Owing to its ethnic and cultural diversity, Arunachal Pradesh has long been a spot for the syncretism of different traditional religions. Most followers of the native Donyi-Polo religion live in Arunachal Pradesh, and the province is also home to substantial Hindu, Buddhist and Christian populations, the latter introduced by missionaries over the past century. A small Muslim presence also exists in the province.
According to the 2001 Indian Census, the religions of Arunachal Pradesh break down as follows:
- Hindu: 379,935 (34.6%)
- Others (mostly Donyi-Polo): 337,399 (30.7%)
- Christian: 205,548 (18.7%)
- Buddhist: 143,028 (13.0%)
- Muslim: 20,675 (1.9%)
- Sikh: 1,865 (0.1%)
- Jain: 216 (<0.1%)
Famous quotes containing the word religion:
“Disturbances in society are never more fearful than when those who are stirring up the trouble can use the pretext of religion to mask their true designs.”
—Denis Diderot (1713–1784)