Do most Muslims come from the Middle East?

The Muslim population is not confined to the Middle East.  Only about 18% of Muslims live in the Arab world.  The largest Muslim population in any one country is in Indonesia (over 180 million).  There are Muslims living in many places in Asia.  Most of Africa's population is Muslim.  There are also large Muslim minorities living in China, the former Soviet Union, Europe, South  and North America.  In India, where Muslims number over 150 million, they are a minority!

Muslims therefore should not be confused with Arabs.  Muslims may be Arabs, Africans, Americans, Canadians, Chinese, Pakistanis, Malaysians, or other nationalities.  On the other hand an Arab could be a Jew, Christian, Muslim, an atheist or something else.

In total, there are about one and a half billion Muslims around the world.  One in every five persons on the planet is a Muslim!

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