Family Tree of Religions

Last updated: 2016

This post includes a historical family tree of religions. Religions can be classified in a number of different ways, including geography (Middle Eastern, Iranian, Indian, Chinese, ...) or fundamental concepts (Abrahamic, Dharmic, Taoic, ...). This mindmap shows from which other believes the religions were split or on which they were originally based.

There is of course a lot of speculation for some of them, especially syncretic or ethnic religions, so there might be some errors. The "{...}" categories are just categories (instead of an original religion from which the other ones derived), and the arrows show influences between religions (e.g. Zoroastrianism influencing early Judaism).

Religions marked with (t) ar extinct. Those marked with ! are the major religions. The 12 classical religions are formatted in bold.

Click here to open the picture in a new tab

If you find this interesting you should also check out this World Map of Religions.

Below is a simplified text-format version:

• derived from Proto-Indoeuropean religion †
• Early Aryan religion †
• Kalash religion
• Iranian mythology / Persian mythology †
• Zoroastrianism
• Mithraism †
• Mazdakism †
• Proto-Yazdanism †
• Yazidi religion
• Yarsan religion
• Shabak religion
• Osset paganism † (revived)
• Scythian paganism †
• Vedic religion / Brahmanism †
• Hinduism
• Sikhism
• various small Hinduism-derived religions (see picture)
• Jainism
• Buddism
• Hoahaosim
• Falun Gong
• Hittite polytheism †
• Greek polytheism † (revived)
• Pythagoreanism †
• Platonism † (revived)
• various small Greek-derived religions (see picture) †
• Roman polytheism † (revived)
• Cult of Sol Invictus †
• Celtic polytheism † (revived)
• Germanic polytheism † (revived)
• Baltic polytheism † (revived)
• Slavic polytheism † (revived)
• Tocharian paganism †
• Armenian paganism † (revived)
• Daco-Thracian paganism † (revived)
• Illyrian paganism
• Sumerian religion † (revived)
• derived from Proto-Afroasiatic religion †
• Egyptian religion † (revived)
• Atonism (revived)
• Proto-Semitic religion † (revived)
• Canaanite religion † (revived)
• Semitic Mesopotamian religion †
• Sabians of Harran †
• Judaism
• Samaritanism
• Christianity
• Mormonism
• various small Christian-derived religions (see picture)
• Arabian polytheim †
• Islam
• Babism
• Bahai religion
• Druze religion
• Alawi/Nusayri Islam
• Alevi Islam & Ishikism/Chinarism
• Ahmadiyya Islam
• various small Islam-derived religions (see picture)
• Eblaitic religion †
• Phoenician & Carthagian religion †
• Aramamic religion †
• South Arabian religion †
• Axumite religion †
• Canarian paganism (revived)
• Shenism (Chinese folk religion)
• Mohism †
• Taoism
• various small Taoism-derived religions (see picture)
• Confucianism
• Cheondoism
• derived from Japanese mythology †
• Shintoism
• Tenrikyo
• various small Shinto-derived religions (see picture)
• Caodai
• I-Kuan Tao
• Muism (Korean folk religion)
• various small religions derived from Korean folk religion (see picture)
• derived from Proto-Austronesian religion †
• various religions Balinese mythology
• Balinese mythology
• Kebatinan
• Kiribati mythology
• Micronesian religion
• Nauruan religion
• Hawaiian religion
• Maori religion
• Malagasy mythology
• various other religions (see picture)
• various Black African folk religions (see picture)
• various Amerindian (Native American) folk religions (see picture)
• various Melanesian and Papuan folk religions
• Australian Aboriginal mythology
• Khoisan mythology
• Pygmy mythology
• various Asian folk religions
• Bon
• Rykyuan religion
• Munism
• derived from Proto-Uralic paganism †
• Sami shamanism
• Estonian paganism † (revived)
• Finnish paganism † (revived)
• Hungarian paganism † (revived)
• various others (see picture)
• Chuvash paganism
• Tengrism
• Yeniseian shamanism
• Tungusic shamanism
• Chukchi-Koryak shamanism
• Nivkh shamanism
• Eskimo religion
• Abkhaz paganism & Adyghe Habze
• Native Indian (pre-Hinduism) mythology
• Gurung Dharma
• Kiratism
• Donyi-Polo
• Santhal religion
• Sanamahism
• various others (see picture)
• Occultism (see picture)
• Spiritualism (see picture)
• Mock religions (see picture)
• Cargo cults (see picture)
• Fictional religions that became "real" (e.g. Jediism) (see picture)
• Philosophical concepts that replace classical religions (see picture)
• Agnosticism
• Atheism
• Deism
• Pantheism
• Humanism
• Political "religions"
• Communism
• Juche
• Fascism
• National Socialism
• various others (see picture)