In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “first choice by a citizen for self-identification”. Today it says “largest religion in bangladesh and in all of its districts”. 1 section present on 6 October 2023 is absent today.
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.
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The opening as it read in October 6, 2023
Religion in the country Bangladeshi English Religion in Bangladesh (2022 Census) Islam (91.0%) Hinduism (7.95%) Buddhism (0.61%) Christianity (0.30%) Others (0.12%) The United Nations categorizes Bangladesh as a moderate democratic Muslim country .1Sunni Islam is the largest and most dominant religion practiced in the country. In the Constitution of Bangladesh , Islam is referred to twice in the introduction and Part I of the constitution.2The document begins with the Islamic phrase Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem (بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ) which in English is translated as "In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful" and article (2A) declares that:"Islam is the state religion of the republic".3In Bangladesh, there are four major religions; Islam , Hinduism , Buddhism and Christianity . A few people also follow religions like Sikhism , Bahai Faith , Sarnaism , Animism and some other religions.4Islam is the largest religion in all the districts of Bangladesh.5Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has stated that Bangladesh will be governed in line with the spirit of the Constitution of Medina .6But at the same time, the Constitution of Bangladesh calls secularism one of the four fundamental principles of the original Constitution of Bangladesh. Despite having Islam as the state religion, Bangladesh is mostly governed by secular laws , set up during the times when the country was ruled by the British Crown .7 The constitution also states that "the State shall ensure equal status and equal right in the practice of the Hindu, Buddhist, Christian and other faiths and religions". " Freedom of religion " is its basic structure guaranteed by Bangladeshi constitution in which it calls for equal rights to all its citizens irrespective of their religious differences and it also bans discrimination on the grounds of religion in various platforms. Bangladesh is one of the few secular Muslim-majority nations and " proselytizing " i.e. conversions from one religion to another are legally accepted and is legalized by law under article 41 of the constitution, subject to law, public order and morality. "Census 2022: Bangladesh population now 165 million" . 27 July 2022.8 "Is Bangladesh a country of secular Bengalis or Muslim Bangladeshis?" . 9 May 2013.
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 1178143157.
The opening as it stood in 2010
Islam is the largest religion of Bangladesh ; Muslims constitute 83 % of the population followed by Hindus who constitute 16 %. The remainder of Bangladeshis practice other religions such as Buddhism and Christianity . . Religion has always been a strong part of identity, but this has varied at different times. A survey in late 2003 confirmed that religion is the first choice by a citizen for self-identification; atheism is extremely rare.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 368854802.
The opening as it stood in 2015 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Islam is the largest Religion of Bangladesh ; Muslims constitute 90.4% of the population, followed by Hindus , who constitute 8.2%, and Buddhists , Christians , those who practice other religions and those who do not are the remainders. Religion has always been a strong part of identity, but this has varied at different times. A survey in late 2003 confirmed that religion is the first choice by a citizen for self-identification . According to a government-published article, atheism is extremely rare.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 668740102.
The opening as it stood in 2020 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Religion in Bangladesh (2011) Islam (90.4%) Hinduism (8.54%) Buddhism (0.60%) Christianity (0.37%) Others (0.14%) Islam is the state religion of Bangladesh by article 2A of the constitution , however "the State shall ensure equal status and equal right in the practice of the Hindu, Buddhist, Christian and other religions".As per 2011 census Muslims constitute over 90% of the population, while Hindus constitute 8.5% and remaining rest constitute 1%. A survey in late 2003 confirmed that religion is the first choice by a citizen for self-identification .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 963074133.
The opening as it stood in 2025 9 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Religion in Bangladesh ( 2022 Census ) Islam (91.0%) Hinduism (7.95%) Buddhism (0.61%) Christianity (0.30%) Other religions (0.12%) The United Nations categorizes Bangladesh as a moderate democratic Muslim country . Sunni Islam is the largest religion in the country and in all of its districts , except Rangamati .The Constitution of Bangladesh refers to Islam twice: the document begins with the Islamic phrase Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem ( Arabic : بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ , lit. ' In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful ' ) and article (2A), added later, declares that: "Islam is the state religion of the republic".Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stated that Bangladesh would be governed in line with the spirit of the Islamic Constitution of Medina .However, secularism is also one of the four fundamental principles of the Constitution of Bangladesh, and the country is mostly governed by secular laws dating from the British colonization .The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion and declares that "the State shall ensure equal status and equal right in the practice of the Hindu, Buddhist, Christian and other faiths and religions".Hinduism , Buddhism and Christianity are the other major religions in the country.A few people also follow other religions such as Sikhism , Bahai Faith , Sarnaism , Jainism , Judaism and Animism .Bangladesh is one of the few Muslim-majority countries where proselytizing is legal, under article 41 of the Constitution, subject to law, public order and morality. "Is Bangladesh a country of secular Bengalis or Muslim Bangladeshis?" . 9 May 2013.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1290352670. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “first choice by a citizen for self-identification”. Today it says “largest religion in bangladesh and in all of its districts”. 1 section present on 6 October 2023 is absent today. Read the current article and compare.
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
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 since 2010, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
first choice by a citizen for self-identification
Now
largest religion in bangladesh and in all of its districts
Sections that no longer exist
Present on October 6, 2023, absent today, with no near-matching heading in the current article and the article shorter overall, so this is not a renamed heading or a topic absorbed into a fuller treatment. 1 section of 400 characters or more gone since October 6 2023, with the article 7,460 characters shorter.
Atheism
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.
