Christianity in Bahrain - Bahraini Christians

Bahraini Christians

Christians who hold Bahraini citizenship number some 1,000 persons. The majority of Christians are originally from Palestine, Jordan, and Iraq, although there are also smaller numbers from Lebanon, Syria, and India. Many of them still retain cultural traits of their original homelands. For example, many of the Christians from the Levant speak a Levantine dialect of Arabic rather than the Bahraini Arabic dialect. The cuisine of Christian Bahrainis is also a sign of their ties to their original homelands, as at home they tend to cook and eat the food of their homeland, and not Bahraini food.

The majority of Christian Bahraini citizens tend to be Orthodox Christians, with the largest church by membership being the Greek Orthodox Church. They enjoy many religious and social freedoms, and even have members in the Bahraini government. Bahrain is one of two GCC countries to have a native Christian population; the other country, Kuwait, also has Christian population but in much smaller numbers, with only about 200 Christian Kuwaiti citizens.