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Islam in Russia

Wikipedia's first sentence called it “concentrated among the minority nationalities residing between the black sea and the caspian sea”. Today it says “second-largest religion in the russian federation”. The one-line description Wikipedia serves to search engines and AI systems read “Qolşärif Mosque in Kazan , belonging to the Hanafi school of Sunni”. It now reads “Map showing the distribution of Muslim ethnic communities at municipality level, based on the results of the 2021 Russian census”.

Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.

Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.

We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2005 one. Red dashes: removed from Wikipedia since. Pale dots: rewritten; the numbered note shows what it says now. ¹ tap a number or a side note to jump between them

The opening as it read in 2005

According to the State Department, there are an estimated 14 to 20 million Muslims in Russia, constituting approximately 14 percent of the population and forming the largest religious minority.¹ Major Islamic communities are concentrated among the minority nationalities residing between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea : the Adyghes , Balkars , Bashkirs , Chechens , Circassians , Ingush , Kabardin , Karachay , and numerous Dagestani , Russians nationalities.² In the middle Volga Basin are large populations of Tatars , Udmurts , and Chuvash , most of whom are Muslims . Many Muslims also reside in Ulyanovsk , Samara , Nizhny Novgorod , Moscow , Perm , and Leningrad Oblasts . Virtually all the Muslims in Russia adhere to the Sunni branch of Islam. In a few areas, notably Chechnya , there is a tradition of Sufism , a mystical variety of Islam that stresses the individual's search for union with God. Sufi rituals, practiced to give the Chechens spiritual strength to resist foreign oppression, became legendary among Russian troops fighting the Chechens during tsarist times. Russian was one of the places, where Jadidism appeared in 19th century. Relations between the Russian government and Muslim elements of the population have been marked by mistrust and suspicion. In 1992 , for example, Sheikh Rawil Ghaynetdin , the imam of the Moscow mosque, complained that "our country [Russia] still retains the ideology of the tsarist empire, which believed that the Orthodox faith alone should be a privileged religion, that is, the state religion." The Russian government, for its part, fears the rise of political Islam of the violent sort that Russians witnessed in the 1980s firsthand in Afghanistan and secondhand in Iran . Government fears were fueled by a 1992 conference held in Saratov by the Tajikistan -based Islamic Renaissance Party . Representatives attended from several newly independent Central Asian republics, from Azerbaijan , and from several autonomous jurisdictions of Russia, including the secessionist-minded autonomous republics of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan . The meeting's pan-Islamic complexion created concern in Moscow about the possible spread of radical Islam into Russia from the new Muslim states along the periphery of the former Soviet Union . By the mid- 1990s , the putative Islamic threat was a standard justification for radical nationalist insistence that Russia regain control of its "near abroad." The struggle to delineate the respective powers of the federal and local governments in Russia also has influenced Russian relations with the Islamic community. The Russian Federation inherited two of the four spiritual boards, or muftiates, created during the Stalinist era to supervise the religious activities of Islamic groups in various parts of the Soviet Union; the other two are located in Tashkent and Baku . One of the two Russian boards has jurisdiction in European Russia and Siberia , and the other is responsible for the Muslim enclaves of the North Caucasus and Transcaspian regions. In 1992 several Muslim associations withdrew from the latter muftiate and attempted to establish their own spiritual boards. Later that year, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan withdrew recognition from the muftiate for European Russia and Siberia and created their own muftiate. There is much evidence of official conciliation toward Islam in Russia in the 1990s. The number of Muslims allowed to make pilgrimages to Mecca increased sharply after the virtual embargo of the Soviet era ended in 1990. Copies of the Qur'an are readily available, and many mosques are being built in regions with large Muslim populations. In 1995 the newly established Union of Muslims of Russia , led by Imam Khatyb Mukaddas of Tatarstan, began organizing a movement aimed at improving interethnic understanding and ending Russians' lingering conception of Islam as an extremist religion. The Union of Muslims of Russia is the direct successor to the pre- World War I Union of Muslims , which had its own faction in the Russian Duma . The postcommunist union has formed a political party, the Nur All-Russia Muslim Public Movement , which acts in close coordination with Muslim clergy to defend the political, economic, and cultural rights of Muslims and other minorities. The Islamic Cultural Center of Russia , which includes a madrasa (religious school), opened in Moscow in 1991 . In the 1990s, the number of Islamic publications has increased. Among them are two magazines in Russian, "Эхо Кавказа" ( transliteration : Ekho Kavkaza ) and "Исламский вестник" ( Islamsky Vestnik ), and the Russian-language newspaper "Исламские новости" ( Islamskiye Novosti ), which is published in Makhachkala , Dagestan. There is Russian Islam University in Kazan , Tatarstan . Education is in Russian and Tatar .³

This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 16939510.

The opening as it stood in 2020 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Qolşärif Mosque in Kazan , belonging to the Hanafi school of Sunni Islam , is one of the largest mosques in Russia . Nord Kamal Mosque in Norilsk , is the world's northernmost mosque. Islam in Russia is the nation's second most widely professed religion. According to US Department of State in 2017, Muslims in Russia numbered 14,220,000 or 10% of the total population. However, the populations of two federal subjects with Islamic majorities were not surveyed due to social unrest, which together had a population of nearly 2 million, namely Chechnya and Ingushetia , thus the total number of Muslims may be slightly larger. Among these Muslims, 6,700,000 or 4.6% of the total population of Russia were not affiliated with any Islamic schools and branches . Recognized under the law and by Russian political leaders as one of Russia's traditional religions, Islam is a part of Russian historical heritage , and is subsidized by the Russian government. The position of Islam as a major Russian religion, alongside Orthodox Christianity, dates from the time of Catherine the Great , who sponsored Islamic clerics and scholarship through the Orenburg Assembly . The history of Islam and Russia encompasses periods of conflict between the Muslim minority and the Orthodox majority, as well as periods of collaboration and mutual support. Robert Crews's study of Muslims living under the Tsar indicates that "the mass of Muslims" was loyal to that regime after Catherine, and sided with it over its Ottoman rival. After the Tsarist regime fell, the Soviet Union introduced a policy of state atheism , which impeded the practice of Islam and other religions and led to the execution and suppression of various Muslim leaders. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Islam regained a prestigious, legally recognized space in Russian politics. More recently, President Putin consolidated this trend, subsidizing the creation of mosques and Islamic education, which he called an "integral part of Russia's cultural code", encouraging immigration from Muslim-majority former Soviet bloc states, and condemning what the Russian state considers to be criminal anti-Muslim hate speech, such as caricatures of the Muhammad . Muslims form a majority of the population of the republics of Bashkortostan and Tatarstan in the Volga Federal District , and predominate among the nationalities in the North Caucasian Federal District located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea : the Circassians , Balkars , Chechens , Ingush , Kabardin , Karachay , and numerous Dagestani peoples. Also, in the middle of the Volga Region reside populations of Tatars and Bashkirs , the vast majority of whom are Muslims. Other areas with notable Muslim minorities include Moscow , Saint Petersburg , the republics of Adygea , North Ossetia-Alania and Astrakhan , Moscow , Orenburg and Ulyanovsk oblasts. There are over 5,000 registered religious Muslim organizations, equivalent to over one sixth of the number of registered Russian Orthodox religious organizations of about 29,268 as of December 2006. "Arctic mosque stays open but Muslim numbers shrink" . 15 April 2007 – via Reuters. See also the results' main interactive mapping and the static mappings: "Religions in Russia by federal subject" (Map). The Sreda Arena Atlas was realised in cooperation with the All-Russia Population Census 2010 (Всероссийской переписи населения 2010) and the Russian Ministry of Justice (Минюста РФ) . Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia . The Muftis of the Orenburg Spiritual Assembly in the 18th and 19th Centuries: The Struggle for Power in Russia's Muslim Institution", in Anke von Kugelgen; Michael Kemper; Allen J.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 964351764.

The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 7 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Estimated proportion of Muslim population across Russia's regions (2012) Islam in Europe by percentage of country population Qolşärif Mosque in Kazan , belonging to the Hanafi school of Sunni Islam , is one of the largest mosques in Russia . Nord Kamal Mosque in Norilsk , the world's northernmost mosque. Although Islam is a minority religion in Russia , Russia has the largest Muslim population in Europe . According to the US Department of State in 2017, Muslims in Russia numbered 14 million or roughly 10% of the total population. The Grand Mufti of Russia, Sheikh Rawil Gaynetdin , estimated the Muslim population of Russia at 25 million in 2018. Recognized under the law and by Russian political leaders as one of Russia's traditional religions, Islam is a part of Russian historical heritage , and is subsidized by the Russian government. The position of Islam as a major Russian religion, alongside Orthodox Christianity , dates from the time of Catherine the Great , who sponsored Islamic clerics and scholarship through the Orenburg Assembly . The history of Islam and Russia encompasses periods of conflict between the Muslim minority and the Orthodox majority, as well as periods of collaboration and mutual support. Robert Crews's study of Muslims living under the Tsar indicates that "the mass of Muslims" was loyal to that regime after Catherine, and sided with it over the Ottoman Empire . After the Russian Empire fell, the Soviet Union introduced a policy of state atheism , which impeded the practice of Islam and other religions and led to the execution and suppression of various Muslim leaders. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union , Islam regained a legally recognized space in Russian politics . Despite having made Islamophobic comments during the Second Chechen War , President Vladimir Putin has since subsidized mosques and Islamic education, which he called an "integral part of Russia's cultural code", and encouraged immigration from Muslim-majority former Soviet states . Muslims form a majority of the population of the republics of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan in the Volga Federal District and predominate among the nationalities in the North Caucasian Federal District located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea : the Circassians , Balkars , Chechens , Ingush , Kabardin , Karachay , and numerous Dagestani peoples. Also, in the middle of the Volga Region reside populations of Tatars and Bashkirs , the vast majority of whom are Muslims. Other areas with notable Muslim minorities include Moscow , Saint Petersburg , the republics of Adygea , North Ossetia-Alania and Astrakhan , Moscow , Orenburg and Ulyanovsk oblasts . There are over 5,000 registered religious Muslim organizations, equivalent to over one sixth of the number of registered Russian Orthodox religious organizations of about 29,268 as of December 2006. Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia . The Muftis of the Orenburg Spiritual Assembly in the 18th and 19th Centuries: The Struggle for Power in Russia's Muslim Institution", in Anke von Kugelgen; Michael Kemper; Allen J.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177301559.

The opening as it stood in 2025 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Overview of Islam in Russia Map showing the distribution of Muslim ethnic communities at municipality level, based on the results of the 2021 Russian census . Islam in Europe by percentage of country population Islam is a major religious minority in the Russian Federation , which has the largest Muslim population in Europe . According to the US Federal Research Division 1998 reference book, Muslims in Russia numbered about 19% of the religious population, and, according to the US Department of State in 2017, Muslims in Russia numbered 14 million or roughly 10% of the total population. One of the Grand Muftis of Russia, sheikh Rawil Gaynetdin , estimated the Muslim population of Russia at 25 million in 2018. Recognized under the law and by Russian political leaders as one of Russia's traditional religions, Islam is a part of Russian historical heritage , and is subsidized by the Russian government. The position of Islam as a major Russian religion, alongside Orthodox Christianity , dates from the time of Catherine the Great , who sponsored Islamic clerics and scholarship through the Orenburg Assembly . The history of Islam and Russia encompasses periods of conflict between the Muslim minority and the Orthodox majority, as well as periods of collaboration and mutual support. Robert Crews's study of Muslims living under the Tsar indicates that "the mass of Muslims" was loyal to that regime after Catherine, and sided with it over the Ottoman Empire . After the Russian Empire fell, the Soviet Union introduced a policy of state atheism , which impeded the practice of Islam and other religions and led to the execution and suppression of various Muslim leaders. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union , Islam regained a legally recognized space in Russian politics . Despite having made Islamophobic comments during the Second Chechen War , President Vladimir Putin has since subsidized mosques and Islamic education, which he called an "integral part of Russia's cultural code", and encouraged immigration from Muslim-majority former Soviet states . Muslims form a majority of the population of the republics of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan in the Volga Federal District and predominate among the nationalities in the North Caucasian Federal District located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea : the Circassians , Balkars , Chechens , Ingush , Kabardin , Karachay , and numerous Dagestani peoples. Also, in the middle of the Volga Region reside populations of Tatars and Bashkirs , the vast majority of whom are Muslims. Other areas with notable Muslim minorities include Moscow , Saint Petersburg , the republics of Adygea , North Ossetia-Alania and Astrakhan , Moscow , Orenburg and Ulyanovsk oblasts . There are over 8,000 registered religious Muslim organizations, equivalent to almost one fifth of the number of registered Russian Orthodox religious organizations of about 42,000 as of 2022. In Bourdeaux, Michael; Filatov, Sergei (eds.). Современная религиозная жизнь России. Опыт систематического описания [ Contemporary Religious Life of Russia. Russia: A Country Study . Library of Congress, Federal Research Division (1st ed.). Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia . The Muftis of the Orenburg Spiritual Assembly in the 18th and 19th Centuries: The Struggle for Power in Russia's Muslim Institution", in Anke von Kugelgen; Michael Kemper; Allen J. "Вперед, в прошлое: школ в России стало меньше, чем церквей" . newizv.ru (in Russian) . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1296328350. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.

Today

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What Wikipedia says this is

Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2005, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.

Then

concentrated among the minority nationalities residing between the black sea and the caspian sea

Now

second-largest religion in the russian federation

Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.

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