section_path: Demographics/Religion
section_name: Religion
paragraph_text: Religion
  
  Islam is the predominant religion in Algeria, with its adherents, mostly Sunnis, accounting for 99% of the population according to a 2021 CIA World Factbook estimate, and 97.9% according to Pew Research in 2020. There are about 290,000 Ibadis in the M'zab Valley in the region of Ghardaia.
  
  Prior to independence, Algeria was home to more than 1.3 million Christians (mostly of European ancestry). Most of the Christian settlers left to France after the country's independence. Today, estimates of the Christian population range from 20,000 to 200,000. Algerian citizens who are Christians predominantly belong to Protestant denominations, which have seen increased pressure from the government in recent years including many forced closures.
  
  According to the Arab Barometer in 2018–2019, the vast majority of Algerians (99.1%) continue to identify as Muslim. The June 2019 Arab Barometer - BBC News report found that the percentage of Algerians identifying as non-religious has grown from around 8% in 2013 to around 15% in 2018. The Arab Barometer December 2019, found that the growth in the percentage of Algerians identifying as non-religious is largely driven by young Algerians, with roughly 25% describing themselves as non-religious. However, the 2021 Arab Barometer report found that those who said they were not religious among Algerians has decreased, with just 2.6% identifying as non-religious. In that same report, 69.5% of Algerians identified as religious and another 27.8% identifying as somewhat religious.
  
  Algeria has given the Muslim world a number of prominent thinkers, including Emir Abdelkader, Abdelhamid Ben Badis, Mouloud Kacem Naît Belkacem, Malek Bennabi and Mohamed Arkoun.