Religion in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

is predominantly

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, adhered to by about 68.8% of the population in 2021, a decrease from 75.5% in 2011 and 83.8% in 2001.

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

is the major Christian tradition in the country, followed in 2021 by 59.8% of the population, a majority of whom (55.8%) were of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and a minority of whom (4%) were of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church. About 9% of the population were mostly followers of

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

, and a minority of Eastern Orthodox Christianity and other Christian denominations; the major groupings are the

Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia The Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia (in Slovak ''Evanjelická cirkev augsburského vyznania na Slovensku'', ECAV) is the only Lutheran church in Slovakia. The Church is a member of the Ecumenical Council of Churches in Sl ...

(5.3%), the

Reformed Christian Church in Slovakia The Reformed Christian Church in Slovakia has 110,000 members in 205 parishes and 103 mission churches and 59 house fellowships in 10 presbyteries. The bishop is the head of the church, in contrast with other Calvinist churches. History Before Wor ...

(1.6%), the Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church (0.9%), the Jehovah's Witnesses (0.3%), and other smaller Christian denominations (0.9%). In 2021, about 23.8% of the population declared themselves not religious, an increase from 13.4% in 2011. An additional 1.2% of the population were followers of other religions or beliefs; small religious minorities in Slovakia include

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

, modern Paganism, Islam,

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

Jediism Jediism (or Jedism) is a philosophy, and in some cases tongue-in-cheek joke religion, mainly based on the depiction of the Jedi characters in ''Star Wars'' media. Jediism attracted public attention in 2001 when a number of people recorded thei ...

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, Pastafarianism and others.

Demographics

Census statistics, 1900–2021

Line chart of the trends, 1900–2021

Census statistics 1900–2021:

Religions

Christianity

According to the 2021 census,

was the religion of 68.8% of the population of Slovakia, of whom 59.8% were Catholics (55.8% adherents of the Roman Catholics and 4% of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church), 5.3% were adherents of the

, 1.6% of the

, 0.9% of the Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church, 0.3% were Jehovah's Witnesses, and another 0.9% were followers of other Christian denominations. In Slovakia there are also small numbers of adherents of various other Christian denominations, including

Adventism Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming (or the "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher W ...

, Apostolic Pentecostalism, Baptists, Brethren,

Hussitism The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hussi ...

Irvingism The Catholic Apostolic Church (CAC), also known as the Irvingian Church, is a Christian denomination and Protestant sect which originated in Scotland around 1831 and later spread to Germany and the United States.New Apostolicism),

Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's br ...

and

Old Catholicism The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches or Old Catholic movement designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the undivide ...

. Bratislava Skyline (3698302852).jpg, Roman Catholic Cathedral of Saint Martin in the cityscape of Bratislava, Bratislava Region. Blue Church Bratislava (frente).JPG, The iconic Roman Catholic Church of Saint Elizabeth, commonly known as Blue Church, in Bratislava. Dóm svätej Alžbety a Kaplnka sv. Michala, Košice, Slovensko.jpg, Roman Catholic Cathedral of Saint Elisabeth in Košice,

Košice Region The Košice Region ( sk, Košický kraj, , hu, Kassai kerület; uk, Кошицький край) is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. The region was first established in 1923 and its present borders were established in 1996. It c ...

, is the largest church in Slovakia. File:Potoky, cerkiew św. Paraskewy, ogrodzenie (HB6).jpg, Greek Catholic wooden Church of Saint Paraskeva of the in Potoky, Prešov Region. Drevený artikulárny kostol - panoramio.jpg, Evangelical Lutheran wooden church of Svätý Kríž,

Žilina Region The Žilina Region ( sk, Žilinský kraj; pl, Kraj żyliński; hu, Zsolnai kerület) is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions and consists of 11 districts ( okresy) and 315 municipalities, from which 18 have a town status. The region ...

. File:Orthodox church Hrabova Roztoka.jpg, Orthodox Christian church in Hrabová Roztoka, Prešov Region. File:Jehovah Witnesses House Bratislava.JPG,

Kingdom hall A Kingdom Hall is a place of worship used by Jehovah's Witnesses. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii. Rutherford's reasoning was that these bui ...

of the Jehovah's Witnesses in Bratislava.

Other religions

Minority religions in Slovakia, according to the 2021 census, included 6,722 adherents of

(0.1% of the population), 3,862 adherents of Islam (0.1%), 2,007 adherents of

(<0.1%), 1,389 adherents of

(<0.1%), and even smaller minorities of people professing

Hindusim Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, Pastafarianism, the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...

and other religions. There are organisations of practitioners of Slavic Rodnovery in Slovakia, part of the 0.1% of the population (4,007 people) who in the 2021 census identified themselves as Pagans. Rodnover organisations in the country include the Native Circle (''Rodný Kruh''), one of whose prominent members, Žiarislav Švitsky, initiated in 2001 one of the most influential leaders of Czech Rodnovery, Richard Bigl. Other groups are the Holy Grove of Native Faith (''Svätoháj Rodnej Viery''), and the Civic Association Tartaria (''Občianske združenie Tartaria''), which caters to followers of the Rodnover doctrine of

Ynglism Ynglism ( Russian: Инглии́зм; Ynglist runes: ), institutionally the Ancient Russian Ynglist Church of the Orthodox Old Believers–Ynglings (Древнерусская Инглиистическая Церковь Православны� ...

. Another Pagan religion present in the country is Mesopotamian Zuism; some members of the Slovak Zuist community were also involved in the development of the Icelandic church of the movement. File:Trenčín - Synagóga a židovská škola.jpg, Jewish synagogue of

Trenčín Trenčín (, also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 55,000, which makes it the eighth largest muni ...

. Rodnover sanctuary at Smrečník, Slovakia.jpg, Rodnover shrine on the holy Smrečník hill near Kremnica,

Banská Bystrica Region The Banská Bystrica Region ( sk, Banskobystrický kraj, ; hu, Besztercebányai kerület, ) is one of the eight regions of Slovakia. It is the largest region by area, and has a lower population density than any other region. The Banská Bystric ...

Legislation and freedom of religion

The laws of Slovakia guarantee the freedom of religious belief and criminalise the defamation of and discrimination against religious groups. Religious groups may register with the government in order to receive certain privileges, but the threshold of membership required for new groups to register is high, 50,000 members. Government officials have explicitly stated that preventing Islamic organizations from registering is a reason for this requirement. According to

non-governmental organisations A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

and unregistered religious groups, negative attitudes toward unregistered religious groups are common, and hate speech online against religious minorities, especially represented by refugees, is frequent. Politicians from far-right parties in the National Council, the legislative organ of Slovakia, frequently espouse

Islamophobic Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism. The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...

and antisemitic ideas and conspiracy theories, and some of them have faced censure as a consequence of their violation of laws against the propagation of extremist materials and against affiliation with groups dedicated to the suppression of fundamental rights and freedoms.

References

Citations

Sources

* * {{Religion in Europe