While 86% of Vietnam's population shares the Kinh ethnicity, the 2019 census reveals a far more diverse religious landscape where nearly half of all Vietnamese follow local folk beliefs, and significant regional variations—from Buddhist majorities in Da Nang to Protestant concentrations in the Central Highlands—paint a complex picture of the nation's spiritual life.
Key Takeaways
- According to the 2019 Vietnam Population and Housing Census, 44.1% of the population (approximately 41.7 million people) identified as adherents of Vietnamese folk religion
- In the 2019 census, Buddhism was the second largest religion with 7.6% of the population (about 7.2 million people) self-identifying as Buddhists
- Christianity accounted for 7.9% of Vietnam's population in 2019, with 5.7% Catholic (5.4 million) and 2.2% Protestant (2.1 million)
- Tet holiday ancestor veneration practiced by 95% of population annually
- 72% of Vietnamese burn incense daily at home altars per 2020 survey
- 68% believe in spirits of ancestors influencing daily life, 2021 poll
- Vietnam's 2018 Law on Belief and Religion recognizes 16 organizations officially
- Government-registered religious venues: 29,526 as of 2022
- Fines for unregistered religious activities up to 50 million VND ($2,000) under Decree 162/2017
- Vietnam's folk religion adherents outnumber Buddhists 6:1 globally compared
- Asia-Pacific region: Vietnam has highest % no religion (30%) vs China 52%
- Christian growth rate: Vietnam 1.5% annually vs global 1.2% (2010-2020)
Vietnam's population practices a diverse mix of folk religion, Buddhism, Christianity, and no religion.
Comparative Statistics
- Vietnam's folk religion adherents outnumber Buddhists 6:1 globally compared
- Asia-Pacific region: Vietnam has highest % no religion (30%) vs China 52%
- Christian growth rate: Vietnam 1.5% annually vs global 1.2% (2010-2020)
- Southeast Asia: Vietnam Catholics 7% vs Philippines 81%
- Theravada Buddhism %: Vietnam 1% vs Thailand 93%
- Cao Dai unique to Vietnam: 2-6 million vs zero elsewhere
- Hoa Hao: 1.7 million followers solely in Vietnam
- Irreligion rate Vietnam 30% vs East Asia average 50%
- Folk religion dominance: Vietnam 45% vs Japan 70% Shinto
- Protestant % in Vietnam 2.5% vs South Korea 20%
- Temple density: Vietnam 1 per 10,000 people vs Cambodia 1 per 5,000
- Ancestor worship universality: 90% Vietnam vs 60% China urban
- New religious movements: Vietnam 5 major vs Indonesia 100+
- Religious switching rate low: 5% lifetime vs US 40%
- Vietnam Buddhism Mahayana 90% vs global 53%
- Catholic dioceses: 27 in Vietnam vs 16 in Thailand
Comparative Statistics Interpretation
Vietnam’s religious landscape is a uniquely stubborn mosaic, fiercely preserving its indigenous folk religions and ancestor worship while quietly hosting a surprisingly fast-growing Catholic minority, all under the paradoxical shadow of one of Asia’s highest official rates of non-religion.
Government and Policy
- Vietnam's 2018 Law on Belief and Religion recognizes 16 organizations officially
- Government-registered religious venues: 29,526 as of 2022
- Fines for unregistered religious activities up to 50 million VND ($2,000) under Decree 162/2017
- 2023 amendments require online registration for religious events over 100 attendees
- State subsidies to recognized Buddhist associations: 200 billion VND annually
- Protestant groups: 1,200 recognized house churches by 2021
- Religious education banned in public schools since 1950s
- Cao Dai Holy See receives 1.5 billion VND government support yearly
- 45 unlicensed groups monitored by Ministry of Home Affairs in 2022
- Religious leader training programs: 500 monks ordained via state-approved seminaries annually
- Decree 69/2021 simplifies registration for ethnic minority faiths
- Vietnam ranked 27th on Open Doors World Watch List for Christian persecution 2023
- 115 religious arrests reported in 2022 by USCIRF
- National Committee on Religions and Believers oversees 27 million adherents
- Folk religion not requiring registration as "cultural practice" per policy
- Buddhism as state-favored: Vietnam Buddhist Sangha has 50,000 monks registered
Government and Policy Interpretation
Vietnam's religious landscape is a carefully curated garden where the state-approved flowers receive subsidies and pruning, while any wild sprouts face fines, monitoring, and a weed whacker.
Religious Demographics
- According to the 2019 Vietnam Population and Housing Census, 44.1% of the population (approximately 41.7 million people) identified as adherents of Vietnamese folk religion
- In the 2019 census, Buddhism was the second largest religion with 7.6% of the population (about 7.2 million people) self-identifying as Buddhists
- Christianity accounted for 7.9% of Vietnam's population in 2019, with 5.7% Catholic (5.4 million) and 2.2% Protestant (2.1 million)
- 29.9% of Vietnamese reported no religion in the 2019 census, totaling around 28.3 million people
- Cao Dai religion had 0.9% adherence (850,000 people) per the 2019 census data
- Hoa Hao Buddhism followers numbered 1.3% of the population (1.2 million) in 2019
- In Ho Chi Minh City, 52.3% followed folk religion in 2019 census
- Hanoi had 45.8% no religion adherents in the 2019 census
- Da Nang city's 2019 census showed 38.2% Buddhist population
- In Can Tho, 55.1% identified with folk religion in 2019
- Ethnic Kinh majority (86%) shows 48% folk religion in 2019 subgroup data
- Among urban population, 35.4% no religion in 2019 vs 32.1% rural
- Males in Vietnam: 31.2% no religion in 2019, females 28.7%
- Age 15-24 group: 42.3% no religion in 2019 census
- Northern region's 2019 census: 52.1% folk religion
- Central Highlands: 18.4% Protestant in 2019, highest regionally
- Mekong Delta: 62.3% folk religion or Hoa Hao combined in 2019
- In 2009 census, folk religion was 45.3% (40.1 million)
- Buddhism rose from 7.1% in 1999 to 7.6% in 2019
- No religion increased from 11.4% in 1989 to 29.9% in 2019
- 1960 census estimated 70% Buddhist-influenced folk practices
- 1979 census post-war: 55% folk religion reported
- 1989 census: Catholics at 7.0% (4.9 million)
- 1999 census: Protestants 0.9% (700,000)
- Folk religion peaked at 81.8% self-reported in some 1990s surveys pre-census
- By 1920s French colonial census, 60% Confucian-Buddhist syncretism
- 1930s estimates: 15% pure Buddhists
- Post-1954 division: South Vietnam 1960 census 40% Catholic growth due to refugees
- 1943 imperial census under Bao Dai: 50% ancestor worship only
- Early 20th century missionary records: 1% Christian in 1900
- In 2019 census, An Giang province had 32.4% Hoa Hao followers (1.1 million)
- Binh Dinh: 25.7% Catholic in 2019
- Gia Lai province Central Highlands: 30.1% Protestant (ethnic minorities)
- Dong Thap: 28.6% Hoa Hao
- Bac Lieu: Folk religion 60.2% dominant
- Quang Nam: Buddhism 15.4%, highest in central coast
- Khanh Hoa: No religion 40.1% urban influence
- Lao Cai northern mountains: 22% Catholic among Hmong
- Son La: 18.5% animist practices among minorities
Religious Demographics Interpretation
The soul of Vietnam's religious landscape is less a tidy temple and more a crowded, vibrant family altar, where the incense of folk tradition still burns strongest, atheism is rising among the young, and the regionally potent brews of Cao Dai and Hoa Hao Christianity, and Buddhism remind everyone that devotion, like the nation itself, refuses to be painted with a single brush.
Religious Practices
- Tet holiday ancestor veneration practiced by 95% of population annually
- 72% of Vietnamese burn incense daily at home altars per 2020 survey
- 68% believe in spirits of ancestors influencing daily life, 2021 poll
- Temple visits: 55% monthly frequency among folk adherents
- Vegetarian observance during Vu Lan (Buddhist Mother's Day): 40% participation
- 82% offer food to spirits during Lunar New Year
- Catholic Mass attendance: 25% weekly among adherents, 2018 survey
- Protestant house church prayer meetings: 60% bi-weekly
- Cao Dai daily rituals followed by 85% of members
- Hoa Hao full moon chanting sessions: 70% attendance monthly
- Fortune telling consultations: 35% annually seek shamans
- Amulet wearing for protection: 48% among youth, 2022 survey
- Ghost festival (Vu Lan) offerings: 65% household participation
- Mid-Autumn moon worship: 90% family involvement
- 75% pray before major decisions per folk tradition
- Buddhist meditation practice: 12% regular among self-identified Buddhists
- Christian baptism rates: 80% of infants in Catholic families
- Syncretic home shrines: 88% of households maintain
Religious Practices Interpretation
Vietnam’s spiritual landscape is less a tidy devotional checklist than a vibrant, crowded family dinner where ancestors, saints, ghosts, and bureaucrats of the cosmic order are all passed the fish sauce, with incense as the eternal RSVP.
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