Seychelles
POPULATION 80,600
CHRISTIANITY 95.9 percent
OTHER 4.1 percent
Country Overview
Introduction
The Republic of Seychelles is a group of 86 small islands in the Indian Ocean about 700 miles northeast of Madagascar. Its land area is only 176 square miles (455 square kilometers). About half the islands are coral, while the other half are granite and mountainous.
The Seychelles are one of the most Christianized countries in the world. Catholics make up 86.6 percent of the population, Anglicans 6.8 percent, and other Christian groups 2.5 percent. Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and members of the Bahai faith account for the rest. Although not formally represented, African traditional beliefs are widely held. Pentacostals, Seventh-day Adventists, and Assemblies of God are among the fasting-growing churches.
Named for a controller-general of finance under Louis XV of France, the Seychelles were first settled by French planters around 1771 and were under French rule until ceded to Great Britain in 1814 as part of the Treaty of Paris. Saddled with islands they did not want to administer, the British left them in French hands. In 1903, however, the Seychelles became a British Crown Colony; it obtained its independence in 1976. Trade attracted Chinese to the islands, and after slavery was abolished in 1835, the Malabards from Mauritius and India arrived.
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