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Throughout history most people have had strong beliefs in religion , but in modern times atheism has grown in popularity. This article will look at which countries have the highest percentage of atheists and some reasons why fewer people believe in the supernatural there.
24/7 Wall St. Insights
- Atheists are in the minority in every country but are most prevalent in Europe.
- Atheism has grown in popularity in Western-influenced countries along with modernist philosophy but is challenged by postmodernism as well as traditional religion.
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How Can This Help You?
What we'll share with you can help you reflect on your own opinions about religious ideas and be better prepared not to assume others are, or are not, religious without getting to know them first. It also helps us understand why, in an attempt to treat everyone equally, government and businesses may increasingly attempt to take a neutral stance on holidays and other elements of religions. First up, we'll review some of the most common worldviews when it comes to belief in God.
Traditional View 1: Polytheism
Polytheism is the belief that there are many gods and goddesses. Each might have control over a different aspect of the world, like the sea, agriculture, or fertility, or their power might be limited to a particular country or region. Hinduism and almost all indigenous cultures around the world have had this view.
Traditional View 2: Pantheism
Pantheism holds that the universe and God are the same thing. The universe is a spiritual, divine entity. This is a view of some traditions in Hinduism, Taoism, and some smaller religions. It is also a popular view among some "New Age" nature-based religions.
Traditional View 3: Monotheism
Monotheism: there is just one God over the whole universe. This is a view of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. However, the Christian view is a complex Trinity: there is one God that is at the same time three, personified as the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit.
Traditional View 4: Deism
Deism is the belief that a supernatural being created the world, but then left it to run according to logical natural laws without interfering in it. It was the view of the French philosopher Voltaire as well as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and most other American founding fathers.
Traditional View 5: Atheism
We're calling atheism a "traditional view" because there have always been people who doubted the existence of God, even in ancient times. To be an atheist means a person does not believe in God. By contrast, a person who leaves open the possibility that God exists and doesn't feel like they have enough data to commit either way is called an agnostic. In everyday life, many people whose views are actually agnostic identify themselves as atheists. Secular humanists, Jains, and some Buddhists have views that could fit the definition of atheism.
Atheistic Philosophers 
These are some well-known atheist thinkers who have helped shape this philosophy:
- Epicurus (341–270 BCE) - Greece
- Lucretius (99-55 BCE) - Rome
- David Hume (1711–1776) - Scotland, UK
- Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) - Prussia (Germany)
- Karl Marx (1818–1883) - Prussia (Germany)
- Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) - Austria
- Bertrand Russell (1872–1970) - Wales, UK
- Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–1980) - France
- Richard Dawkins (1941–) – British, born in Kenya
- Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011) – England, UK
- Sam Harris (1967–) – United States
1. The Rise of Atheism: Scientific Discoveries
Scientific discoveries are one of the factors in the rise of atheism. Over time researchers have found natural explanations for things that people previously explained with religion.
2. The Rise of Atheism: Education
Atheism is strongly correlated with higher education. Western educational models teach critical thinking and promote ideas that people find challenging to religious traditions. Unable to reconcile the two, some people make the choice to reject religion.
3. The Rise of Atheism: Globalization
Access to internet, travel opportunities, and ubiquitous Western media have exposed people to different worldviews and promoted tolerance for cultural diversity. This has diminished many people's belief in the objective truth of religious traditions and made them seem more like the products of local cultures.
4. The Rise of Atheism: Cultural Factors 
Religious extremism such as terrorist attacks and some groups' political activism in issues like LGBTQ+ rights and abortion have made religion in general seem oppressive and regressive. Society has become more accepting of people who reject religion, so they are not as hesitant to make their views known. This in turn influences others with those ideas.
Atheism and Modernism
The increase in the numbers of atheists in the world has happened along with the spread of Modernist philosophy that started to take off starting in the 17th century with the Great Enlightenment. Modernism emphasized finding truth by means of the scientific method. As supernatural concepts could not be studied with the tools of science, they were dismissed.
Atheism and Postmodernism
A challenge to modern atheism is the rise of postmodernism since the 1960s. Postmodernism teaches that truth is relative to the individual, so that something can be true for one person and not for another. It rejects attempts either by any one religion or philosophy (including modernist science) to know universal objective truths. This makes it socially unacceptable to challenge others' ideas, even if they do not agree with demonstrable facts. Thus, atheists who are aggressive in speaking against religion may be seen as intolerant as religious people who speak against atheism.
Gathering Data on Atheists
It is hard to gather and sort demographic information on atheists around the world. In some countries there is still a deep stigma against them. It's also hard to sort out who is an atheist in the strict sense of the word versus an agnostic or a person who follows a religion that is more of a philosophy without the worship of a god, such as Buddhism.
Atheism in the United States
A 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center turned up this data about atheism in the United States:
- 4% of American adults say they are atheists, twice as many as in 2007
- 64% of U.S. atheists are men and 7 out of 10 are under age 50
- They are mostly white, college educated, and politically progressive
- They have higher-than average knowledge of the beliefs of religions
- They are better informed about what the Constitution says about Church and State
- About 23% of them actually do believe in some kind of higher power, but not the one described in the Bible
Countries With the Most Atheists
Following are the countries with the highest number of atheists according to survey data from 2022 in ascending order.
10. Australia
- Atheist Population: 5.3 million.
- Explanation: Australia has been shaped by Western secular values and education and has an urban and increasingly diverse population.
9. Canada
- Atheist Population: 7.7 million
- Explanation: Canada has a special purpose for respecting all kinds of diversity because it wants to prevent the French-speaking province of Quebec from declaring independence. This tolerance extends to the large number of immigrants to Canada from all over the world and has helped break down ideas of cultural or religious exclusivity.
8. Russia
- Atheist Population: 8.7 million
- Explanation: In the years of the Soviet Union, Russian authorities attempted to wipe out religion and promote atheism through education and persecution. This failed and with the fall of communism much of the population identified at some level with the traditional Orthodox church. Significant numbers of people are still deeply committed to atheism.
7. Germany
- Atheist Population: 9.8 million
- Explanation: Historically, Germany has been one of Europe's great centers of philosophical thought. Atheism was aggressively promoted in the Eastern part of the country, which was under communist rule during the Cold War.
6. Vietnam
- Atheist Population: 11.9 million
- Explanation: Vietnam was under French colonial rule and later staged a successful but decades-long communist revolution, civil war, and resistance to a U.S. invasion. These experiences, along with communist dogma, caused Vietnam to embrace atheism more so than some of its neighbors.
5. United Kingdom
- Atheist Population: 15 million
- Explanation: The expansion of the British Empire brought along with it an expansion of exposure to Christianity around the world via missionaries wh0 went into colonized areas. Over the decades the UK has become markedly secular. It still has some large evangelical churches, but these often attract a large percentage of immigrants, particularly from developing countries.
4. Japan
- Atheist Population: 23.6 million
- Explanation: Japanese culture blends elements of the traditional Shinto religion with Buddhism and modern secular humanism. Most people there are a complex blend of elements of all three.
3. United States
- Atheist Population: 27.3 million
- Explanation: In the U.S., religion has received negative press for highly publicized sexual scandals involving pastors or priests, Christian influence in elections and outspokenness about social issues that seem oppressive to others. Those factors, as well as increasing education and intercultural exposure have promoted an increase in atheism.
2. South Korea
- Atheist Population: 28.4 million
- Explanation: South Korea has traditionally had strong Confucian influences. This is a Chinese philosophy that does not make worship of a God a central part of one's life. South Korea has modernized and westernized rapidly, so that has increased the atheist population. At the same time, about 30% of the country's population has converted to Christianity, and South Korea is one of the most prolific countries for sending Christian missionaries to other parts of the world.
1. China
- Atheist Population: 479.7 million
- Explanation: China's traditional religious philosophies included Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, none of which promoted the idea of a god that was objectively real and should be sought out and served. These religions are all more like philosophical guidelines for living a life that achieves certain goals and purposes. China's ruling Communist Party officially promotes atheism and has at times persecuted people of various religions, including Christians, Muslims, and Tibetan Buddhists. Nevertheless, more than half of the Chinese population follows some kind of religious viewpoint, including 90 million Christians.
The Future of Atheism
The future of atheism is difficult to predict. It is true that the numbers of declared atheists in the world have increased in recent decades as a result of globalization, education, and cultural factors. But it is also true that postmodern philosophy has removed the stigma of holding religious beliefs or unconventional and unsupported views about scientific topics like the thoroughly-disproved notion of a flat Earth.
It's safe to say that both religion and atheism will persist through human history. Some people will move from one to the other; other people will try to find some kind of middle ground. But one way or the other, humanity will continue to be fascinated by the question of whether God or gods exist.
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