Russia to finance encyclopedia of Islam

The Russian Education Ministry will finance an encyclopedia of Islam, the second-largest religion in the country.

One thousand copies of the seven-volume ‘Islam in the Russian Federation’ will be published next year, Damir Mukhetdinov, first deputy chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims announced on Telegram on Thursday.

“The first [pre-publication] copy has just been delivered from the printing house. In the coming months we will review and complete it,” said Mukhetdinov, who is also the rector of the Moscow Islamic Institute.

State support for the release of the encyclopedia is part of a federal program launched in 2022 to mark 1100 years since the adoption of Islam by the people of Volga Bulgaria. The ancient state existed between the 9th and 13th centuries on the territory of the present-day Republic of Tatarstan in Central Russia.

Russia boasts the largest number of Muslims in Europe, after Türkiye. According to various estimates, between 7 and 12 million people living in Russia are Muslims, or between 5% and 8.5% of the country’s population.

As part of Russia’s historical heritage, Islam is supported and subsidized by the government.

The largest religion in the country is Orthodox Christianity.