ABSTRACT
Religions in Africa can be dealt with under three broad divisions: Islam, Christianity, and traditional. Virtually all other faiths are represented on the continent but in most cases only on a small scale and sometimes in particular pockets, such as Hinduism in Mauritius and South Africa. Islam is the original legacy of the Arab invaders of the 7th to 9th centuries and is the paramount religion across North Africa; it also extends across most of the Sahel region and down the East African coast, and in recent African history – post-1960 – has been advancing at a considerable rate elsewhere on the continent as it attracts new adherents.
