Islam in Serbia

Islam spread to Serbia during the five centuries of Ottoman rule. The Muslims in Serbia are mostly ethnic Bosniaks, Albanians and minor but significant part of Roma people as well as members of the smaller ethnic groups Muslims by nationality and Gorani.

Islam in Europe
by percentage of country population[1]
  90–100%
  70–80%
 Kazakhstan
  50–70%
  30–50%
 North Macedonia
  10–20%
  5–10%
  4–5%
  2–4%
  1–2%
  < 1%
Islam by country
 Islam portal
Bajrakli Mosque in Belgrade

Demographics

According to 2011 census, there were 228,658 Muslims in Serbia (3.1% of total population. The census was boycotted by some Bosniaks from the Sandžak region, since Muamer Zukorlic one of the leaders of the Party of Justice and Reconciliation, called upon his followers not to take part in the census. Moreover, the largely Albanian population of Preševo, Bujanovac and Medvedja municipalities boycotted the census, too. Thus, the actual number of Muslims in Serbia is likely to be at least about 50,000 higher. Largest concentration of Muslims in Serbia could be found in the municipalities of Novi Pazar, Tutin and Sjenica in the Sandžak region, and in the municipalities of Preševo and Bujanovac in the Preševo Valley.

Muslims in Serbia (excluding Kosovo)
census 1921[2] census 1991 census 2002 census 2011
Number % Number % Number % Number %
Muslims 97,672 2.23 224,120 2.89 239,658 3.20 222,828 3.10

Ethnic groups
  • Bosniaks and Muslims by nationality, mostly living in the Sandžak region;
  • Albanians, mostly living in the Preševo Valley region;
  • Romani, including Serbian-speaking groups from southern Serbia as well as Albanian-speaking groups;
  • Gorani, Slavic ethnic group;
  • Native Serbs, comprised only 0.04% of Serbia's total population.[3]

Geographical distribution

The municipality of Novi Pazar is home to Serbia's largest Muslim population, with 82,710 Muslims out of 100,410 inhabitants (82% of its population). The municipality of Tutin has the highest share of Muslims in Serbia, with around 94% of its population being Muslim. Sjenica Municipality has also a very large Muslim population (79%), followed by Prijepolje Municipality (45%). Most Albanians, who belong to the Islamic faith, living in Preševo, Bujanovac and Medveđa boycotted the 2011 census, but statistics from the 2002 Census shows that Muslims constitute a majority in those municipalities with 89% and 55%, respectively and in Medveđa they numbered around 29% of the population. [4]

Municipality Population (2011) Number of Muslims [5] %
Novi Pazar 100,410 82,710 82.4%
City of Belgrade 1,659,440 31,914 1.9%
Tutin 31,155 29,220 93.8%
Sjenica 26,392 20,906 79.2%
Prijepolje 37,059 16,562 44.7%
Priboj 27,133 5,793 21.4%
Novi Sad 307,760 4,601 1.5%
Bujanovac (boycotted by Albanian minority) 18,067 4,137 22.9%
Požarevac 75,334 2,817 3.7%
Subotica 141,554 2,756 1.9%
City of Niš 260,237 2,486 1.0%
Smederevo 108,209 1,670 1.5%
Zrenjanin 123,362 1,391 1.1%
Nova Varoš 16,638 1,384 8.3%
Beočin 15,726 1,374 8.7%
Bor 48,615 1,338 2.8%
Pančevo 123,414 769 0.6%
Šabac 115,884 760 0.7%
Loznica 79,327 724 0.9%
Kragujevac 179,417 665 0.4%
Preševo (boycotted by Albanian minority) 3,080 593 19.3%
Medveđa (boycotted by Albanian minority) 7,438 581 7.8%
Kraljevo 125,488 532 0.4%
Mali Zvornik 12,482 472 3.8%
Prokuplje 44,419 299 0.7%
Vršac 52,026 253 0.5%
Kruševac 128,752 243 0.2%
Sremska Mitrovica 79,940 240 0.3%
Mali Iđoš 12,031 232 1.9%
Krupanj 17,295 229 1.3%
Bečej 37,351 206 0.6%
Bač 14,405 198 1.4%
Sombor 85,903 193 0.2%
Serbia (total) 7,186,862 222,828 3.1%

Organization

Adherents of Islam in Serbia are organized into two separate bodies: the Islamic Community in Serbia subordinate to the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Islamic Community of Serbia founded in 2007 which traces its origins to the Principality of Serbia.[6] In 2012, the reis-ul-ulema Mustafa Cerić of Bosnia published a fatwa against Adem Zilkić, leader of the Islamic Community of Serbia, categorizing his actions as Masjid al-Dirar.[7]

The Islamic Community of Serbia (Islamska zajednica Srbije), with seat in Belgrade, is administered by reis-ul-ulema Sead Nasufović.[8] It is divided into:

The Islamic Community in Serbia (Islamska zajednica u Srbiji), with seat in Novi Pazar, is administered by mufti Mevlud Dudić,[9] which include:

    • Islamic Community in Sandzak region or Muftiship of Sandžak, with seat in Novi Pazar, administered by mufti Mevlud Dudić.
    • Islamic Community in Vojvodina or Muftiship of Novi Sad, with seat in Novi Sad, administered by mufti Fadil Murati.
    • Islamic Community in Preševo Valley or Muftiship of Preševo, with seat in Preševo.
    • Islamic Community in Central Serbia or Muftiship of Belgrade, with seat in Belgrade.
  • Sketches of ordinary Serbian Muslims.
  • Ottoman manuscript from Smederevo, 1526
  • Organization of the Rijaset of the Islamic Community of Serbia (as of 2007)
  • Organization of the Mešihat of the Islamic Community in Serbia, which is part of the Rijaset of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina (as of 2007)
  • Mosque in Sjenica
  • Mosque in Preševo
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See also

References
  1. "Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2050". Pew Research Center. 12 April 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  2. "[Projekat Rastko] Svetlana Radovanovic - Demographic Growth and Ethnodemographic Changes in the Republic of Serbia". www.rastko.rs.
  3. Government of Serbia 2014, p. 194.
  6. "Zilkić ponovo izabran" (in Serbian). Radio Television of Serbia. 13 February 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  7. "Reakcije na fetvu protiv reisa IZ Srbije" (in Bosnian). Al Jazeera Balkans. 14 November 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  8. "Islamska zajednica Srbije: Sead Nasufović novi reis-l-ulema". www.novosti.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 2020-05-19.
  9. "POSLE OSAM GODINA SUKOBA Zilkić pozvao Dudića da se ujedine u jednu Islamsku zajednicu" (in Serbian). Blic. 22 March 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
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