Hinduism has been present in Nepal since the beginning of recorded history in the area. Muslims came to the country around the 11th century and brought Islam with them. Sikhism came to Nepal during the 18th century and spread throughout Nepal, and Jainism came to Nepal during the 19th century but spread only to Kathmandu and some districts of Nepal. Religious tolerance can be found in royal orders dated Falgun Sudi 12, 1884
V.S. issued by the Hindu Shah monarch
Rajendra Bikram Shah under the premiership of
Bhimsen Thapa to
Buddhist monks in the
Kingdom of Nepal: According to the
2021 census, 81.19% of the Nepalese population is
Hindu, 8.21% are
Buddhist, 4.39% are
Muslim, 3.17% are
Kiratist (indigenous ethnic religion), 1.76% are
Christian, 0.01% are
Sikhs, and 0.01% are
Jains. 3.60% were
Kirant (an indigenous religion), 0.45% were Christian, and 0.4% were classified as other groups such as
Bön. Nepal is home to the most
Quakers of any country in Asia. As of 2017, there were 7,600 Quakers, most belonging to Evangelical Quakerism (
Gurneyite). In 1971, Hindus made up 89.4% of the population, Buddhists 7.5%, and Kirants statistically, 0%. The prevalence of dual-faith practices – particularly among Hindus and Buddhists – complicates statistics on religious groups. At the beginning of the 1990s, Hindus made up at least 87% of the population in every region of Nepal. The largest concentrations of Buddhists were found in the eastern hills, the
Kathmandu Valley, and the central
Tarai; in each area, about 10% of the people were Buddhist. Buddhism was more common among the
Newar and
Tibeto-Nepalese groups. Among the Tibeto-Nepalese, those most influenced by Hinduism were the
Magar,
Sunuwar, and
Rai peoples. Hindu influence was less prominent among the
Gurung,
Limbu,
Yakkha, Tamang, and
Thakali groups, who continued to employ Buddhist monks for their religious ceremonies. Since Hinduism and Buddhism are both
Indian religions, their practices usually complement each other, and many people practice a combination of both. In 2015, a new constitution was adopted, and equal rights were granted to all religions in Nepal.
Nepal's constitution does not give anyone the right to
evangelise or convert anyone to another religion. Nepal also passed a more stringent anti-conversion law in 2017. ==Demographics==