ABSTRACT
Since the collapse of the Soviet system and the end of the Cold War in 1989–91, Muslim immigrants have been arriving in increasing numbers in the countries of central and eastern Europe. This chapter describes Muslim communities in Europe in terms of their own characteristics: ethno-national, socio-economic and religious. Under communist regimes in eastern Europe before 1990, the most common form of Muslim migrant presence was that of students from favoured countries, which included parts of the Arab world. The earliest Christian initiatives seeking to engage with Muslims tended to be local and driven by committed individuals, both lay members of church congregations and clergy; then from the mid-1970s a number of church bodies started to explore the field at the national level. In Britain, the British Council of Churches decided that its members needed help to understand and react to the World of Islam Festival, a major national cultural programme which took place in 1976.
