In Islam, was it possible for some religious/ethnic group/country/region to make change from Sunni to Shia or Shia to Sunni?
Were there cases that of such change? If yes, what did cause them?
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3The first question is probably more appropriate for the Islam stack exchange. The second question is historical, but should be supported by research. Documenting preliminary research will improve both the probability of an answer and the quality of the answer(s). Having said that, the question could address some interesting question in the history of governance and religion - it was once common for countries to share the religion of their rulers, and the degree to which faith and state legitimacy are bound is still in question.– MCW ♦Commented Jun 24 at 17:57
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2I have edited your question to try to bring it more on topic here. Questions in the present tend to get closed here. Feel free to rollback if you don't like the edit but, in that case, Islam SE would be a better fit.– Lars BosteenCommented Jun 25 at 2:30
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2Duplicate of this question, even if on topic.– cmwCommented Jun 25 at 4:20
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1 Answer
Iran is the most obvious and consequential historical case. From Wikipedia:
Following their rise to power in Iran in the 16th century, the Safavid dynasty initiated a campaign of forced conversion against the Iranian populace, seeking to create a new demographic environment in which Shia Islam would replace Sunni Islam as the nation's religious majority. Over the course of the next three centuries, the Safavids (who were Twelver Shias) heavily persecuted Sunni Muslims, Jews, Christians, and other religious groups, eventually transforming Iran into a spiritual bastion of Shia Islam.
In more recent times (particularly after the Islamic Revolution in Iran) there has been a trend of voluntary conversions in some places such as Indonesia. However I'm not sure how likely this will ever be to amount to a major demographic shift.
