Religion in Vietnam
religion in the country / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Officially, Vietnam is an atheist state. Despite this, many of its citizens are religious. The three main religions in Vietnam are Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Sometimes, they are grouped together as one religion called the three teachings or tam giáo. According to many studies, 70-90% of Vietnamese people are Buddhist. 8% are Christians (mostly Roman Catholic) and 1-2% practice indigenous, animist religions including Hinduism. About 1% are not religious but have a strong Buddhist influence in their life.
Religions in Vietnam (2022)[1] | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Religion | Percentage | |||
Mahayana Buddhism | 75.9% | |||
Folk religion/Non-religious | 12.7% | |||
Roman Catholicism | 7% | |||
Caodaism | 2.5% | |||
Haohaoism | 1.5% | |||
Protestantism | 1% | |||
Others | 1% |
Despite strong links in the older adult population, the younger population of Vietnam is quite different, with low numbers of young people believing religious ideas. The religious ideas that don't fit state thinking aren't emphasized enough.
The earliest established religion was Hinduism during the Cham Hindu Kingdom era. Later, Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism spread. Today, these religions are grouped into the same religion known as the triple religion or Tam Giao, which has many followers. Later religions in Vietnam include Christianity and Islam. New religious movements include Hoa Hao Buddhism and Cao Dai. Hinduism is still practised by a small Cham minority who live mainly in central Vietnam.