Shoreshthe drift report · all case files
Case file

Islam in Southeast Asia

In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “most widely practiced religion in southeast asia”. Today it says “most widely practised religion in southeast asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region”.
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 2026-08-02. In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “most widely practiced religion in southeast asia”. Today it says “most widely practised religion in southeast asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region”.
We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2025 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 2025

Islam in Southeast Asia Islam is the most widely practised religion in Southeast Asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region (about 42% of its population), with majorities in Brunei , Indonesia and Malaysia as well as parts of southern Thailand and parts of Mindanao in the Philippines respectively. Significant minorities are located in the other Southeast Asian states. Most Muslims in Southeast Asia are Sunni and follow the Shafi'i school of fiqh , or religious law. It is the official religion in Malaysia and Brunei while it is one of the six recognised faiths in Indonesia. Islam in Southeast Asia is heterogeneous and is manifested in many different ways. In some places in Southeast Asia, Islam is adapted to coexist syncretically with already-existent local traditions. Mysticism is a defining characteristic of Islam in Southeast Asia, with Sufism having a large regional following. Mystic forms of Islam fit in well with already established traditions. The adaptation of Islam to local traditions is seen as a positive thing by Muslims in Southeast Asia. Islam is part of everyday life for adherents in Southeast Asia and is not separated from "non-religious realms". Southeast Asia is the global region with the highest number of Muslims in the world, surpassing the Middle East and North Africa . Islam in Southeast Asia is neglected in Western study of Islam which centers around the Middle East. The heterogeneous nature of Southeast Asia combined with the widely varying practices and meanings of Islam suggests Islam in Southeast Asia has a multitude of variations in practice and belief. Islam in Southeast Asia has been adapted into varying local norms across Southeast Asia. The Abangan are the dominant group of Muslims in Indonesia. The practices of the Abangan are heavily influenced by mysticism and embody a unique form of Islamic practice that incorporates rituals inherited from their pre-Islamic ancestors. Caileigh Stirling, "5 facts about Muslims and Christians in Indonesia" , Pew Research , March 28, 2024. United States Department of State . "Muslim in Thailand" . สถานเอกอัครราชทูต ณ กรุงริยาด (in Thai) . Philippines, "Religious Affiliation in the Philippines (2020 Census of Population and Housing)" , Philippines Government , 07-2023. Department of Statistics Singapore . 16 June 2021 . The Association of Religion Data Archives (the ARDA) . The Association of Religion Data Archives (the ARDA) . Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics . Voices of Islam in Southeast Asia : a contemporary sourcebook . Islam in South-East Asia . Indonesia: Peoples and History .

This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 1292867973.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “most widely practiced religion in southeast asia”. Today it says “most widely practised religion in southeast asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region”. Read the current article and compare.
201020152020Oct '232025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.

What Wikipedia says this is

Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined between 2010 and 2025.

Then

most widely practiced religion in southeast asia

Now

most widely practised religion in southeast asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region

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.

← back to the drift report