중화인민공화국 정부는 공식적으로 국가 무신론을 표방하고 있지만[3] 중국 문명은 역사적으로 오랫동안 전 세계도교, 불교는 중국 문화의 기틀을 마련한 삼교를 이룬다. 이 종교 체계 간 명확한 경계는 없다.
기독교와 이슬람교는 7세기 중국에 다다랐다. 20세기 초 기독교 커뮤니티가 성장했으나 1949년 이후 외부 선교사들이 내쫓기면서 교회는 정부 통제 기관 하에 들어갔다. 1970년대 말 이후 기독교인을 위한 종교 자유가 개선되어 새로운 중국계 단체들이 등장하였다.[4]:508, 532
↑For China Family Panel Studies 2017 survey results see release #1 (archived) and release #2 (archived). The tables also co~ntain the results of CFPS 2012 (sample 20,035) and Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) results for 2006, 2008 and 2010 (samples ~10.000/11,000). Also see, for comparison CFPS 2012 data in 2014, 13쪽 harvp error: 대상 없음: CITEREF2014 (help), reporting the results of the CGSS 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2011, and their average (fifth column of the first table).
↑ 가나China Family Panel Studies 2012. Reported and compared with Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2011 in Lu (2014) harvp error: 대상 없음: CITEREFLu2014 (help)
↑ 가나Data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) 2012. Reported in Gai, Rong Hua; Gao, Jun Hui (2016년 12월 22일). “Multiple-Perspective Analysis on the Geological Distribution of Christians in China”. 《PEOPLE: International Journal of Social Sciences》 2 (1). 809–817면. doi:10.20319/pijss.2016.s21.809817. ISSN2454-5899.
↑Lai, Hongyi (2016). 《China's Governance Model: Flexibility and Durability of Pragmatic Authoritarianism》. Routledge. ISBN978-1317859529. p. 167.
↑“Internazional Religious Freedom Report 2012”(PDF). US Government. p. 20, quoting: "Most ethnic Tibetans practice Tibetan Buddhism, although a sizeable minority practices Bon, an indigenous religion, and very small minorities practice Islam, Catholicism, or Protestantism. Some scholars estimate that there are as many as 400,000 Bon followers across the Tibetan Plateau. Scholars also estimate that there are up to 5,000 ethnic Tibetan Muslims and 700 ethnic Tibetan Catholics in the TAR".
↑CFPS 2014 surveyed a sample of 13,857 families and 31,665 individuals.[2]:27, note 4 As noted by Katharina Wenzel-Teuber of China Zentrum, German institute for research on religion in China, compared to CFPS 2012, CFPS 2014 asked the Chinese about personal belief in certain conceptions of divinity (i.e. "Buddha", "Tao", "God of the Christians/Jesus", "Heavenly Lord of the Catholics") rather than membership in a religious group.[2]:27 It also included regions, such as those in the west of China, that were excluded in CFPS 2012,[2]:27, note 3 and unregistered Christians.[2]:28 For these reasons, she concludes that CFPS 2014 results are more accurate than 2012 ones.
↑CFPS 2014 surveyed predominantly people of Han ethnicity. This may have resulted in an underestimation of Muslims. CGSS 2006–2010 surveys found an average 2-3% of the population of China declaring to be Muslim.