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North American and Europe Region of the Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch (2009 - Present) - Religious Group

Religious Family: Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)
Religious Tradition: Orthodox
Description: The Knanaya people constitute an endogamous (i.e., marrying only within their own community) ethnic group. Most of them live in the State of Kerala, in South India. They are descendants of 72 Jewish Christian families who immigrated to India in the year 345 AD from Mesopotamia, the present-day Urfa province in Turkey. Their leader was a merchant named Thomas of Cana (Knai Toma). The term “Knanaya” is derived from his name. Worldwide, the Knanaya presently number about 300,000 and are divided between two major religious groups. The first belongs to the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church. The second group follows the teachings of the Syrian (Syriac) Orthodox Church of Antioch (headquartered in Damascus, Syria). This latter group recognizes the head of this Church, the Patriarch of Antioch, as their supreme leader, but because of their emphasis on endogamy, and strong ethnic identity and culture, Knanaya churches are united into the autonomous worldwide Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church. Knanaya churches in the USA are part of this Archdiocese. Metropolitan Ayub Mor Silvanos is the head of the Knanaya churches situated in America, Canada, and Europe. The languages of worship in American Knanaya churches are Malalayam (a conversational language used in South India) and English.
Official Site: https://morsilvanos.com/

Maps: North American and Europe Region of the Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch1

Adherence Rate per 1,000 (2020)

Congregations (2020)



Top 5 North American and Europe Region of the Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch States (2020)1 [View all States]

Rank State Congregations Adherents Adherence Rate
1 Connecticut 1 280 0.08
2 New Jersey 1 400 0.04
3 Texas 3 810 0.03
4 Massachusetts 1 190 0.03
5 New York 2 412 0.02

Top 5 North American and Europe Region of the Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch Counties (2020)1 [View all Counties]

Rank County Congregations Adherents Adherence Rate
1 Passaic County, NJ 1 400 0.76
2 Alexandria city, VA 1 80 0.50
3 Fort Bend County, TX 2 380 0.46
4 Hartford County, CT 1 280 0.31
5 Lake County, IL 1 160 0.22

Top 5 North American and Europe Region of the Knanaya Archdiocese of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch Metro Areas (2020)1 [View all Metro Areas]

Sources

1 The 2020 data were collected by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB) and include data for 372 religious bodies or groups. Of these, the ASARB was able to gather data on congregations and adherents for 217 and on congregations only for 155. [More information on the data sources]

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