World Religion Database: field definitions

Data source: Gina A. Zurlo, ed., World Religion Database (Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2024).

Table Field Description
country Ethnic religionists Number of Ethnic religionists in this country's population. "Ethnic religionists" is a collective term for primal religionists, animists, spirit-worshippers, shamanists, ancestor-venerators, polytheists, pantheists, traditionalists (in Africa), local or tribal folk-religionists; including adherents of neo-paganism or non-Christian local or tribal syncretistic or nativistic movements, cargo cults, witchcraft eradication cults, possession healing movements, tribal messianic movements; still occasionally termed pagans, heathen, fetishists; usually confined each to a single tribe or people, hence tribal or local as opposed to universal (open to any or all peoples).
country Female % Percentage of females in the country (UN).
country Food waste per household Food waste index in kg (household). Primary source: United Nations Statistics Division.
country GDP growth per capita Annual growth rate of real GDP per capita. Primary source: World Bank and OECD.
country Gender gap The gap between female Human Development Index (HDI) and male HDI (as a percentage of male HDI). Primary source: UN Development Programme: Human Development Report 2022.
country Gender inequality (max 100) A low value indicates low inequality between women and men based on a combination of indicators: maternal mortality, adolescent birth rate, share of parliamentary seats, share of secondary education, and participation in the labour force. Primary source: UN Development Programme: Human Development Report 2022.
country GNI per capita Gross National Income per year per person in 2017, expressed as purchasing power parity (PPP) dollars. GNI is the aggregate income of an economy generated by its production and its ownership of factors of production, less the incomes paid for the use of factors of production owned by the rest of the world. Primary source: World Bank (2018), IMF (2018) and United Nations Statistics Division (2018) (in HDR 2018).
country Governmental Restrictions Index Governmental Restrictions of religion Index, 0-10, low is less restriction: a comparative measure of the actions of the state that deny religious freedoms including any actions that impinge on the practice, profession, or selection of religion.
country Growth % pa This country's natural population was increasing at this annual percentage rate in 2020. A 'natural population increase' is determined by subtracting the number of deaths from the number of births in this country. Primary source: United Nations 2022.
country HDI Human development index, 2017. A higher value represents greater human development in this country. Primary source: UN Development Programme: Human Development Report 2018.
country Hindu % Number of Hindus as a percentage of the country's population in year 2020. Followers of the main Hindu traditions: (a) Vaishnavites (Vishnaivites) numbering 70% of all Hindus; (b) Saivites numbering 25% mostly in South India; (c) Saktists or other sects (3%); (d) neo-Hindu movements and modern sects arising out of Hinduism, about 1.5%; and (e) Arya Samaj and other reformist movements, 0.5% (Brahmo Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Swami-Narayanis, Ramakrishna Mission, but excluding Jains and Sikhs).
country Hindus Number of Hindus in this country's population. Followers of the main Hindu traditions: (a) Vaishnavites (Vishnaivites) numbering 70% of all Hindus; (b) Saivites numbering 25% mostly in South India; (c) Saktists or other sects (3%); (d) neo-Hindu movements and modern sects arising out of Hinduism, about 1.5%; and (e) Arya Samaj and other reformist movements, 0.5% (Brahmo Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Swami-Narayanis, Ramakrishna Mission, but excluding Jains and Sikhs).
country HIV per 1,000 Number of new HIV infections per 1,000 uninfected population, by sex, age and key populations. Primary source: The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
country Infant mortality Infant mortality, per 1,000 live births in the country. Primary source: United Nations 2022.
country Internet use % Proportion of individuals using the Internet. Primary source: International Telecommunication Union (via World Bank).
country ISO A2 ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code.
country ISO A3 ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 country code.
country Jain % Number of Jains as a percentage of the country's population in year 2020. Followers of the Jain reform movement are from Hinduism, composed of the Svetambara and Digambara sects.
country Jains Number of Jain in this country's population. Followers of the Jain reform movement are from Hinduism, composed of the Svetambara and Digambara sects.
country Jew % Number of Jews as a percentage of the country's population in year 2020.
country Jews Number of Jews in this country's population.
country Life Expectancy The number of years individuals born this year in this country's population are expected to live, based on statistical probability. Primary source: United Nations 2022.
country Major religion count The number of major religions (of 18) significantly present in this country.
country Male pop Population of males in the country (UN).
country Mega Cities Number of megacities in this country whose population exceeds 1 million persons.
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Religions

Data on 18 categories of religion, including non-religious, by country, province, and people.

Countries and regions

Data on all religions, Christian activities, and trends.

Denominations

Membership data, year begun, and rates of change.

Cities & provinces

Population and religion data on all major cities & provinces.

Peoples & languages

Detailed information covering religion, culture, and geography.

Archive

A repository of historical data, including a chronology of Christianity from the 1st to 21st centuries.