Religion in Suriname

The government is vocally supportive of religious diversity and tolerance, and these attitudes are present in general society as well.

Amerindians, found principally in the interior and to a lesser extent in coastal areas, practice shamanism, worship of all living things, and their rites are led by medicine men, or piaiman.

[3] Other groups include the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and the World Islamic Call Society.

[7] According to the 2012 census data 48.4% of the population of Suriname is Christian[1] and the Pentecostal churches are the largest Protestant denomination, closely followed by Moravians.

Examples are the lack of a rigid caste system and the almost universal reading of Gita and Ramayan.

[1] Hindus are mostly concentrated in Northern coastal regions of Suriname: Nickerie, Wanica and Saramacca, where they constitute the largest religious group.

[9][10]There has been a Jewish community in Suriname since 1639, when the English government allowed Sephardi Jews to settle the region.

The constitution of Suriname establishes the freedom of religion and outlaws discrimination along religious lines.