Islam is a minority religion in the Netherlands Antilles. There are about 2,500 Muslims in the Islands, 1000 of which are in the

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,Muslim Situation in the Caribbean
/ref> or 0.31% of the population. Most Muslims are emigrants from

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

, Syria and Suriname.Religion in Netherlands Antilles
/ref>

History

Muslims began to reach the islands during colonial times as workers, from African countries then from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

. Then there was a wave of Muslims coming from

, Syria and

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

as well as some indigenous people who converted to Islam. In 1982 there were about 2000 Muslims.

Islamic centers

The majority of the Islam community is located on Curaçao where is the only mosque:

Omar bin Al-Khattab Mosque The Omar bin Al-Khattab Mosque or Curaçao Islamic Center is a mosque in Willemstad, Curaçao. History In 1963, construction started to transform the former estate of Plantersrust into a mosque. It was built without government support, but wit ...

, with its imam Sheikh Yakubu Mohammed.ISLAM and MUSLIMS IN NETHERLANDS ANTILLES
/ref> There are other Islamic centers including: * Bonaire Islamic Center, Kaya Hanchi Amboina, Bonaire * Curaçao Islamic Center, Weg Naar Welgelegen # 6, Island of Curaçao,

Willemstad Willemstad ( , ; ; en, William Town, italic=yes) is the capital city of Curaçao, an island in the southern Caribbean Sea that forms a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was the capital of the Netherlands Antilles pr ...

* Sint Maarten Islamic Center, Puma Road 26, Philipsburg * Muslim Gemeente Curaçao, Weg Naar Welgelegen 6, Curaçao, Willemstad * Muslim Student Association, University Of Sint Eustatius School Of Medicine, Oranjestad, ST EUSTATIUS * Sint Eustatius Islamic Foundation, Oranjestad, Sint Eustatius

References

Dutch Antillean culture Netherlands Antilles Islam in the Kingdom of the Netherlands Netherland Antilles Netherland Antilles {{NetherlandsAntilles-stub

History

Islamic centers

See also

References