac & Book of Facts 1998 (K-111 Reference Corp.: Mahwah, NJ), [Source: 1997 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 654. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1996 "; Called "Ethnic religionists " in this table. |
| primal-indigenous | Africa | 97,200,000 | 12.48% | - | - | 1998 | World Almanac and Book of Facts 2000. Mahwah, NJ: PRIMEDIA Reference Inc. (1999). [Source: 1999 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 695. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1998 "; [Listed in table as 'Ethnic religionists] |
| primal-indigenous | Africa - sub-Saharan - black | 85,000,000 | 65.38% | - | - | 1957 | Mazrui, Ali A. The Africans: A Triple Heritage. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company (1986); pg. 135. | In 1957 "the Paris Academy of Political and Moral Sciences received some pertinent estimates... Of the total Black population estimated at the time as being 130 million in Africa south of the Sahara, 28 million were Muslim, 13 million were Catholic, 4 million were Protestants and 85 million still followed their own indigenous religions, even though some of these traditionalists were nominally Muslim or Christian. " |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | - | 10.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994); pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; Listed in table as "Traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | 1,130,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | 1997 Britannica Book of the Year; pg. 781-783. | Table; "traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | 4,957,958 | 47.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | Religions: indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (est.); Total population: 10,548,847. |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | 8,820,000 | 84.00% | - | - | 1997 | Dostert, Pierre Etienne. Africa 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997); pg. 80. | Estimates of % of population in principal religions, & est. 1997 total pop. |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | 5,106,320 | 47.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook 1998 (viewed June 24, 1999) | Religions: indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15% (1998 est.); Total population: 10,864,512. |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | 1,045,000 | 9.50% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 1 - Africa. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 27-28. | "Location: Angola; Population: 11 million "; Pg. 28: "Traditional religion is practiced by 9.5%, and other religons make up the remaining 2.0%. " |
| primal-indigenous | Angola | - | 14.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nazarene web site: Nazarene World Mission Society; (major source: Johnstone's Operation World) | Table "Religions "; listed in table as "animism " |
| primal-indigenous | Asia | 36,578,000 | 1.06% | - | - | 1995 | The World Almanac and Book of Facts 1997 (K-111 Reference Corp.: Mahwah, NJ), [Source: 1996 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 646. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1995 "; Called "Ethnic religionists " in this table. |
| primal-indigenous | Asia | 30,350,000 | 0.86% | - | - | 1996 | The World Almanac & Book of Facts 1998 (K-111 Reference Corp.: Mahwah, NJ), [Source: 1997 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 654. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1996 "; Called "Ethnic religionists " in this table. |
| primal-indigenous | Asia | 148,188,992 | 4.13% | - | - | 1998 | World Almanac and Book of Facts 2000. Mahwah, NJ: PRIMEDIA Reference Inc. (1999). [Source: 1999 Encyc. Britannica Book of the Year]; pg. 695. | Table: "Adherents of All Religions by Six Continental Areas, Mid-1998 "; [Listed in table as 'Ethnic religionists] |
| primal-indigenous | Asia - Southeast | - | - | - | - | 1966 | Welty, Paul Thomas. The Asians: Their Heritage and Their Destiny (Revised Edition). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co. (1966); pg. 289. | "Followers of all the world's religions are to be found in Southeast Asia today, but the beliefs and practices of the vast majority of the people stem either from animism, Hinduism, buddhism, or Islam or from a combination of two or more of these religions... But regardless of which imported religion predominates, certain beliefs and practices indigenous to the various countries of Southeast Asia remain an integral part of the religious life of the people. this is particularly true of animism, which was the original religion of almost all the people of Southeast Asia. " |
| primal-indigenous | Asia - Southeast | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 709. | "In Southeast Asia, a region which includes the countries of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, and the British dependency of Brunei, there are several million people who adhere to religions which are communicated through oral rather than a written tradition. These religions are followed by tribal people who live mainly on the peripheries of the dominant societies; that is, by people who live in the mountainous regions of the larger islands and of the mainland of Southeast Asia or on the small isolated islands of the eastern archipelago. " |
| primal-indigenous | Asia - Southeast | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 712. | "For centuries tribal peoples in Southeast Asia have been steadily, if slowly, assimilated into neighboring Buddhist, Islamic, Sinitic, and Christian civilizations. The pace of change greatly accelerated from about the middle of the 19th century on, when the impact of the world economy and of colonial governments (except in Thailand, where indigenous rulers played much the same role) also began to be felt in previously remote areas. Christian missionaries have, where political conditions permitted, been very assiduous over the past century in taking their message to tribal peoples, and the changing political and economic situation has often made these peoples quite receptive to the Christian message. " |
| primal-indigenous | Asia - Southeast | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 709-710. | "There are well over a hundred different tribal groups on the mainland of Southeast Asia and their members speak languages belonging to a number of quite distinct languages (Austro-asiatic or Mon-Khmer, Tibeto-Burman, Austronesian or Malayo-Polynesian, Tai, Maio-Yao, Karen, and Viet-Muong). While all the tribal peoples of insular part of the region speak languages belonging to the same language family (Austronesian or Malayo-Polynesian), there are still over sixty distinct groups. While each tribal religion in Southeast Asia has unique characteristics which reflect adaptation and development in different contexts, these religions also share certain patterns... " |
| primal-indigenous | Bangladesh | 360,279 | 0.30% | - | - | 1995 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 89-91. | "Location: Bangladesh; Population: 120,093,000 "; Pg. 91: "Although many non-Muslims fled Bangladesh in 1947... Buddhists (0.6%), Christians (0.3%) and tribal groups (0.3%) form other religious minorities in the country. " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | - | 61.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994); pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; Listed in table as "Traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 3,460,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | 1997 Britannica Book of the Year; pg. 781-783. | Table; listed as: "Voodoo (traditional beliefs) " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 4,131,524 | 70.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | indigenous beliefs 70%, Muslim 15%, Christian 15%; Total population: 5,902,178. |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 4,042,500 | 77.00% | - | - | 1997 | Dostert, Pierre Etienne. Africa 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997); pg. 38. | "Population: 5.25 million (estimated)... Traditional beliefs (about 77%), Christianity (about 15%), Islam (about 8%). " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 4,270,560 | 70.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook 1998 (viewed June 24, 1999) | "Population: 6,100,799 (July 1998 est.)... Religions: indigenous beliefs 70%, Muslim 15%, Christian 15% " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 4,104,000 | 72.00% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 1 - Africa. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 59-60. | "Location: Benin; Population: 5.7 million "; "The majority of Beninese practice animist religion. Only 15% profess Christianity, mainly Catholicism... About 13% of the population subscribes to Islam... " |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | 1,969,400 | 61.40% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site; (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | Total Pop: 2,106,000. Tribal religionists: 1,969,400; 61.4%. |
| primal-indigenous | Benin | - | 54.80% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nazarene web site: Nazarene World Mission Society; (major source: Johnstone's Operation World) | Table "Religions "; listed in table as "animism " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | - | - | - | 1985 | Griffiths, John. Let's Visit Bolivia. London, England: Burke Publishing, Co. (1985); pg. 60, 68. | "Roman Catholicism is the main religion of Bolivia and the church plays an important part in Bolivian life. Yet Christianity has not completely replaced the pre-Colombian religions... rather it has been adapted to these earlier religions. "; pg. 68: "Freedom of worship is guaranteed by law in Bolivia but there are few churches which are not... Roman Catholic... " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | - | - | - | 1988 | Martin, Michael (ed). Bolivia (series: "Children of the World "). Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Gareth Stevens Publishing (1988); pg. 59. | "Almost 95% of Bolivians are Roman Catholics... However, religion as practiced in many parts of the country is a mixture of Christian and native Indian beliefs... " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | 55.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nazarene web site: Nazarene World Mission Society; (major source: Johnstone's Operation World) | Table "Religions "; listed in table as "animism "; "The figure for animists includes those who were baptized Catholic but who are in reality practicing animists. " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | 1.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* web site: "Ethnologue Database " (viewed circa Dec. 1998) | "Religion: Christian 95%, Baha'i 3%, traditional religion 1%, secular 1% " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | - | - | - | 1999 | Schimmel, Karen. Bolivia ( "Major World Nations " book series). Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers (1999); pg. 95. | "Although outwardly the Spanish appear to have succeeded in their mission (95% of all Bolivians are Catholic), in reality most of the Indians and many choles and mestizos still recognize the traditional gods as well... " |
| primal-indigenous | Bolivia | - | - | - | - | 1999 | Schimmel, Karen. Bolivia ( "Major World Nations " book series). Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers (1999); pg. 9. | "National Population: 7,165,000... Religions: Roman Catholic, 95%; Protestants and practitioners of traditional Indian beliefs, 5% " |
| primal-indigenous | Bosnia | - | - | - | - | 1904 | Malcom, Noel. Bosnia: A Short History. Washington Square, NY: New York University Press (1994); pg. 58. | "Some of the folk-religion practices mentioned in early sources have had a long history in both the Christian and Islamic traditions... One traveller in 1904 was struck by the fact that Muslims and Christians shared 'the same superstitious belief in the power of amulets, which the Muslims often have blessed by the Franciscans, and which are worn by children around the neck, on their clothes or on their fez: snakes, fishes, eagle's claws, stag's antlers, and so on'. Many of the same festivals and holy days were celebrated by both religions: these included Jurjevo (St George's Day), and Ilinden (St Elias's day), which was known to the Muslims as Alidjun. " |
| primal-indigenous | Botswana | - | 49.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994); pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; Listed in table as "Traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Botswana | 700,000 | 50.00% | - | - | 1994 | *LINK* Web site: "Council for World Mission "; web page: "Southern Africa (UCCSA) " (viewed 31 May 1999). | Population (1994 United Nations estimate):... Botswana: 1.4 million... Main religions:... Botswana: Christianity (50%). Tribal religions (50%)... " |
| primal-indigenous | Botswana | 730,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | 1997 Britannica Book of the Year; pg. 781-783. | Table; listed as "traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Botswana | 750,382 | 50.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 50%; Total population: 1,500,765. |
| primal-indigenous | Botswana | - | 37.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nazarene web site: Nazarene World Mission Society; (major source: Johnstone's Operation World) | Table "Religions "; listed in table as "animism " |
| primal-indigenous | Brazil | - | - | - | - | 1950 | Pinney, Roy. Vanishing Tribes. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Co. (1968); pg. viii. | "In Brazil, one hundred tribes became extinct between 1900 and 1950. " |
| primal-indigenous | Brazil | - | 6.00% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* web site: "Ethnologue Database " (viewed circa Dec. 1998) | "Religion: Christian 93%, traditional religion 6%, secular 1% " |
| primal-indigenous | Brunei | - | 10.00% | - | - | 1996 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site; (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | Total Population: 160,000. Animism 10% among Tribal people. |
| primal-indigenous | Burkina Faso | 4,250,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | 1997 Britannica Book of the Year; pg. 781-783. | Table; listed as "traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Burkina Faso | 4,356,464 | 40.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | indigenous beliefs 40%, Muslim 50%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10%; Total population: 10,891,159. |
| primal-indigenous | Burkina Faso | - | - | - | - | 1997 | Dostert, Pierre Etienne. Africa 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997); pg. 190. | Estimates of % of population in principal religions, & est. 1997 total pop.; "Principal Religion: Traditional tribal beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Burkina Faso | 4,249,329 | 40.00% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 1 - Africa. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 64-65. | "Location: Burkina Faso; Population: 10,623,323 "; "Current figures estimate the Muslim population at 50%, with 40% following traditional religions and 10% Christians... " |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | 1,400,000 | 40.00% | - | - | 1973 | Carpenter, Allan & Matthew Maginnis. Burundi (series: Enchantment of Africa). Chicago: Childrens Press (1973); pg. 90. | "Religion - About 60% Christian, mostly Roman Catholic; about 40% animist.. Total Population - 3,500,000 " |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | - | 40.00% | - | - | 1973 | Carpenter, Allan & Matthew Maginnis. Burundi (series: Enchantment of Africa). Chicago: Childrens Press (1973); pg. 74. | "Tradition lives on in the religious beliefs of the Burundi, too. It has been almost a century since foreign missionaries first came to the country, establishing churches, schools, and medical dispensaries. Though about 60% of the population has converted to Christianity... The other 40% of the population remains attached to the traditional relgion, or animism, which is based on a belief in Imana, creator of the universe and source of all good. This religion teaches that all men and animals possess the same inner spirit, called imana... When human beings die, their spirits are honored as ancestors and referred to as baximu... " |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | - | 14.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994); pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; Listed in table as "Traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | 1,936,836 | 32.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 32%, Muslim 1%; Total population: 6,052,614. |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | 2,242,000 | 38.00% | - | - | 1997 | Dostert, Pierre Etienne. Africa 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997); pg. 86. | Estimates of % of population in principal religions, & est. 1997 total pop. |
| primal-indigenous | Burundi | 1,920,000 | 32.00% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 1 - Africa. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 69. | "Location: Burundi; Population: More than 6,000,000 "; "Those holding indigenous beliefs account for 32% of the population. " |
| primal-indigenous | Cambodia | - | 2.50% | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* Nazarene web site: Nazarene World Mission Society; (major source: Johnstone's Operation World) | Table "Religions "; listed in table as "animism " |
| primal-indigenous | Cameroon | - | 25.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994); pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; listed in table as "animism " [Interestingly enough, only three countries: Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire and Zimbabwe have listings under "Animism " in this large table, while the other African countries have listings under "Traditional beliefs. " I've listed all these under "primal-indigenous "] |
| primal-indigenous | Cameroon | 3,540,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | 1997 Britannica Book of the Year; pg. 781-783. | Table; listed as "traditional beliefs " |
| primal-indigenous | Cameroon | 7,485,530 | 51.00% | - | - | 1997 | *LINK* CIA World Factbook web site (viewed Aug. 1998) | indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 33%, Muslim 16%; Total population: 14,677,510. |
| primal-indigenous | Cameroon | 3,125,000 | 25.00% | - | - | 1997 | Dostert, Pierre Etienne. Africa 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997); pg. 66. | Estimates of % of population in principal religions, & est. 1997 total pop. |
| primal-indigenous | Cameroon | 3,380,000 | 26.00% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 1 - Africa. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998); pg. 73-74. | "Location: Cameroon; Population: 13 million "; "Cameroon is mainly Catholic (34.7%) and Protestant (17.5%), but a large Muslim population exists, especially in the north (21%). " |
| primal-indigenous | Caribbean | 200,000 | 100.00% | - | - | 1492 C.E. | Utter, Jack. American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. Lake Ann, MI: National Woodlands Publishing Co. (1993); pg. 23. | Table: "Some Estimates of Aboriginal American Population, ca. 1492 "; Figures from 5 different sources. Source: Kroeber (1939). |
| primal-indigenous | Caribbean | 200,000 | 100.00% | - | - | 1492 C.E. | Utter, Jack. American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. Lake Ann, MI: National Woodlands Publishing Co. (1993); pg. 23. | Table: "Some Estimates of Aboriginal American Population, ca. 1492 "; Figures from 5 different sources. Source: Steward (1949). |
| primal-indigenous | Caribbean | 300,000 | 100.00% | - | - | 1492 C.E. | Utter, Jack. American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. Lake Ann, MI: National Woodlands Publishing Co. (1993); pg. 23. | Table: "Some Estimates of Aboriginal American Population, ca. 1492 "; Figures from 5 different sources. Source: Rosenblat (1954). |
| primal-indigenous | Caribbean | 600,000 | 100.00% | - | - | 1492 C.E. | Utter, Jack. American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. Lake Ann, MI: National Woodlands Publishing Co. (1993); pg. 23. | Table: "Some Estimates of Aboriginal American Population, ca. 1492 "; Figures from 5 different sources. Source: Dobyns (1966). |
| primal-indigenous | Caribbean | 4,000,000 | 100.00% | - | - | 1492 C.E. | Utter, Jack. American Indians: Answers to Today's Questions. Lake Ann, MI: National Woodlands Publishing Co. (1993); pg. 23. | Table: "Some Estimates of Aboriginal American Population, ca. 1492 "; Figures from 5 different sources. Source: Sapper (1924). |
