Islam in South Africa

South African Muslims
جنوبی افریقی مسلمان
Total population
	c. ~892,685 (2016 est.) ; (1.6% of the population)
Regions with significant populations
	Throughout South Africa
Religions
	Majority: 95% Sunni Islam ; Minority: 5% Shia and others
Languages
	Urdu, Arabic, Afrikaans Regional languages; Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi, Gujarati, Balochi, Kashmiri, Turkish, Malay Sacred and auxiliary language; Arabic

South Africa is a Christian majority nation with Islam being a minority religion, practised by roughly 1.6% of the total population.^[4] Islam in South Africa has grown in three different phases. The first phase brought the earliest Muslims as part of the involuntary migration of slaves, artisans, political prisoners, and political exiles from the Dutch East Indies to the Cape Colony from 1652 to 1800. The second phase was the arrival of indentured labourers from British India to work in the sugar-cane fields in Natal from 1860 to 1911. Of the approximately 176,000 Indians of all faiths who were transported to the Natal province, almost 7–10% of the first shipment were Muslims.

The third phase has been marked by a wave of African Muslims following the end of apartheid in 1994. Recent figures put the number of these immigrants at approximately between 75,000 and 100,000. In addition, a considerable number of Muslims from South Asia have also arrived as economic migrants.^[5] Although the majority of Muslims are Sunni, smaller numbers are Shia, particularly in Cape Town.^[6]

^ [CS in brief 12 07 2017 (1).cdr (statssa.gov.za) "Community Survey 2016 in Brief"]. 2016. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
^ "The Future of Global Muslim Population: Projections from 2010 to 2013" Archived 23 July 2013 at the Wayback Machine Accessed July 2013.
^ Al-Jallad, Ahmad (30 May 2011). "Polygenesis in the Arabic Dialects". Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics.
^ Isilow, Hassan (7 May 2021). "Islam has rich, proud history in South Africa: President". Anadolu Agency.
^ Faizal Dawjee. "Muslims in the Struggle". Retrieved 24 May 2013.
^ Abdulkader Tayob (1995). Islamic Resurgence in South Africa: The Muslim Youth Movement. p. 104. ISBN 9780799216127. Retrieved 31 May 2014.

[1] [CS in brief 12 07 2017 (1).cdr (statssa.gov.za) "Community Survey 2016 in Brief"]. 2016. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)

[PewIslam2011-2] "The Future of Global Muslim Population: Projections from 2010 to 2013" Archived 23 July 2013 at the Wayback Machine Accessed July 2013.

[3] Al-Jallad, Ahmad (30 May 2011). "Polygenesis in the Arabic Dialects". Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics.

[4] Isilow, Hassan (7 May 2021). "Islam has rich, proud history in South Africa: President". Anadolu Agency.

[Faizal-5] Faizal Dawjee. "Muslims in the Struggle". Retrieved 24 May 2013.

[6] Abdulkader Tayob (1995). Islamic Resurgence in South Africa: The Muslim Youth Movement. p. 104. ISBN 9780799216127. Retrieved 31 May 2014.

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Total population
c. ~892,685 (2016 est.)^[1] (1.6% of the population)
Regions with significant populations
Throughout South Africa
Religions
Majority: 95% Sunni Islam^[2] Minority: 5% Shia and others
Languages
Urdu, Arabic, Afrikaans Regional languages Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi, Gujarati, Balochi, Kashmiri, Turkish, Malay Sacred and auxiliary language Arabic^[3]