A map of all counties and states of the United States of America by plurality or majority religious tradition (by number of recorded adherents). All data comes from the 2020 U.S. Religion Census. Agnostics and atheists were not counted.
Posted by studyandfaith
28 Comments
Vajrayana Buddhists and arid landlocked plateaus. Name a more iconic duo.
“Jarvis, remind me to check in on the religious discourse that will happen later on under this post.”
That’s it, I’m moving to Alpine. Close to the beach, still gets snow, and smart enough not to keep tabs on everyone’s religion. 🤣
Off to check their voting record…
That baby blue/ burgundy color combo is one of my favorites. Interesting choice for a map, but very nice to look at!
I knew Utah was Mormon but, never thought Idaho was so as well.
I grew up in NJ and attended Catholic schools all my life. I spent most of my life assuming America was Catholic. I remember learning about JFK being the first Catholic President and honest to God, I assumed all the other Presidents were Jews or Atheists because Catholic and Christian were the same thing to me.
I was like 12 or 13 when I stumbled upon a religious map of the US and realized I was a religious minority in the US.
New Mexican here. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the north were largely settled by Spanish settlers who traveled up from New Spain (present-day Mexico) in 1598. They brought their culture with them and intermarried with the indigenous Puebloan people, creating a unique genetic population with its own history, culture, and language (in some rural towns up north like Mora, older people still speak a dialect of Spanish that’s been preserved for generations.) East of the Pecos River (a tributary of the Rio Grande), the economy, culture, and politics is totally different. It’s more cattle and oil country, like an extension of West Texas. It is, after all, the western edge of the Great Plains. That area is more Southern Baptist.
These religious differences coincide with political differences: Lea County in the southeast is +75% Republican whereas Taos County in the north is +75% Democratic.
just wanted to put it out there that the official US Census is by law prohibited from asking about religion. The “U.S. Religion Census” relies on denominations to tell how many members they have, which may not be entirely accurate.
[https://www.usreligioncensus.org/methods](https://www.usreligioncensus.org/methods)
if area is more catholic that means that area attracts immigrants
Some insight on Latter-day Saints:
* That green county in Southern Colorado is Conejos County, which includes the San Luis Valley. LDS pioneers settled this area in late 1870s. Two of the main towns, Sanford and Manassa, remain LDS strongholds and still celebrate Pioneer Day on 24 July.
* The two LDS counties in Arizona are Navajo and Graham. Navajo County includes towns like Snowflake (founded by pioneers William J. Flake and Erastus Snow), Taylor (named for LDS President John Taylor), and Joseph City (named for Joseph Smith.) Lots of history here. Former Arizona Senator Jeff Flake grew up in Snowflake and is a direct descendant of William. Graham County includes the Gila Valley, which LDS pioneers settled in the 1880s. Eastern Arizona College, a former stake academy, was sold to the state during the Great Depression. Even though it’s a state school, it feels like the BYU of Arizona.
* That little LDS county in southern New Mexico is Hidalgo County. Hardly anyone lives there, so I think just a handful of LDS families can tip the scale. I dated a girl from there a long time ago.
* Eastern Idaho and the Upper Snake River is basically an extension of Utah. BYU-Idaho is up there.
Who are these vajrajanya Buddhists???? Never thought anything not Jesus would have any majority in US/..
Crestone, Colorado is a wild place
New England, gets its start by escaping Catholics.
New England today, majority Catholic, you became the very thing you swore to (not really) destroy!
The segment of Eastern Orthodox in Alaska is interesting. I had no idea, but I guess it makes sense?
So most big cities are catholic. I didn’t realize it was that big in California
Ah, saguache county. The Buddhists finally outnumbered the Catholic monks and the weirdo new age cult.
Not a single county is majority Muslim yet? I thought parts of Michigan might have been
Fucking hell the Mormons keep spreading!
Someone stop them!
The southwest corner of Idaho is Roman Catholic thanks in part to the large Basque population that settled in Owyhee county.
ALERT: THE MORMONS ARE SPREADING!! BE PREPARED!!
My guess for that orthodox bit of Alaska is it’s mostly Alaskan Native communities who were converted by Russian traders a long time ago. Don’t know why there’s Mormons in Alaska though? Just LDS missionaries putting in overtime to convert native communities?
For all we know Alpine California could be worshiping some dark eldritch deity with an unpronounceable name
Fuck cops…
alabama and those surrounding would be a lot better if they were not in a bubble
Growing up as a young Protestant in the mid-west… happy to report we did give a fuck.
Didn’t know they had Mormons in Alaska
“Founded as a haven for English Catholics” Maryland is no longer plurality Roman Catholic 😭
I think it’s pretty BS to just say “Protestant”. name and show all the dumb little factions they’ve split into. Everyone and their dog thinks they’ve got a hotline to god so they all become “preachers” and name a new offshoot.