ABSTRACT
Most of the inhabitants of the Arab Middle East are Sunni Muslims by religion and speak Arabic. In his book on minorities, however, A. Hourani estimates that members of other religious groups or persons speaking other languages constitute more than a quarter of the population of these countries. 2 The conclusion remains valid even if some of his more out-of-date data are corrected, and also if the population of Sudan, the Arabian Peninsula, and Libya (not included in Hourani’s estimate) are added.
