In Islamic theology

Main article: Prophets and messengers in Islam

The majority of theological traditions of Islam accept that works do not determine if someone is a
Muslim or not. God alone would know about the belief of a person. Fellow Muslims can only accept the
personal declaration of faith. Only the Khawārij developed an understanding of Muslim identity based
mainly on the adherence to liturgical and legal norms.[90]

When asked about one's beliefs, it is recommended to say the Istit̲h̲nāʾ, for example, "in-sha'allah I am
Muslim a believer" (so God will, I am Muslim), since only God knows the future of a person.[91] Among
Asharites, it is also seen as a sign of humility and the individual's longing to improve, because the
creature has no assurance of their own state (of belief) until the end of life.[92]

The Qur'an describes many prophets and messengers within Judaism and Christianity, and their
respective followers, as Muslim. Some of those that were mentioned are: Adam, Noah, Abraham,
Ishmael, Jacob, Moses, and Jesus and his apostles are all considered to be Muslims in the Qur'an.[93]
The Qur'an states that these men were Muslims because they submitted to God, preached His message
and upheld His values, which included praying, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Thus, in Surah 3:52 of the
Qur'an, Jesus' disciples tell him, "We believe in God; and you be our witness that we are Muslims (wa-
shahad be anna muslimūn)." In Islamic belief, before the Qur'an, God had given the Tawrat (Torah) to the
prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel,[94] the Zabur (Psalms) to David and the Injil
(Gospel) to Jesus, who are all considered important Muslim prophets.[95]

Demographics

Main article: Islam § Demographics

See also: List of countries by Muslim population

World Muslim population by percentage (2012)

Muslim distribution worldwide (2022)

The most populous Muslim-majority country is Indonesia, home to 12.7% of the world's Muslims,[96]
followed by Pakistan (11.0%), Bangladesh (9.2%), Nigeria (5.3%) and Egypt (4.9%).[60] About 20% of the
world's Muslims live in the Middle East and North Africa. Non-majority India contains 10.9% of the
world's Muslims.[96][97] Arab Muslims form the largest ethnic group among Muslims in the world,[98]
followed by Bengalis,[99][100] and Punjabis.[101]
Over 75–90% of Muslims are Sunni.[16][17] The second and third largest sects, Shia and Ahmadiyya,
make up 10–20%,[18][19][20] and 1%[21] respectively. While the majority of the population in the
Middle East identify as either Sunni or Shi'a, a significant number of Muslims identify as non-
denominational.[102]

With about 1.8 billion followers (2015), almost a quarter of earth's population,[103] Islam is the second-
largest and the fastest-growing religion in the world,[104] primarily due to the young age and high
fertility rate of Muslims,[105] with Muslims having a rate of (3.1) compared to the world average of (2.5).
According to the same study, religious switching has no impact on Muslim population, since the number
of people who embrace Islam and those who leave Islam are roughly equal.[106][105]

As of 2010, 49 countries countries in the world had Muslim majorities, in which Muslims comprised
more than 50% of the population.[106] In 2010, 74.1% of the world's Muslim population lived in
countries where Muslims are in the majority, while 25.9% of the world's Muslim population lived in
countries where Muslims are in the minority.[106] A Pew Center study in 2010 found that 3% of the
world's Muslims population live in non-Muslim-majority developed countries.[106] India's Muslim
population is the world's largest Muslim-minority population in the world (11% of the world's Muslim
population).[106] Followed by Ethiopia (28 million), China (22 million), Russia (16 million) and Tanzania
(13 million).[105] Sizable minorities are also found in the Americas (5.2 million or 0.6%), Australia
(714,000 or 1.9%) and parts of Europe (44 million or 6%).[106]

A Pew Center study in 2016 found that Muslims have the highest number of adherents under the age of
15 (34% of the total Muslim population) of any major religion, while only 7% are aged 60+ (the smallest
percentage of any major religion). According to the same study, Muslims have the highest fertility rates
(3.1) of any major religious group.[107] The study also found that Muslims (tied with Hindus) have the
lowest average levels of education with an average of 5.6 years of schooling, though both groups have
made the largest gains in educational attainment in recent decades among major religions.[107] About
36% of all Muslims have no formal schooling,[107] and Muslims have the lowest average levels of higher
education of any major religious group, with only 8% having graduate and post-graduate degrees.[107]