Islam in Montenegro refers to adherents, communities and religious institutions of Islam in Montenegro. It is the second largest religion in the country, after Christianity. According to the 2011 census, Montenegro's 118,477 Muslims make up 19.11% of the total population. Montenegro's Muslims belong mostly to the Sunni branch. In 2023, Montenegro's 124,668 Muslims made up 19.99% of the total population.
In the 15th century the Montenegrin ruler Ivan Crnojevià(1465âÂÂ1490) was at war with the infiltrating Venetians. Unable to maintain war on both fronts, the Ottoman Empire had conquered much of Montenegro's territory and introduced Islam. Ivan's third son Stanià ¡a Crnojeviàwas the first prominent Montenegrin of the Muslim faith.
Stanià ¡a Crnojeviàtook up the name Skenderbeg Crnojeviàand ruled from his capital in Shköder from 1513 to 1530. He is well known as one of the most prominent Muslim administrators of Slavic origin in the northern reaches of the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Sultan Selim I. Stanià ¡a Crnojeviàis known to have commanded an army of approximately 3000 Akñncñ. He also maintained a correspondence with neighboring contemporaries, such as Gazi Husrev-beg.
In 1878, following the Treaty of Berlin, the independence of the Principality of Montenegro was recognized, while at the same time its conquest of areas home to ethnic Albanian populations recognized, increasing the country's Muslim population. Later, in 1912, as the Kingdom of Montenegro, following the First Balkan War, the Sandà ¾ak region was split between Montenegro and Serbia. This area was home to a large Bosniak population, further increasing the country's Muslim population.
Following the abolishment of slavery in the Principality of Montenegro, many Black Montenegrins converted to Islam. This happened as part of a greater cultural assimilation into the Albanian culture of Ulcinj.
The Muslims of Montenegro are mostly Bosniaks and Albanians by ethnicity, but also some are declared as ethnic Muslims and Montenegrins. The adherents of Islam in Montenegro can be mostly found in the Sandà ¾ak region in northeastern Montenegro and the municipalities of Bar, Tuzi and Ulcinj. Bosniaks have a similar ethnic background to ethnic Muslims, but differ in ideology of what ethnicity they belong to. There are 13 established Councils of the Islamic Community in Montenegro, which include Bar, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Dinoà ¡a, Gusinje, Ostros, Petnjica, Plav, Pljevlja, Roà ¾aje, Tuzi, Ulcinj and Podgorica. Montenegro has 145 active mosques in the country.
According to the 2011 census, there are 118,477 adherents of Islam in Montenegro.
The ethnic composition of Muslims (adherents of Islam) in Montenegro:
There are large regional differences in the distribution of the Muslim population. The Roà ¾aje Municipality, for example, is almost exclusively inhabited by adherents of Islam, while there are no Muslims living in the Pluà ¾ine Municipality.