Buddhism In The Middle East

It is estimated that in the Middle East over 900,000 people profess Buddhism as their religion. Buddhist adherents make up just over 0.3% of the total population of the Middle East. Many of these Buddhists are workers who have migrated from Asia to the Middle East since the late 1990s, many from countries that have large Buddhist populations, such as China , Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. A small number of engineers, company directors, and managers from Japan , Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea have also moved to the Middle East.

Theravada Buddhism is the predominant religion of workers from Thailand and Sri Lanka. Mahayana Buddhism is the predominant religion of workers from East Asia and Vietnam, although Taoism, Confucianism, and Shinto are also represented among these people. In Dubai (the United Arab Emirates)^[1] and Qatar,^[2] the workers from Sri Lanka were allowed to celebrate Vesak (the most important holiday in Buddhism) in those Islamic countries.

The U.S. State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2007 estimates that more than 8 million foreigners are living and working in Saudi Arabia, including Muslims and non-Muslims.

In addition to 400,000 Sri Lankans, there are a few thousand Buddhist workers from East Asia, the majority of whom are Chinese, Vietnamese, and Thai. A number of Tibetan-Nepalese immigrants may also be among the foreign population of Saudi Arabia.

Thus approximately 1.5% of Saudi Arabia's population – or around 400,000 people – are Buddhist, likely giving Saudi Arabia the largest Buddhist community in either the Middle East or the Arab World^[3]

Buddhist percentages in the Middle East

   Saudi Arabia (45.9%)

   United Arab Emirates (24.6%)

   Kuwait (11.1%)

   Turkey (7.9%)

   Qatar (5%)

   Oman (3.6%)

   Bahrain (0.8%)

   Israel (0.7%)

   Lebanon (0.4%)

Buddhism by country in the Middle East

Country	Population (2007E)	% of Buddhists	Buddhist total
United Arab Emirates	004444011 4,444,011	00500 5% [4][5]	222,201
Qatar	000907229 907,229	00500 5% [6][7]	45,361
Kuwait	002505559 2,505,559	00400 4% [8]	100,222
Saudi Arabia	027601038 27,601,038	00150 1.5% [9]	414,016
Bahrain	000753000 753,000	00100 2.5% [10]	30,000
Oman	003204897 3,204,897	00100 1.20% [11][12]	32,049
Israel	006426679 6,426,679	00010 0.1% [13]	6,426
Lebanon	003925502 3,925,502	00010 0.1% [14]	3,926
Turkey	071158647 71,158,647	00010 0.1% [15]	71,159
ZZZZ Total	285,194,911	00032 0.32%	925,360

• Buddhism in the West
• Index of Buddhism-related articles
• Hinduism in Arab states

• Buddhist pagodas or temples in Middle East

• The U.S. State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2006
• CIA FactBook
• Religious Freedom page
• Religious Intelligence

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