MUSLIMS OF INDIA
Islam first came to India at the Malabar Coast of Kerala through Arab traders as early as 6 AD, the first century of the Islamic calendar. Several centuries later the local population that embraced Islam became a well-knit social and cultural group known as the Moplas.
Within the next 200 years, the first Muslim empire, the Delhi Sultanate, was established in India with its capital in Delhi. This was followed by several other Muslim dynasties like the Khiljis, the Tughlaqs, the Lodis and the Mughals. The period of the Mughals was the golden age of Islam in India. The religion flourished under the Mughal rule and many Indians embraced Islam. Today Muslims constitute about 12% of India's population and are concentrated largely in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Kashmir. Internationally, Islam has a huge following, estimated to be over 600 million or almost one-fifth of the world's population, spread all over the world.
