This paper challenges the thesis of Muslim demographic
exceptionalism by providing a detailed case study of the Republic
of Macedonia. Given the heterogeneity of Muslim populations in
different countries, country level investigation of the
demographic and socio-economic characteristics of Muslim
population is important to devulgarize the level of discussion
about this subject, which has been receiving increasing attention
in both academic/policy and popular circles in the aftermath of
9/11. The Republic of Macedonia had a population of 2.1 million
as of 2009. Ethnicity and religious affiliation are almost identical
for the main ethnicities - with the exception of a tiny fraction,
almost all ethnic Macedonians are Christian Orthodox, and
almost all Albanians, Turks, and Bosnians are Muslim. Ninety
two percent of Romas are also Muslims. In 2009, about 35%
population of Macedonia was estimated to be Muslim. Muslim
population of the Republic of Macedonia will continue to grow
over the next twenty years, with its the share of projected to
increase to 40 percent by 2029 under a medium fertility scenario.
Given the decreasing rate of growth, Muslims are expected to
remain a minority for the foreseeable future. Thus, Muslims are
expected to follow the demographic trajectory of other groups
albeit with a delayed effect because of the population momentum.
This finding is consistent with the conclusions from recent studies on the demographics of Muslims, and casts serious doubts on the
thesis of Muslim exceptionalism.