Muslim Immigrants in the Netherlands: Characteristics, Identification and Diversity

The Netherlands is one of the most secularised countries in the world and has seen a sharp decline in the number of people following a religion since the 1960s. This period of secularisation largely coincided with the arrival of migrants, many of whom were Muslims. In this chapter, we will address three related main topics. First, we look at the main characteristics of Muslim immigrants in the Netherlands. Second, we focus on their sense of belonging and identity, including their political identity. Third, we discuss different subgroups among Muslims in the Netherlands using a latent class analysis. We end with some concluding remarks about the development of Muslim immigrants and their children in the Netherlands in the last decade and consider the significance of a context of secularisation for the religiosity of Muslims and their sense of belonging in the Netherlands.