Religion in Italy

Religion in Italy has been historically characterized by the dominance of Catholicism since the Great Schism. According to a 2023 Ipsos survey, 61% of the country's residents are Catholic, 4% are Protestants, 3% other Christians (68% are Christians overall), 28% are irreligious, 2% prefer not to say, 1% are Muslims, and 1% adhere to other religions. Italy's Catholic patron saints are Francis of Assisi and Catherine of Siena.

Religion in Italy according to the Ipsos survey, 2023 (approximately 1000 participants, adults under 75)

  Catholicism (61%)
  Protestantism (4%)
  Other Christianity (3%)
  No religion (28%)
  Prefer not to say (2%)
  Islam (1%)
  Other religion (1%)
Italy is home to many of the world's largest, oldest and opulent churches. Clockwise from left: Florence Cathedral, which has the largest brick dome in the world; Pisa Cathedral, Milan Cathedral, the largest Italian church and the third largest in the world; and St Mark's Basilica, one of the best known examples of Italo-Byzantine architecture

According to the 2017 Being Christian in Western Europe survey by Pew, 58% of Italians consider religion to be very or somewhat important. Italy was the only country in the survey having more practising Christians than non-practising ones. Italy is the third European Union member in terms of highest weekly church attendance rates after Poland and Ireland.

From 2001 to 2022 the religious practice in Italy has steadily decreased. Although in surveys most of the population claims religious affiliations, according to the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) data, less than 19% of Italians have declared themselves to be practicing. While the proportion of those who have never practiced a religion has doubled, from 16% in 2001 to 31% in 2022.

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