List of countries by Zoroastrian population

In 2012, a study by the Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America published a demographic picture of Zoroastrianism around the world, which was compared with an earlier study from 2004.^[1] It projected a global Zoroastrian population of 111,691–121,962 people, with roughly half of this figure residing in just two countries: India and Iran. These numbers indicated a notable population decline in comparison with the earlier projection of 124,953 people.^[1]

As of 2018^[update], estimates show that there are some 100,000–200,000 Zoroastrians worldwide. The larger part of the population comprises Parsis, a community standing at around 70,000 people in India and around 1,000 in Pakistan. There is an estimated 4,000 Parsis in the United Kingdom.^[2][3][4][5] In 1994, the Zoroastrian Society of Ontario estimated that there were around 100–200 Zoroastrians residing in Afghanistan.^[6]

In 2015, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) granted official recognition to the Zoroastrian religion and also proceeded with the opening of three new Zoroastrian temples. The KRI's Zoroastrian community has claimed that thousands of people residing in the autonomous territory have recently converted from Islam to Zoroastrianism.^[7][8] In 2020, a KRI-based Zoroastrian advocacy group known as the Yasna Association, which also functions as a representative of the faith within the KRI's government, claimed that about 15,000 people had been registered with the organization as of 2014^[update].^[9] Additionally, the Group for Analyzing and Measuring Attitudes in Iran (GAMAAN) conducted an online survey in 2020 to record the religious attitudes of Iranians, and approximately 7.7 percent of respondents identified as Zoroastrian.^[10][11]

Zoroastrian fire temple in the city of Baku, Azerbaijan (2016)

Country/Region	Population	Year
India	50,000	2011 (Census)^[12]^[13]
Iran	15,000–25,271	2012^[1]
Kurdistan Region	15,000	2020^[9]
United States	14,405	2012^[1]
Uzbekistan	7,000	2013^[14]^[15]^[non-primary source needed]
Canada	6,442	2012^[1]
United Kingdom	4,000	2021
Tajikistan	2,700	2021^[16]^[better source needed]
Australia	2,577	2012^[1]
Azerbaijan	2,000	2006^[17]^[better source needed]
Afghanistan	2,000	2020^[18]
Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and United Arab Emirates	1,900	2012^[1]
Pakistan	1,675	2012^[1]
New Zealand	1,231	2012^[1]
Other countries in Europe and Central Asia	1,000	2012^[1]
Singapore	372	2012^[1]
Hong Kong	204	2012^[1]
World	100,000–200,000	2019^[5]

See also

• Iranian religions
  • Zoroastrianism
• Muslim conquest of Persia
  • Persecution of Zoroastrians

References

1. Rivetna, Roshan. "The Zoroastrian World A 2012 Demographic Picture" (PDF). Fezana.org.
2. Chaubey, Gyaneshwer; Ayub, Qasim; Rai, Niraj; Prakash, Satya; Mushrif-Tripathy, Veena; Mezzavilla, Massimo; Pathak, Ajai Kumar; Tamang, Rakesh; Firasat, Sadaf; Reidla, Maere; Karmin, Monika; Rani, Deepa Selvi; Reddy, Alla G.; Parik, Jüri; Metspalu, Ene (14 June 2017). ""Like sugar in milk": reconstructing the genetic history of the Parsi population". Genome Biology. 18 (1): 110. doi:10.1186/s13059-017-1244-9. ISSN 1474-760X. PMC 5470188. PMID 28615043.
3. "Zoroastrianism — Parsi". Daily Times. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
4. Yousafzai, Arshad (29 April 2019). "Two decades from now, Pakistan will have no Parsis". The News International. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
5. "Zoroastrianism". History.
6. Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (1 March 1994). "Afghanistan: Information on the treatment of the Zoroastrian religious community in and around Kabul". Refworld. Retrieved 12 February 2021. Information on the treatment of the Zoroastrian community in Afghanistan could not be found among the sources currently available to the DIRB. However, according to a representative of the Zoroastrian Society of Ontario, there are only one or two hundred Zoroastrians living in Afghanistan (4 Mar. 1994). The source stated that the majority of Zoroastrians in Afghanistan live in "Khander" which he described as being "near the Iranian border" (ibid.). The source stated that to his knowledge, only a few Zoroastrians merchants live in Kabul (ibid.).
7. "Zoroastrian faith returns to Kurdistan in response to ISIL violence". Rudaw. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
8. "Iraqi Kurds turn to Zoroastrianism as faith, identity entwine". France 24. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
9. Bruneau, Charlotte; Omar, Kawa (30 September 2020). "Zoroastrians make a comeback in northern Iraq, but still face stigma". Reuters. Retrieved 12 February 2021. According to Awat Taieb, co-founder of the Yasna association that since 2014 has promoted Zoroastrianism in Kurdistan and also representative of the faith at the Kurdistan government, about 15,000 people registered with the organisation so far.
10. "Iranians' Attitudes Toward Religion: A 2020 Survey Report". گَمان - گروه مطالعات افکارسنجی ایرانیان (in Persian). 9 September 2020. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
11. Maleki, Ammar; Arab, Pooyan Tamimi. "Iran's secular shift: new survey reveals huge changes in religious beliefs". The Conversation. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
12. "Indian Parsis try to turn around demographic decline – DW – 08/16/2022". dw.com. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
13. Alan Davidson. National & Regional Styles of Cookery: Proceedings : Oxford Symposium 1981. Oxford Symposium. p. 71.
14. "Uzbakistan". vcn.bc.ca.
15. "Uzbekistan Zoroastrian Association Registered". Zoroastrians.net. 21 August 2013.
16. "Parsee in Tajikistan". Joshua Project.
17. "Zoroastrian Demographics & Group Names". heritageinstitute.com. 24 December 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
18. "Why the Afghan city Balkh is important to Zoroastrianism". 7 April 2020.