World Christian Database
The World Christian Database (WCD) provides comprehensive statistical information on global Christianity, other world religions, and Christian activities in all 237 countries. Extensive data are available on thousands of Christian denominations, ethnolinguistic people groups, cities, and provinces.
The WCD transforms current statistics on religion into a real-time analysis tool that takes just minutes to perform even detailed research. This comprehensive database brings together a fully updated and cohesive religious data set with a world-class database architecture. The result is a simple, yet powerful database tool that enables users to customize reports and download data for in use in charts, tables, and graphs
NEW: Now available: individual subscriptions for WCD. Please contact sales for all the options via sales@brill.com.
Sources
- A large majority of the data collected for the WCD comes from published and unpublished sources, field work, interviews, and questionnaires - Around 5,000 statistical questionnaires returned by churches and national collaborators over the period 1982-present
- Field surveys and interviews on the spot in over 200 countries
- A mass of unpublished documentation on all countries, collected on the field, including reports, memoranda, photographs, maps, statistical summaries, and historical documents
- Around 4,500 printed contemporary descriptions of churches, describing denominations, movements, countries and confessions
- Officially-published reports of 500 government-organized national censuses of population
- A series of in-depth interviews with bishops, church leaders, and theologians
Detailed Religious and Demographic Statistics include:
- Global comparative figures for every major religion
- Population and religious adherents for every country and United Nations region
- Access to source material on religious affiliation (census and survey figures)
- Breakdown of major religions into traditions (e.g. Sunni-Shi’as within Islam)
- Multiple data points to compare growth rates (1900, 1950, 1970, 2000, 2005, 2025, 2050)
- Feedback mechanism for users to comment on data, sources and methodology
- Population and Adherents (for 1900, 1970, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2025, 2050)
- Demographics (birth rate, adult percentage, life expectancy)
- Health (HIV rates, access to water, mortality)
- Education (literacy percentage, schools, universities)
- Communication (scripture access, religious freedom)
- Christian personnel
- Evangelism rates
- Status of missions work
- Lists of Christian denominations in every country
- Country, regional, and global estimates of Pentecostals and Charismatics
- Status of Bible translation
Features and Benefits
- 9,000 Denominations
- 13,000 Ethnolinguistic Peoples
- 5,000 Cities
- 3,000 Provinces
- 238 Countries
- Quarterly updates
- Unique reference tool for professionals, scholars, students, agencies, news media
A demo is available here.
There is also a demo available for Denomination searches in the WCD.
The WCD transforms current statistics on religion into a real-time analysis tool that takes just minutes to perform even detailed research. This comprehensive database brings together a fully updated and cohesive religious data set with a world-class database architecture. The result is a simple, yet powerful database tool that enables users to customize reports and download data for in use in charts, tables, and graphs
NEW: Now available: individual subscriptions for WCD. Please contact sales for all the options via sales@brill.com.
Sources
- A large majority of the data collected for the WCD comes from published and unpublished sources, field work, interviews, and questionnaires - Around 5,000 statistical questionnaires returned by churches and national collaborators over the period 1982-present
- Field surveys and interviews on the spot in over 200 countries
- A mass of unpublished documentation on all countries, collected on the field, including reports, memoranda, photographs, maps, statistical summaries, and historical documents
- Around 4,500 printed contemporary descriptions of churches, describing denominations, movements, countries and confessions
- Officially-published reports of 500 government-organized national censuses of population
- A series of in-depth interviews with bishops, church leaders, and theologians
Detailed Religious and Demographic Statistics include:
- Global comparative figures for every major religion
- Population and religious adherents for every country and United Nations region
- Access to source material on religious affiliation (census and survey figures)
- Breakdown of major religions into traditions (e.g. Sunni-Shi’as within Islam)
- Multiple data points to compare growth rates (1900, 1950, 1970, 2000, 2005, 2025, 2050)
- Feedback mechanism for users to comment on data, sources and methodology
- Population and Adherents (for 1900, 1970, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2025, 2050)
- Demographics (birth rate, adult percentage, life expectancy)
- Health (HIV rates, access to water, mortality)
- Education (literacy percentage, schools, universities)
- Communication (scripture access, religious freedom)
- Christian personnel
- Evangelism rates
- Status of missions work
- Lists of Christian denominations in every country
- Country, regional, and global estimates of Pentecostals and Charismatics
- Status of Bible translation
Features and Benefits
- 9,000 Denominations
- 13,000 Ethnolinguistic Peoples
- 5,000 Cities
- 3,000 Provinces
- 238 Countries
- Quarterly updates
- Unique reference tool for professionals, scholars, students, agencies, news media
A demo is available here.
There is also a demo available for Denomination searches in the WCD.
Please contact our sales team for more information on prices and licensing.
All those interested in Christian and religious demographics and the history of Christianity including religion scholars, historians, and social scientists.
Todd M. Johnson, Ph.D., (William Carey International University, 1993), is Research Fellow for Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston, MA. He is the author of many books and articles on global Christian and religious demographics and co-author of World Christian Encyclopedia (Oxford University Press, 2001) and World Christian Trends (William Carey Library, 2001).
Gina A. Zurlo holds a Ph.D. in History and Hermeneutics from Boston University School of Theology (2017). She is Co-Director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (South Hamilton, MA) and Research Fellow at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs. Her research interests include world Christianity, quantitative sociology, and mission studies. She is the co-editor of the World Christian Database, editor of the World Religion Database, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Religion and Demography, and co-author of the third edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia.
Gina A. Zurlo holds a Ph.D. in History and Hermeneutics from Boston University School of Theology (2017). She is Co-Director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (South Hamilton, MA) and Research Fellow at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs. Her research interests include world Christianity, quantitative sociology, and mission studies. She is the co-editor of the World Christian Database, editor of the World Religion Database, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Religion and Demography, and co-author of the third edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia.
'The World Christian Database is a unique and worthwhile database to have at institutions that have programs in sociology, history, an religion. [...] It is an incredible database when it comes to content.'
Michelle Sporner in The Charleston Advisor
'The World Christian Database is a valuable resource for faculty, students, and religious practitioners seeking information about the religious characteristics of all countries in the world.'
Robert Wuthnow, Center for the Study of Religion, Princeton University
Michelle Sporner in The Charleston Advisor
'The World Christian Database is a valuable resource for faculty, students, and religious practitioners seeking information about the religious characteristics of all countries in the world.'
Robert Wuthnow, Center for the Study of Religion, Princeton University