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Lebanon /
Religions & Peoples
RELIGIONS
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| Islam |
2,000,000 |
54% |
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Shi'i |
1,200,000 |
32% |
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Sunni |
750,000 |
20% |
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Alawites |
50,000 |
1.4% |
| Christianity |
1,450,000 |
39% |
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Maronite Catholics |
850,000 |
23% |
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Melkite Catholics |
400,000 |
11% |
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Syrian Catholics |
25,000 |
0.7% |
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Armenian Catholics |
20,000 |
0.5% |
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Roman Catholics |
20,000 |
0.5% |
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Chaldean Catholic |
12,000 |
0.3% |
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Armenian Orthodox |
120,000 |
3.2% |
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Syrian Orthodox |
2,000 |
0.05% |
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Greek Orthodox |
1,000 |
0.03% |
| Druze |
210,000 |
5.7% |
| Baha'i |
4,000 |
<0.1% |
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Lebanon has a Muslim dominance of about 55%, but Christians make up a large minority of about 40%. There are many religious groups in Lebanon, and the distances between these groups are often big and problematic. While Lebanon is made up of a handful of different ethnic groups, these mean little compared to the religion one belongs to.
Shi'i Muslims is today the majority group, with Maronite Christians and Sunni Muslims as the two other important groups. Together, these 3 represent the leadership of the country, both economically as well as politically. A fourth group, the Druze, plays often an importnat part in the life of Lebanon, despite representing as little as 7% of the population.
Arabic is the dominant language, while Armenians master Armenian. French is still well-known, after the French period of the French mandate in the 20th century, while English has developed into becoming the preferred foreign language.
© Copyright 1996-2008 LookLex Ltd. All rights reserved
By: Tore Kjeilen
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