 | ||
Buddhism is a religion practiced by an estimated 488 million in the world, 495 million, or 535 million people as of the 2010s, representing 9% to 10% of the world's total population.
Contents
- List of countries with largest Buddhist majority
- Ten countries with the largest Buddhist populations
- References
China is the country with the largest population of Buddhists, approximately 244 million or 18.2% of its total population. They are mostly followers of Chinese schools of Mahayana, making this the largest body of Buddhist traditions. Mahayana, also practiced in broader East Asia, is followed by over half of world Buddhists.
The second largest body of Buddhist schools is Theravada, mostly followed in Southeast Asia. The third and smallest body of schools, Vajrayana, is followed mostly in Tibet, the Himalayan region, Mongolia and parts of Russia, but has been disseminated throughout the world.
According to a demographic analysis reported by Peter Harvey (2013):
List of countries with largest Buddhist majority
There are 10 countries with the highest Buddhist percentage:
Ten countries with the largest Buddhist populations
note : Exact number of followers when calculating Buddhists varies because Buddhism is often mixed with the native East Asian religions in their respective countries for example in Japan the number of Buddhists when calculating including the Shintoists would ramp the percentage of Buddhists in Japan from 67% to >98%.