Evolving religious configurations
French religious configurations have been undergoing a significant change since the 1970s. The European Values Survey shows a decline in religious affiliation with numbers falling from 73.7% to 50.5% in 2008.
1981 | 1990 | 1999 | 2008 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Religious belonging | 73,7 | 61,5 | 57,5 | 50,5 |
No religious belonging | 26,3 | 38,5 | 42,5 | 49,5 |
The European Values Survey also observes a decline in the demographic statistics of the Catholic Church which was traditionally predominant in France. This diminution is accompanied by the increasing number of those without religious affiliations and a redistribution of affiliations in favour of Islam in particular, Protestantism (especially Evangelicalism) and Buddhism.
1981 | 1990 | 1999 | 2008 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Catholic | 95,6 | 94,0 | 91,8 | 85,7 |
Protestant | 1,3 | 2,1 | 2,4 | 3,5 |
Jew | 1,4 | 0,2 | 2,4 | 0,8 |
Orthodox | 0,0 | 0,0 | 1,9 | 1,9 |
Buddhist | 0,0 | 0,7 | 0,4 | 0,2 |
Muslim | 0,6 | 1,6 | 0,2 | 7,4 |
Hindu | 0,0 | 0,2 | 0,2 | 0,2 |
Other | 1,2 | 1,3 | 0,7 | 1,0 |
Total | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
In 2008, the question which religious denomination do you belong to? provides the following numbers:
% of answers | % of valid answers | |
Roman Catholic | 43,0 | 85,7 |
Muslim | 3,7 | 7,4 |
Protestant | 1,8 | 3,5 |
Jew | 0,4 | 0,8 |
Buddhist | 0,4 | 0,7 |
Orthodox | 0,4 | 0,7 |
Hindu | 0,1 | 0,2 |
Jehova’s Witness | 0,2 | 0,5 |
Other | 0,3 | 0,6 |
NA | 49,9 | - |
Total | 100 | 100 |