How Much Do You Know About World Religions?
Written by Regina Munch History Expert
Last updated · 8 min play time
The more you know about the world’s creeds, the easier it is to understand cultures and values across the globe. How much do you know about world religions?
This quiz was expert reviewed by Regina Munch. Regina has a master's degree in European history and the history of American foreign policy from Boston College. She loves learning and writing about history because it's never dead – things from the past always have relevance to today, and we're discovering things about the past all the time.
Few cultural forces have influenced the human race more than religion. Whether you are devoutly religious, a vehement atheist, or somewhere in between, there can be no doubt that faith is an important and intriguing topic. The more you know about the world’s creeds, the easier it is to understand cultures, values, and movements across the globe.
As important as religion is, most people have little exposure to it outside of the faith they were raised in, if that. The following quiz will test your knowledge of world religions. How much do you know about faith?
Quiz written by
Regina MunchWorld Religions Quiz Questions
29 Questions · 120.6K Plays · 5 Comments
Question 1
Which religion is the largest in the world by population?
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ASikhism
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BBuddhism
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CChristianity
-
DIslam
Christianity
A study of more than 200 countries finds that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages around the world, representing close to a third of the estimated global population.
Question 2
The majority of the world’s Muslims belong to which sect of Islam?
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ASunni
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BShi’ite
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CAlawite
-
DSufis
Sunni
Sunnis make up roughly 87-90% of the world's Muslims.
Question 3
What major religion did the legendary prince Siddhartha Gautama found?
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ASikhism
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BHinduism
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CTewahedo
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DBuddhism
Buddhism
Siddhartha Gautama, known by his title Buddha, taught sometime between the sixth and fourth centuries BC, and his followers consider him the primary figure in Buddhist religion.
Question 4
What form of Christianity do most people in Ethiopia practice?
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ATewahedo
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BMormonism
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CPentecostalism
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DCatholicism
Tewahedo
Orthodox Tewahedo is practiced by almost 39 million people, making up the largest group of Christians in Ethiopia.
Question 5
An atheist is a person who:
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ADoes not believe in a god or gods
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BIs angry at their god
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CBelieves in multiple gods
-
DIs indifferent to the existence of a god or gods
Does not believe in a god or gods
Atheism is the lack of a belief that there is no god or gods, as opposed to theists who do believe in a god, or agnostics who are unsure or believe it is unknowable or irrelevant.
Question 6
Sikhs are famous for wearing their hair in a:
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AHijab
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BBun
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CTurban
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DHat
Turban
Turbans can be worn by both men and women in Sikh tradition. It represents "service, compassion, and honesty."
Question 7
In Islam, Mohammad is regarded as:
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AA god
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BA prophet
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CThe messiah
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DAn angel
A prophet
Muslims believe that Muhammad received the Quran from the angel Gabriel.
Question 8
In which of the following countries is the majority of the population non-religious?
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AVenezuela
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BThe United States
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CNone of the above
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DRussia
None of the above
The majority of Japanese people categorize themselves as believing in Shinto folk religion, which they do not consider "religious" in the sense of organized religion.
Question 9
A Muslim who believes that Ali Ibn Abi Talib is the rightful successor of Mohammad is a:
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ASufi
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BHarami
-
CSunni
-
DShiite
Shiite
The question of Mohammad's rightful successor to the caliphate contributed to the split between Sunni and Shiite sects of Islam.
Question 10
Women who practice Islam often wear a:
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AHijab
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BTurban
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CCorset
-
DBelt
Hijab
Hijab is frequently worn in the presence of adult males.
Question 11
All of the following are majority-Buddhist countries except:
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ASri Lanka
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BNepal
-
CThailand
-
DCambodia
Nepal
The majority of Nepalese people are Hindu.
Question 12
Before the rise of Islam, the official religion of Persia was:
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AJudaism
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BHinduism
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CChristianity
-
DZoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism
A primary symbol of Zoroastrianism is fire.
Question 13
Jewish dietary law is known as:
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ALent
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BKosher
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CMardi Gras
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DHalal
Kosher
Kosher prohibits, among many things, the eating of pork or the combination of meat and milk.
Question 14
Which city are Muslims generally required to visit at least once?
-
ACairo
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BMecca
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CJakarta
-
DBaghdad
Mecca
Every adult Muslim is required by the tenets of their faith to make a pilgrimage to the city of Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
Question 15
Traditional Chinese culture emphasizes all of the following religions except:
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AConfucianism
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BHinduism
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CBuddhism
-
DDaoism
Hinduism
Although few affiliate as Daoist, many Chinese people have participated in Daoist practices.
Question 16
What is the main ceremonial language of the Roman Catholic Church?
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APortuguese
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BGalego
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CGreek
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DLatin
Latin
Holding Mass in the vernacular language, rather than Latin, was only permitted as of the Second Vatican Council in the early to mid 1960s.
Question 17
All of the following religions teach the existence of a creator god except:
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AChristianity
-
BIslam
-
CJudaism
-
DBuddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is not considered a theistic religion; Buddhists do not believe in a god that intervenes in the world the way Christians, Muslims, and Jews do.
Question 18
The Protestant Reformation was a major split within:
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AChristianity
-
BIslam
-
CJudaism
-
DZoroastrianism
Christianity
The Protestant Reformation was a revolt against the perceived decadence and immorality of the clergy, and demanded an ephasis on faith rather than works. This continues to separate Catholics from Protestants today.
Question 19
Which of the following religious leaders was part of the Protestant Reformation?
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AHong Xiuquan
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BJuan Diego
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CJohn Calvin
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DOscar Romero
John Calvin
John Calvin inspired the Calvinist and Presbyterian churches, which believe in predestination.
Question 20
All of the following religious traditions ban pork except:
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AJudaism
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BBuddhism
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CTewahedo Christianity
-
DIslam
Buddhism
Many Buddhists are vegetarian, but there is no blanket ban on pork as there is in Islam, Judaism, and Tewahedo Christianity.
Question 21
Many Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists believe in the principle that it is wrong to harm living things, known as:
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AAhimsa
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BYang
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CQi
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DTantrism
Ahimsa
According to ahimsa, it is wrong to harm others in part because it is also a harm to oneself to do so.
Question 22
What is a dietary requirement of Jainism?
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AFreeganism
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BKosher
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CVegetarianism
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DTeetotalism
Vegetarianism
Jainism is opposed to the harm of living beings, which includes the consumption of animals.
Question 23
After fleeing Mecca, the Prophet Mohammad and his followers took refuge in:
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AMedina
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BJerusalem
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CJakarta
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DAlexandria
Medina
Mohammad's journey from Mecca to Medina is known as the Hegira.
Question 24
Most Buddhists in Sri Lanka follow a form of Buddhism called:
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AMahayana
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BTheravada
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CZen
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DTibetan
Theravada
Theraveda Buddhism is followed by over 80% of Sri Lankans.
Question 25
The leader of Tibetan Buddhism is called the:
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APatriarch
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BDalai Lama
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CImam
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DMonsignor
Dalai Lama
The current Dalai Lama has named his reincarnation.
Question 26
What language do most Egyptian Christians use for ceremonial purposes?
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AGreek
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BCuneiform
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CCoptic
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DAmharic
Coptic
In the second century, religious texts were translated from Koine Greek to Coptic.
Question 27
This West African city was once a center of Islamic scholarship:
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AAccra
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BBamako
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CTimbuktu
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DN'Djamena
Timbuktu
Sankore Madrasah was a major Islamic university in Timbuktu's Islamic golden age.
Question 28
The split between the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches occurred in:
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A1517
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B1054
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C1954
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D513
1054
Although the official split happened much later, the crumbling of the Roman Empire in the 5th century laid the groundwork for a split between the two halves of Christianity.
Question 29
Buddhism teaches that suffering is caused by:
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ASex
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BHunger
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CHemorrhoids
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DDesire
Desire
Tanha is translated as "thirst, desire, longing."
Comments (5)
We want to hear your feedback! Share your scores and discuss the quiz, but keep it civil.
Truly enjoyed this quiz.
Only got 25 out of 29.
I don't know a whole lot on religion therefore I just took my best guess. ??
Pretty easy with a smart phone otherwise 60% LOL~
very difficult