International Spatial Diffusion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter

Territoire en mouvement Revue de
géographie et aménagement
Territory in movement Journal of geography and
planning
13 | 2012
Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du
religieux
International Spatial Diffusion of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
La diffusion spatiale et internationale de l’Église de Jésus-Christ des Saints des
Derniers Jours
Samuel M. Otterstrom
Éditeur
Université des Sciences et Technologies de
Lille
Édition électronique
URL : http://tem.revues.org/1630
DOI : 10.4000/tem.1630
ISSN : 1950-5698
Édition imprimée
Date de publication : 1 mai 2012
Pagination : 102-130
ISSN : 1954-4863
Référence électronique
Samuel M. Otterstrom, « International Spatial Diffusion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints », Territoire en mouvement Revue de géographie et aménagement [En ligne], 13 | 2012, mis en
ligne le 01 janvier 2014, consulté le 25 octobre 2016. URL : http://tem.revues.org/1630 ; DOI :
10.4000/tem.1630
Ce document est un fac-similé de l'édition imprimée.
Territoire en mouvement est mis à disposition selon les termes de la licence Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International.
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
La diffusion spatiale et internationale
de l’Église de Jésus-Christ des Saints
des Derniers Jours
Samuel M. Otterstrom
Department of Geography
690 SWKT
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT 84602
USA
[email protected]
Résumé
Cet article traite de la diffusion internationale et de la
croissance de l’Église de Jésus-Christ des Saints des Derniers Jours ; Eglise dont les membres sont aussi connus
sous le nom de « Mormons ». Un modèle de diffusion
spatiale des Mormons hors Etats-Unis est développé, qui
incorpore une perspective fonctionnelle et une perspective spatiale. Si la perspective fonctionnelle inclut principalement le taux de croissance des Mormons dans un pays
donné, la perspective spatiale - sur laquelle cet article se
concentre - cherche à montrer l’existence d’un type spatial lié à l’expansion de l’Église dans les divers pays. Une
brève vue d’ensemble de l’histoire de la diffusion internationale de l’Église est proposée ainsi que des analyses plus
détaillées concernant le Brésil, le Pérou ou le Mexique. En
effet, les recherches menées prouvent que l’Église, depuis
la Seconde Guerre Mondiale, s’est diffusée d’une manière
clairement hiérarchique hors des États-Unis.
Abstract
This paper outlines the international diffusion and
growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(Church members are commonly known as “Mormons”).
A model of Mormon spatial diffusion in foreign countries
is developed incorporating both a functional and spatial
perspective. The functional perspective includes supply
and demand variables which influence the rate of growth
of Mormons within a country. The spatial perspective,
which the study concentrates on, seeks to show a general
spatial pattern related to the spread of the Church within
countries. Included is a brief overview of the history of the
international diffusion of the Church along with more indepth spatial diffusion perspective analyses of Brazil, Peru,
and Mexico. The research finds that the Church since
World War II has diffused in a distinctly hierarchical manner within countries outside of the United States.
Mots-clés : Mormons, diffusion spatiale et religieuse, Église
de Jésus-Christ des Saints des Derniers Jours, mondialisation
Keywords: Mormons, religious spatial diffusion, Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, globalization
Introduction
1983, Mosiah 3 : 20). The organization has therefore made missionary work, both domestic and
international, a high priority since the Church's
founding in 1830.
The most substantial worldwide diffusion of the
Church has been a recent phenomenon. It was
not until the twentieth century, when Church
leaders began to encourage converts to stay and
support Mormon congregations in their own
countries, that the Mormons began to have a
lasting international presence. In 1930 approximately 90 percent of all Church members lived
in the United States. This figure has dropped
dramatically, so that in 1980 only 70 percent of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
(referred to in this paper as “Church” or “LDS
Church” and whose members are commonly
known as Mormons or LDS), has grown from its
simple beginning in 1830 of six members in New
York State to some 14 million followers around
the globe in 2010. This significant growth has
not been evenly spread over time and place, but
today there are Mormon congregations in at
least 150 nations and territories. The Church
states that it has been given the divine mandate
to spread its beliefs "throughout every nation,
kindred, tongue, and people" (Book of Mormon
102
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Mormons lived in the U.S.A. By 1991, this proportion was less than 55 percent, and in 2009
that number had dropped further to 44 percent
(Otterstrom 1990 : 9; Almanac 1992, Almanac 2010).
This research analyzes the rates and patterns of the
international growth of the LDS Church as well as
focusing specifically on the way spatial diffusion
within countries has operated to create the present landscape of followers of Mormonism within
foreign nations. I introduce a model of religious
diffusion that incorporates both spatial and functional perspectives, and I show that the factors that
have led to the numerical growth of worldwide
Mormons have also been key to the hierarchical
nature of the spatial diffusion of the Church.1
1. Brief Overview of Diffusion Studies
Spatial diffusion has been the subject of much
discussion and research in the world of geographic study. Spatial diffusion studies are indebted
to the early work of Torsten Hagerstrand who
wrote his dissertation, Innovation Diffusion as a
Spatial Process in 1953 (Morrill et al. 1988 : 23).
Hagerstrand’s model helped explain the spatial
nature of the spread of a farm implement innovation in Sweden. He argued that because most
people's contact networks are localized, the diffusion of an innovation would likewise be a local
process where innovations spread outward in a
contagious manner (Morrill et al. 1988 : 23-4).
The research of Hagerstrand has had great influence on the many paths that diffusion research
has followed (see Brown 1981 : 15-21). These studies range from the spread of black ghettos to the
diffusion of influenza in Iceland to the differential growth of cities in the United States (Morrill
1965, Cliff et al 2000, Pred 1966).
Brown (1981 : 20-1) explains the three general patterns often associated with the diffusion process:
Over time, a graph of the cumulative level of
adoption is expected to approximate an S-shape.
In an urban system, the diffusion is expected
to proceed from larger to smaller centers, a regularity termed the hierarchy effect. Within the
hinterland of a single urban center, diffusion
is expected to proceed in a wave-like fashion
outward from the urban center, first hitting
1
nearby rather than farther-away locations,
and a similar pattern is expected in diffusion
among a rural population. This third regularity is termed the neighborhood or contagion effect.
Later diffusion models have included the elements of relocation migration and the influence
of an innovation propagator in the conceptual
models studied (Brown 1981 : 28,52).
Relocation is an important element of the diffusion of the LDS Church because much of the
geographic spread of Mormonism can be attributed to the relocation of its members. This type of
spatial diffusion has included large migrations
in the early history of the Church (e.g. moving
to Utah and settling new colonies), and movements of families from Utah in this century for
job opportunities, schooling, and other reasons.
The relocation process has been fundamental to
the international diffusion of the LDS Church.
Missionaries, the main instruments of Mormonism's spread, are intentionally "relocated" in
new countries or regions of countries where the
Church has been allowed to proselytize. Other
international "relocations" of American members who are in military, government, or business fields have provided the groundwork for
the initial diffusion of the Church into a surprising number of countries.
Although Brown (1981) used business corporations as his examples of propagators of an innovation (e.g. a satellite dish manufacturer, a restaurant franchise corporation, or a department
store chain), some aspects of his conceptual model can help explain the way the LDS Church
operates as the propagator of the LDS religion.
Brown argues that it is important to look at a
more complete picture of diffusion than one
which just concentrates on what influences the
individual or household to adopt an innovation,
by considering both supply and demand factors
(Brown 1981 : 50).
Brown further describes the role of the propagator, which is the LDS Church in this study, in
the establishment of diffusion agencies in various
locations. These agencies, which can be compared
with Church missions, become the points from
which the innovation (e.g., Mormonism) spread
into surrounding areas, and help to structure the
This article is adapted and updated from Otterstrom (1994).
103
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
future spread of the innovation (Brown 1981 : 51).
A mission is a defined geographic area of the
world that has a Church-assigned mission president and approximately 50-200 full-time missionaries. There were 340 LDS missions around
the world as of July 2010 (LDS Church News
Feb 13, 2010). At the end of 2009 there were
51,736 full-time missionaries around the world
(Ensign May, 2010, 28).
One other important aspect of the diffusion process is the actual adoption of the innovation by
individuals. Most corporations seek to spread
their innovation following these stages of diffusion for the purposes of increasing sales and profits. The LDS Church follows a similar pattern,
but its goal is to increase the numbers and quality of converts or adopters of the Mormon faith,
rather than multiplying profits. Additionally,
the Church is characterized by a centralized
organization that is responsible for deciding the
locations of missions and the number of missionaries sent to these areas and, according to
Brown, there are various methods and patterns
of diffusion which typify centralized decisionmaking structures, meaning that they are not
necessarily hierarchical in their spatial spread
(1981 : 63).
2. Geographic Studies of Religious
Diffusion
A number of spatial diffusion studies have been
written on religions other than the Mormons
(see also Peffers 1980). Crowley (1978) shared a
thoughtful historical geography overview of the
diffusion of old order Amish settlements. He
traced the movement of Amish people to the
United States and the establishment of Amish
communities in various parts of North America.
He compared the number and location of both
surviving and defunct settlements. He also outlined the factors which influenced the Amish to
settle in particular regions. The spatial diffusion
of Amish communities described is more related
to the early colonization efforts of the Mormons
in the Great Basin than to the modern spread of
Mormonism.
Hemmasi (1992) described the diffusion of Islam
as an example of a phenomenon which can help
teach students a variety of geographic principles.
The Islam faith is an interesting religion to study
because of its great growth and its virtual satura104
tion of many countries in the Middle East. Hemmasi describes how different types of diffusion
affected the spread of Islam through history.
These diffusion categories include expansion
diffusion, colonization diffusion, and relocation diffusion. Expansion diffusion contains
the sub-types of voluntary, forced, and hierarchic. Colonization diffusion of Islam is similar
to that which occurred in the Intermountain
West under the direction of LDS Church leaders. Settlers would begin new communities in
dispersed areas in regions conquered by Muslim
kingdoms, or in the case of Mormonism, away
from Salt Lake City. Relocation diffusion occurred when Muslims moved to new regions to live
without proselyting. This produced isolated pockets of Muslims in Europe, the Caribbean and
elsewhere without resulting in many converts
among the "host" population.
Barriers to the diffusion of Islam are also discussed by Hemmasi. These include physical
barriers such as mountains, oceans, and dense
forests, and cultural barriers like language, economic, political, and religious differences. Barriers alter the diffusion of religions so that different regions of the world experience different
rates of adoption of the belief system. In the LDS
Church, political barriers particularly delay the
establishment of missionary work in a country,
while additional impediments such as language,
culture and physical remoteness can hinder the
rate of conversion to the faith after missionary
efforts are initiated. These along with other
barriers help explain the spatial conversion rate
variability of Mormon proselyting efforts. The
barriers which the diffusion of Mormonism
faces will be discussed later on.
3. Studies of LDS Growth
Previous studies on the diffusion of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have concentrated on its spread within the United States.
Johnson (1966) and Louder (1972) both wrote
analytical studies using Hagerstrand based models to emphasize the American nature of the
Church. Louder particularly focused on the
concentration of members in the western United States (Louder 1975; Louder & Bennion
1978). This United States orientation makes
sense for the sixties and early seventies because
the Church had a much smaller international
S. M. OTTERSTROM
presence then, but much has changed in the geography of Church membership since that time.
Stark (1984) emphasized the rapid growth trends
of Mormonism internationally, while other more
recent papers have concentrated on the social
and spatial processes impacting the growth of
the Church, especially in the United States (Bennion, 1995; Laing, 2002; Johnson and Johnson,
2007; Otterstrom 2008). Bennion argued that the
Church was still a strongly western United States
institution in 1992, with nearly 80 percent of its
U.S. members in the thirteen western states. Regardless of the Church’s membership geography
within the United States, it has grown at a significant rate outside of the USA, so a study of Mormon international diffusion patterns is justified.
The magnitude of this ongoing international
growth prompted me (Otterstrom 1990) to
study its possible financial implications for the
Church. The study compared worldwide Church
population projections with present gross national product (GNP) per capita figures of nations with large LDS populations. The research
showed the magnitude of the church's ongoing
shift to a population increasingly made up of
members in developing countries, and it emphasized the fact that the most successful diffusion
of Mormonism in the 21st century occurred in
the less-developed realm.
Other historical material provided helpful
background on the growth of the Church worldwide. Arrington (1987) wrote a short but comprehensive overview of the historical events
which led to the international growth of the
LDS Church. The paper described international
missionary endeavors ranging from the first efforts with American Indian nations in 1830 to
the tremendous growth of the Church in Mexico
during the 1970's. Moss et al. (1982) compiled a
description of the worldwide expansion of the
Church by region. They divided the world into
regions and gave detailed accounts of missionary work and Church expansion in the areas
through different time periods. Throughout the
various chapters they emphasizes the positive influence that the following factors, among others,
have had on numbers of converts to the LDS
faith: a high degree of religious freedom, a large
Christian sector, and a substantial population of
those in lower socioeconomic classes. This paper
will fill a substantial gap in the literature by applying spatial diffusion concepts to describe and
model the geographic growth of this religious
movement at the international level. This will in
turn provide a basis for more in-depth diffusion
studies of other large worldwide religions.
4. Religious Diffusion Conceptual
Framework
The growth of the LDS Church in the international setting has great potential as a subject for diffusion research. The spatial patterns are guided by a
number of factors which affect both the rate of diffusion and the degree of penetration in a country.
To help organize these factors in an understandable manner, I have developed a framework
which will guide the remainder of the study.
Figure 1 outlines the conceptual model of international LDS diffusion. This model stems in
part from the comparison of functional and spatial perspectives of diffusion described by Brown
(1981 : 41). The functional perspective of this
model is the supply, demand, and temporal portions, while the spatial perspective is represented
by the spatial box on the bottom of the figure.
This paper concentrates on the "spatial perspective" by showing the patterns of LDS spatial
diffusion within countries, so discussion of the
functional portion of the model and how it relates to the international growth of Mormonism
is mostly limited to the following paragraphs.
5. Functional Perspective
Supply and demand are both important when
looking at the functional manner in which the
LDS Church spreads over time. The propagator of the "innovation" of Mormonism is the
Church with headquarters in Salt Lake City,
Utah. The Church programs, including missionary efforts, are administered by a central
decision-making body known as the “general
authorities”. The general authorities direct
the affairs of the missionary program and
decide when and where new missions will be
established.
The factors which influence the international
supply of the Mormon religious innovation are
many. They include the number of members
who relocate to foreign countries for military,
business, or governmental purposes, the supply
105
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Figure 1: Preliminary Conceptual Model of the international diffusion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
of missionaries available for service periods
ranging from one to two years, the number of
members in a country who actively participate
in sharing the Mormon religion, the extent
of the international transportation network,
and the financial resources available for use by
106
the Church to support the missions and desired proselytization strategies (e.g. the radio or
television media).
The greater the number of Mormons who relocate to foreign countries, especially those with
small indigenous LDS memberships, the greater
S. M. OTTERSTROM
the possibility that sustained Church growth
will occur in those countries. The foundation of
the more seasoned expatriate members can help
support these membership increases. Those who
join the Church in foreign countries become
part of the supply side themselves because all
members are strongly encouraged to share their
faith with those around them.
It is obvious that a greater supply of missionaries means a larger number of places in which
the Church can place these full time "diffusers"
of Mormonism. Although much of the missionaries living expenses are paid by themselves,
their families, or their home congregations, the
Church still incurs great expenses in supporting missionary headquarters around the globe,
paying for missionary travel, translating and
printing Church literature in foreign languages,
and supporting missionaries from less developed countries. As the amount of money that
the Church devotes to its missionary programs
increases, the potential supply of Mormonism to
more remote locations also grows. This is because
increasing distance from Salt Lake City and the
United States, where the bulk of Mormons are,
increases the cost of diffusing Mormonism.
The United States still has the largest Mormon
membership, so the bulk of missionaries in foreign lands come from that country. Therefore,
conditions within the USA can greatly affect
the supply of missionaries. The United States
government can sometime limit the number of
missionaries by military conscription (during
wars like the Korean and Vietnam). Periods of
economic troubles in this nation may also decrease the number of U.S. Mormons who can
afford to serve a full-time mission. Additionally,
the Church in 2002 raised the standards required for missionaries, which was probably one
factor in the decrease of the total number of missionaries from over 60,000 in 2001 to less than
52,000 in 2009 (Ballard 2002, LDS Church News
17 Apr 2010, 13).
I posit that the demand for the Mormon religion
in a specific country is affected by such factors
as the amount of religious freedom, religious
orientation (i.e. percent Christian), income characteristics, political stability, cultural attitudes,
languages, amount of migration or displacement
of a country's people, and population growth
rates. One possible view is that more religious
freedom, less per capita income, larger proportions of Christians and greater political stability
all exert a positive influence on the demand for
Mormonism. Higher population growth rates
also tend to increase the demand for Mormonism, because there will be more second generation adopters of the LDS religion (i.e., there
will be more young children of new converts
baptized into the Church when they reach the
age of baptism). Thus, the LDS Church has been
successful in Latin American countries that are
predominantly Catholic, and meet many of
these other criteria for higher demand. These
places have also experienced significant growth
in Pentecostals, Seventh-Day Adventists and
members of other evangelizing faiths, some of
which have grown faster than the LDS Church
in these countries (Clawson 2006, 238-45). The
growth among these newly introduced faiths has
prompted responses in the Catholic Church
to this religious competition. These changes
include the emergence of the Catholic Charismatic movement and missionary efforts related
to “liberation theology” and creating strength
among indigenous populations in other ways
(Cleary 2009, 2011).
Each country receives different levels of supply
from the LDS Church and exhibits varying degrees of demand for the religion. An increase in
demand usually encourages a growth in supply,
while a well-advertised supply can create a measurable amount of demand. For optimal diffusion
rates however, high amounts of both supply and
demand are required. The variable effect that
both supply and demand can have on the diffusion rate in a country is entitled "Innovation Diffusion Rate". A few possible scenarios are represented of how a specific rate of LDS diffusion in a
country may result. When there is no supply and
a large demand for Mormonism, substitute LDS
type churches are sometimes formed as was the
case in Nigeria before 1978. Missionaries were
first sent there that year and found that a number of successful churches bearing the "Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" name had
been previously organized without official approval from the LDS headquarters in Salt Lake
City (Deseret News Church Almanac (1993-1994)
1992 : 251; Moss et al. 1982, 331-2).
107
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
On the other hand, low demand can result in
only a few converts even with a consistent supply over many years. For example, the Germany
Munich/Austria and Switzerland Zurich missions
were recently combined. The Swiss mission had
been operating since 1850, so the change was not because of political difficulties. Instead this shift may
be attributed to the low conversion rates that these
areas have experienced over the last several decades
(Van Orden 1993 : 130). This combining of missions
likely means a decrease in the supply of Mormonism (e.g. fewer missionaries in these areas) for the
countries, even though there are millions of people
in this area who are not LDS (LDS Church News,
Feb 13, 2010).
With changing missionary numbers and varying
levels of success and acceptance in different
countries, the supply of missionaries continues
to be adjusted for each location. Besides the combining of a Swiss and German mission in 2010,
the Church also combined missions in Spain,
Italy, Scotland/Ireland, Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey, Germany (Hamburg and Berlin), Australia,
Puerto Rico, Korea, and Japan. Many of these
areas have experienced relatively slow diffusion
or growth rates. On the other hand, new missions were created in DR Congo, Peru (2), Utah,
New Mexico, Mexico (2), Nicaragua, Philippines,
and Guatemala. These areas have had more rapid LDS growth over the past several decades (see
Table 1) (LDS Church News Feb 13, 2010).
Over time, it is expected that the supply of the
Mormon innovation in a country will tend to
equalize the corresponding demand for the religion. However, the supply side (of missionaries, media programs, etc.) is sometimes even
increased in those regions where there is a low
demand for the religion in an attempt to create
more interest in the Church. This is an effort to
allow as many people as possible to hear about
the Church, and to fulfill the first LDS prophet Joseph Smith's statement concerning the
Church’s future:
The truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly,
and independent, till it has penetrated every
continent, visited every clime, swept every
country, and sounded in every ear, till the
purposes of God shall be accomplished, and
the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done
(History of the Church 1957, 4 : 540).
108
This goal, to diffuse its beliefs to all nations, has
meant a greater dispersion of the Mormon religion than if the Church only sent missionaries
to areas where conversion successes and demand
were the greatest.
Spatial Perspective
Discussion on the effects of supply and demand
on the diffusion of Mormonism is related to the
second part of the conceptual model: the Spatial
Perspective. The interactions of both the supply
and demand of Mormon innovations create a
specific rate of diffusion within each country (as
shown in the Innovation Diffusion Rate box of
Figure 1). This rate of growth interfaces (shown
as the Functional/Spatial Interface) with the spatial structure of the country's population. The
greater the rate, the faster the religion will spread
throughout a nation. In the figure, the spatial
patterns exhibited by LDS diffusion within a
country are shown only as hypothetical stages,
and are after Hagerstrand (1952) who placed the
three regularities of diffusion, the S-shape curve
for diffusion through time, the hierarchy effect
and the neighborhood effect, into an interrelated framework (Brown 1981 : 21).
Hagerstrand's stages of diffusion are used as the
background model which guides the development of Mormon-specific phases of diffusion.
His framework also parallels the main hypothesis of this thesis: modern (post WW II) Mormon
diffusion within international countries involves
a distinct pattern of initial introduction of the
Church (by North American Mormon expatriates, by citizens converted to Mormonism
elsewhere, or by Mormon missionaries), followed by conversions and the eventual establishment of missions in the largest cities,
which produce, through organized proselytization, strongly hierarchical patterns of Church
unit formation.
Each country is unique in population size, area
and shape, and rural/urban makeup, so the
spatial manifestation of the phases of diffusion
will vary among nations. Consequently, some
countries may not even follow an outlined
pattern. However, I demonstrate that most of
the countries with large Mormon populations
have exhibited similar spatial characteristics
in their growth during the modern period.
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Table 1: Nations with more than 20,000 Mormons on Jan 1, 2010
NATION
REGION
United States
N. America
Mexico
Middle Am.
Brazil
So. America
Philippines
Asia
Chile
So. America
Peru
So. America
Argentina
So. America
Guatemala
Middle Am.
Ecuador
So. America
United Kingdom
Europe
Canada
N. America
Colombia
So. America
Bolivia
So. America
Venezuela
So. America
Honduras
Middle Am.
Australia
South Pacific
Japan
Asia
Dom. Republic
Middle Am.
El Salvador
Middle Am.
New Zealand
South Pacific
Uruguay
So. America
Nigeria
Africa
South Korea
Asia
Paraguay
So. America
Samoa
South Pacific
Nicaragua
Middle Am.
Tonga
South Pacific
Taiwan
Asia
South Africa
Africa
Spain
Europe
Panama
Middle Am.
Ghana
Africa
Portugal
Europe
Germany
Europe
Costa Rica
Middle Am.
France
Europe
China, Hong Kong
Asia
Italy
Europe
Dem. Congo
Africa
French Polynesia
South Pacific
Puerto Rico
Middle Am.
Russia
Europe
TOTAL - for nations with 20,000+
MORMONS STAKES MISSIONS % LDS 1992-2010
2010
2010
2010
2010 Growth*
6,058,907
1,451
104
2.0%
40%
1,197,573
220
21
1.0%
82%
1,102,428
230
27
0.5%
176%
631,885
79
15
0.6%
138%
561,904
74
9
3.3%
78%
480,816
94
7
1.6%
147%
380,669
70
10
0.9%
109%
220,296
39
4
1.6%
71%
190,498
34
3
1.3%
107%
186,082
45
6
0.2%
19%
179,801
47
8
0.5%
38%
168,514
29
3
0.4%
94%
168,396
24
3
1.7%
137%
146,987
26
4
0.5%
158%
136,408
20
3
1.7%
197%
126,767
33
7
0.6%
63%
124,041
29
7
0.1%
25%
114,571
18
3
1.1%
202%
105,501
17
2
1.4%
157%
100,962
25
2
2.4%
31%
93,935
16
2
2.6%
62%
93,532
16
4
1.0%
420%
82,472
17
4
0.2%
33%
78,220
10
2
1.0%
502%
69,244
16
1
31.0%
41%
67,275
9
1
1.0%
512%
55,173
17
1
45.0%
53%
51,090
10
2
0.2%
159%
51,710
11
3
0.1%
169%
45,729
10
4
1.1%
99%
45,343
8
1
1.3%
116%
40,872
7
2
0.2%
317%
38,509
6
2
0.4%
24%
37,796
14
4
0.1%
-3%
36,823
5
1
0.9%
94%
35,427
9
2
0.1%
48%
24,114
4
1
0.3%
34%
23,430
6
3
0.0%
46%
23,615
7
1
0.0%
595%
20,805
6
1
7.1%
73%
20,386
5
2
0.5%
20%
20,276
0
8
0.0%
**
13,438,782
2,813
TOTAL - World
* Dec. 31, 1991 - Jan. 1, 2010
13,824,854
2,865
** Russian membership before 1991 < 1,000
109
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Before exploring these spatial patterns, a look
at the data and the methodology which will be
employed to guide this process is in order.
Data Requirements
The study requires both LDS Church data and
country data. The Church data include the locations and dates of establishment of Church
congregations and missions throughout the
world, Church histories of countries, and the
rates of Mormon membership growth in various
nations. Country data are the populations of the
nations, cities, provinces, districts, and/or states
which contain LDS stakes and missions. Populations of specific cities, states, and provinces have
been obtained from GeoNames.org, which organization has compiled a large database of place
names and populations from around the world.
The Church keeps very detailed statistics of the
numbers of Church members and their location
around the globe. The Deseret News Church Almanac contains a brief overview of Church growth
in the different countries, nations, and territories. Most of the world is divided geographically
into “stakes,” which contain approximately 5 to
14 individual Church units.2 The larger congregations are called “wards” and have approximately 250 to 700 members, while the smaller ones
are known as “branches” and usually have less
than about 250 members. Stakes are created by
either dividing one or more larger stakes into
an additional stake, or by taking multiple large
branches that were in a “mission district” and
making them into a stake, and by concurrently
converting many of the branches into wards.
Leadership in stakes, wards, and branches is by
a lay clergy of stake presidents, bishops of wards,
and branch presidents (Ludlow, 1992).
The names of stake and missions always have
some geographic reference. Usually they indicate the location of the “stake center" or mission
headquarters office, and these places are usually
the largest city where one or more of the wards
is located. The “stake center” is the chapel for
stake meetings and where stake leader offices are
located. Although stakes and missions are more
regional in nature and include greater areas than
their component parts of wards and branches,
they are easier to locate and their dates of crea2
tion are readily available. Additionally, the wards
and branches of the world are component parts
of stakes and missions so one still gets an accurate
feel for the overall Mormon distribution by using
the stakes and missions as diffusion locators.
The names, locations, and dates of creation of
wards and branches are not readily available for
research purposes. So stakes necessarily must be
the unit of analysis. There are some 2,865 stakes
around the world, with about half being are outside of the United States. The Almanac (2010)
contains the location of stakes and missions in
that geographic area and the date each stake or
mission was created, and the LDS Church News
also publishes the most recent changes. Additionally, various editions of the Almanac have
contained total membership numbers and short
overviews of the history of the Church in different countries (see also Otterstrom 1990), which
will be used throughout the paper. Finally, Moss
et al. (1982) and Van Orden (1993) also have
valuable detailed data on how the Church was
introduced and grew in different nations.
Research Organization
In the remainder of the paper I will consider the
functional and spatial aspects of Mormonism’s
worldwide spread. I first offer an overview of
the international diffusion of the LDS Church
from 1830 to the present, including giving 2009
LDS membership figures for countries with
over 10,000 Mormons. I give added focus to
the Middle and South American regions, with
a short overview of the LDS Church geography
in those areas along with a chronology of Mormonism's diffusion to the regions’ countries
with the initial type of diffusion that helped the
Church grow there.
Mormons in South and Middle America comprised less than one percent of the total Mormon
population in 1930. By 2009, these two regions
had almost 40 percent of the world's Mormons,
second only to the United States in numbers of
LDS members (Almanac 2010). The importance
of Middle and South America in LDS Church
geography is emphasized in Table 1. Although
the United States has the greatest number of
Mormons of any nation, its LDS diffusion patterns will not be discussed because the focus of
The word “stake” comes from a reference in the Bible (Isaiah 54:2-3) (Ludlow 1992, 1412).
110
S. M. OTTERSTROM
this research is on international areas. Furthermore, I outline detailed accounts of the spatial
diffusion patterns of Mormonism within Brazil,
Peru, and Mexico to explore how this growth
relates to my diffusion model. After the United
States, the countries of Mexico and Brazil have
the most Church members of any countries in
the world, and Peru is sixth in LDS population.
Along with international summary and country
narratives, I use five- and ten-year increments of
these three countries from 1969 or 1979 through
2010 to illustrate the concurrent diffusion of
stakes and missions over time. The maps illustrate the spatial patterns of growth exhibited within the context of each country's unique geography and will visually complement the discussion
on this diffusion in the body of the paper. To aid
in the analysis, I have created tables showing the
spread of stakes by city population over the same
five year increments and in the same countries
which were used in the mapping exercise.
In the conclusion, the results of this exploration
of the patterns of international LDS diffusion
are incorporated into the conceptual model of
Hagerstrand's (1952) stages of spatial diffusion
shown in the Figure 1 model are transformed
into phases specific to the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints.
Overview of International LDS
Growth
It did not take long for Joseph Smith, the first
LDS prophet, to send some of the early converts
to preach the merits of the new church to citizens
in surrounding areas. In June 1830, about two
months after the Church was organized, Samuel
H. Smith (Joseph Smith's brother) began a missionary journey which signaled the beginning of
the diffusion of the Church (Almanac 1992 : 151).
The first international missionary endeavors
occurred in Upper Canada (now Ontario) starting in 1832, and in England beginning in 1837.
Work in Canada spread to what is now Quebec,
New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. In England,
the missionaries spread their labors from their
initial efforts near Preston to other areas in the
country as well as in Wales, Scotland, and Ireland (Arrington 1987,10). In the early 1840's,
Joseph Smith sent missionaries to Palestine, Australia, India, Germany, Jamaica, and the Society
Islands with mixed results. By the end of 1847
LDS Church membership in foreign countries
"approximated 10,000 in England, 1,900 in
Wales, 2,000 in Scotland, 40 in Ireland, 2,000 in
the Society Islands, and an additional 4,160 scattered worldwide" (Arrington 1987 : 11). By 1850
there were over 30,000 members in Great Britain
compared with 27,000 in all of the United States
and Canada (Van Orden 1993 : 14).
The diffusion efforts were the most successful
in England. Many of the converts from the British Isles and elsewhere emigrated to America's
Mormon settlements during the next several decades. This pattern continued throughout the
century, giving much strength to the Church.
The abundance of British converts resulted in
the majority of the LDS in the Church being either from Britain or descending from members
who had joined the Church in the British Isles
(Van Orden 1993 : 14).
The beginning of the British Mission in 1837
marked the start of organized missions to direct
proselytizing efforts in specific geographic areas.
Some 20 other international missions were organized during the nineteenth century in widely
spread locations such as Samoa, South Africa,
the Society Islands, Mexico, and in numerous
European nations (Almanac 1992 : 286-289).
Some of these missions were discontinued after
only a few years of existence and a number of
the missions found only limited success, but one
can see the global effort to preach Mormonism
was during the last century. By the end of 1899
there were 271,681 Mormons, 40 stakes, 20 missions (including those in the United States), and
over 1000 missionaries serving around the world
(Almanac 1992 : 397-400). "Virtually all of these
[missionaries] were mature men who left their
wives and children at home where they had to
support themselves and raise funds to support
the missionary as well" (Arrington 1987 : 15). The
only stakes which existed outside of the United
States by 1900 were the Juarez Mexico and
Alberta Canada Stakes, which consisted mainly
of Mormon colonizers who relocated there from
the Intermountain West.
The first half of the twentieth century marked a
shift of the historical inward gathering of converts
to Utah and other Mormon centers to an emphasis on members staying in their respective
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Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
states and countries to strengthen the Church
there (Moss et al. 1982 : 270-1). Church membership climbed steadily, but World War I, the
Great Depression, and World War II interrupted missionary activity in many areas for long
periods of time. By the end of World War II,
the bulk of Mormons continued to live in the
United States with all but one stake being in
North America. The only stake created away
from the continent was the Oahu Stake in
Hawaii, which was formed in 1935.
As the clouds of war dispersed in the late 1940's,
the Church was poised to make major steps to
enlarge and expand its international presence.
The Church reached its first million members
in 1947. President David O. McKay, the LDS
prophet beginning in 1951, reemphasized the
importance of missionary activities. He traveled around the world to visit the members
in many lands, and to encourage them to further build up the Church so that independent
stakes could be established in their nations
(Van Orden 1993 : 18).
Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay were the only
countries in South America to have Church
branches before 1950. Between those three nations there were just over 2,300 Mormon members in 1950. Almost 60 years later there were
over 1.5 million members in those same three
countries. Additionally there has been significant growth throughout much of South America. (see Table 1). In all of South America there
were approximately 3.278 million Mormons in
2009 (Almanac 2010 : 186).
The Middle America region as a whole has also
experienced much Mormon growth since World
War II. Mexico has the most LDS members of
any country in the world after the United States,
and has the largest population of any country in
the region. Mexico received the earliest lasting
Mormon missionary efforts in Middle America,
beginning in 1876 in some northern areas of the
country. Elder Moses Thatcher of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (the second highest
governing body of the Church after the First Presidency) was called to be the first mission president in Mexico City in 1879.
The diffusion of the LDS Church into the other
countries of Middle America came much later than it did to Mexico. Table 2 outlines the
112
methods by which Mormonism first made its way
into the more populous nations in the region, as
well as the dates the first branches and missions
were organized in the country (also see Table 1).
This diffusion of Mormonism into Middle America occurred in a variety of ways, not unlike that
experienced in South America (compare Tables
2 and 3). It does appear, however, that more of
the countries in Middle America were first introduced to the LDS Church by missionaries
than in South America, where expatriates from
the United States and Germany played a greater role. However, the importance of the likes
of Rey L. Pratt (in Mexico), John F. O'Donnal
(in Guatemala), and others from the Mormon
colonies in northern Mexico in establishing Mormonism in Mexico and Central America cannot
be overstated. Rey L. Pratt was the Mexican Mission president from 1907 until 1931, and John F.
O'Donnal was the first district president, as well
as a mission president in Guatemala (Moss et al.
1982 : 163-6; Almanac 1992 : 226).
The first stake to be created outside of North
America and Hawaii was the Auckland Stake
in New Zealand in 1958. This development
marked the beginning of a rapid increase of
foreign stakes and missions worldwide. Over
the ensuing 50 years more and more stakes
were formed internationally as Church membership grew substantially. In1964 there were
21 stakes outside of the United States, growing
to 79 by 1973, 820 in 1995, and by 2009 there
were 1380 international stakes out of a total of
2,818 (Almanac 1974 : 115; Almanac 2010). During 2009 the 51,000 plus missionaries (mostly
young men and women under 25 years of age)
baptized an average of 23,300 converts into the
Church every month (LDS Church News April
17, 2010). If past trends were followed during
2009, the majority of the new converts were
citizens of countries other than the United
States, and more particularly of nations in the
developing world (Otterstrom 1990 : 9-10).
Brazil
South America is the site of some o f the greatest
Mormon diffusion successes of the twentieth
century. Parley P. Pratt, an early Mormon leader,
along with his wife and another missionary made
an attempt to proselytize in Chile during the end
of 1851 and the beginning of 1852. However,
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Table 2: Middle America - Early Mormon Diffusion
MIDDLE AMERICA
_________________________________________________________________________________
1ST
1ST
NATION
BRANCH
INTRODUCERS
MISSION
_________________________________________________________________________________
Mexico
1879
Missionaries from the U.S.
1879
Panama
1941
U.S. Servicemen
1989
Puerto Rico
1947
U.S. Servicemen
1979
Guatemala
1948
John F. O'Fonnal from
Mormon Colonies in Mex.
1952
Costa Rica
1950
Missionaries from Mexican
Mission & H. Clark Fails
1965
El Salvador
1951
Missionaries from Mexican
Mission
1976
Honduras
1953
Missionaries from Central
America Mission
1980
Nicaragua
1954
Missionaries from Central
America Mission
1989
Jamaica
1970
North American families
1985
Dominican Rep.
1978
The Amparo and Rappleye
families (from the U.S.?)
1981
Barbados
1979
John & Norman Namie families
1983
Belize
1980
Missionaries from Honduras
Tegucigalpa Mission
-----
Haiti
1980
Alexandre Mourra- Haitian
converted by LDS literat.
1984
1991
Missionaries from Venezuela
Caracas Mission
_________________________________________________________________________________
Source: Almanac 1992
Trinidad & Tobago
1980
their efforts ended without one single convert
(Moss et al. 1982 : 170-3). It was not until over
seventy years later that the LDS Church started
to build an actual foundation in South America.
Mormonism was first introduced into South
America during the 1920's by German LDS immigrants who settled in Argentina and southern
Brazil. The South American Mission was organized in 1925 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
At first, the majority of converts were German
immigrants. In 1928, missionary work spread
from Buenos Aires to the city of Joinville in
the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina.
Joinville was home to many German immigrants
(about 90 percent of the population were German
at the time). In 1930, missionaries were sent to
Rosario, Argentina, and in 1933 to Porto Alegre,
Brazil, another dominantly German city (Moss et
al. 1982 : 177). In 1935, the Brazilian and Argentine missions were created from the South American Mission. Missionary work continued steadily,
and by 1950 there were 1135 and 724 Mormons
in Argentina and Brazil respectively (Moss et al.
1982 : 177-8), and since that time growth in Brazil
has overtaken that of Argentina.
Brazil is larger than the contiguous United States
and has about 200 million people. The population
is most dense along the coasts, especially near the
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Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Table 3: South America - Early Mormon Diffusion
SOUTH AMERICA
_________________________________________________________________________________
1ST
1ST
NATION
BRANCH
INTRODUCERS
MISSION
_________________________________________________________________________________
Argentina
1925
LDS German immigrants
1925
Wilhelm Friedrichs
Emil Hoppe
Brazil
1928
LDS German immigrants
Roberto Lippelt family
1935
Uruguay
1944
North Americans
Frederick S. Williams
1947
Paraguay
1948
North Americans
Samuel J. Skousen
1977
Peru
1956
North Americans
Frederick S. Williams
1959
Chile
1956
North Americans
William Fotheringham
1961
Bolivia
1963
North Americans-Duane Wilcox
Dube Thomas
Norval Jesperson
1966
Ecuador
1965
Missionaries from Andes
Mission in Peru
1970
Colombia
1966 (est)
North Americans
1968
Venezuela
1966
North Americans
1971
Suriname
1988
Missionaries
none
Guyana
1989
Abdulla family converted
in Canada & Missionaries
none
Missionaries
none
French Guiana 198 9
_________________________________________________________________________________
Source: Almanac 1992
huge metropolises of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
Sao Paulo, the largest city in South America, was
the site for the creation of the first stake in South
America in 1966, even though missionary work first
started among the Germans in the southern states
of Brazil (Figure 2 and Appendix 1). This underscores the hierarchical diffusion of Mormonism that
has occurred across the country.
By the end of 1974 there were nine stakes in
Brazil. Three of the new cities with stakes, including the country's second largest city of Rio
de Janeiro, have over one million inhabitants.
Curitiba and Porto Alegre are the largest cities
114
in southern Brazil in the regions where the earliest missionary labors in Brazil were concentrated, so their role as headquarters for stakes early
on is not surprising. The other three stakes were
centered in cities with over populations over
350,000. Additionally, all three of these cities,
Campinas, Santos, and Sao Bernardo, are within
100 kilometers of Sao Paulo, which may help
explain the relatively early formation of stakes
there notwithstanding their smaller size.
The Church has grown very quickly in ethnically diverse Brazil since the 1978 revelation announced which stated that the priesthood could
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Figure 2: Brazil - Stakes and Missions 1969/1979
115
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Figure 3: Brazil - Stakes and Missions 1989/1999
be conferred on all worthy LDS men regardless
of race (before 1978, blacks were not allowed
to hold the priesthood in the Church). It is
especially interesting to note the formation of
the Recife Mission in 1979 and the subsequent
creation of numerous stakes in the dominantly black northeast. As another indication of
LDS growth in that region, the Church built
a temple in Recife in 2000 and has announced
temples in Manaus and Fortaleza to go along
116
with the existing temples in Sao Paulo, Campinas, Curitiba, and Porto Alegre. A temple is the
most sacred edifice for worship in the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Since 1979 the number of stakes in Brazil has
increased thirteen-fold. At the end of 2009 there
were over 228 stakes and approximately 1.075
million members in the nation (Almanac 2010).
Additionally, there are now 27 missions in the
country. Twenty-eight stakes are centered in
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Figure 4: Brazil - Stakes and Missions 2010
Sao Paulo proper, while a total of 97 stakes are
located in cities (including Sao Paulo) with populations over one million. Many of the rest of
the stakes are concentrated around Sao Paulo,
Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre and Curitiba, manifesting a certain degree of contagious
"infilling" which occurs as the Church grows and
spreads in and around a metropolitan area (see
Figures 3 and 4).
Only ten of the stakes were headquartered in cities of less than 100,000 people in 2009, showing
the strong hierarchical patterns that are related
to the growth of the Church in the country. Additionally, distance makes a difference too as the
relatively late organization of stakes in large cities
such as Belem, Manaus, and Teresina may be partially explained by the fact that they are all faraway
from the population centers of the south and are
also isolated from the coastal metropolises of
Fortaleza and Recife in the northeast. Missionary
work success came later in these cities.
Brazil has shown strong hierarchical diffusion
patterns of Mormonism. In the future, the
stakes in Brazil will most probably continue to
be concentrated in and around the largest cities.
However, the trend of an increasing number of
stakes being located in more remote and smaller
cities will most likely continue.
Peru
Peru is another large country that has had attracted a great number of LDS converts. It has more
area than the states of Texas and California combined, and greater than 29 million people. Lima,
as a primate city, is home to a similar proportion
(41 percent) of its country's 90 stakes as another
dominant city, Santiago, Chile to the south (see
Appendix 2 and Figure 5). Peru's stakes are headquartered in only 32 cities, owing to the dominance of Lima and the multiple stakes in several
other large communities. However, Trujillo, the
second largest city, only has seven stakes compared with the 37 of Lima.
The pattern of stake creation in Peru has followed
a strongly hierarchical trend. Lima was the first
city in the country to have a stake center in 1970.
Nine years later, Lima had seven stakes of its own,
while Trujillo to the north was the only other
city to have a stake. By 1984 stakes had begun
to spread up the Pacific coast, out to Iquitos in
the Amazon, and south to Arequipa and Tacna,
as well as increasing in the Lima area. All of these
new stakes developed in cities, which now have
over 100,000 inhabitants. By 1989 the other
large cities of Cuzco and Ica had stakes, while
the smaller Huacho and Mantaro stakes made
their appearance. The less-populated Huacho
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Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Figure 5: Peru and Ecuador - Stakes and Missions 1979 -2010
gained a stake at the end of the five year interval
in 1989, which makes it somewhat less anomalous from a hierarchical standpoint.
By 1994 the diffusion of Mormonism in Peru began to include more cities of fewer than 100,000
people. Additionally, the largest urban areas
(Lima, Arequipa, Trujillo, Chiclayo, Chimbote,
Piura, Iquitos, and Cuzco) all added at least one
stake between 1989 and 1994. This seems to indicate the result of contagious diffusion process
at work within the realms of the larger cities.
118
The spread of missions has also followed a hierarchical pattern in Peru. Lima was the site of the
country's first mission in 1959. The five current
missions in Lima are indicative of its large size,
and its success as a site for Mormon missionary
work. The second most populous city of Arequipa became a mission headquarters in 1978,
and the next largest urban places, Trujillo and
Chiclayo (the Chiclayo mission is now headquartered in Piura), received missions in 1985 and
1993 respectively. In 2010 new missions were
S. M. OTTERSTROM
opened in Lima and Cusco, for a total of nine
missions with over half headquartered in Lima.
Peru certainly has shown a pattern of hierarchical diffusion similar to the countries of Argentina and Chile which also have primate cities.
The dominant role that Lima has played as a
center for diffusion and adoption of the LDS
faith is very clear. The diffusion of Mormonism in Peru will probably continue to exhibit
hierarchical patterns at a quick pace for years
to come.
Mexico
Mexico's proximity to the United States and the
early establishment of the Mormon colonies in
northern Mexico helped start the first lasting
diffusion of Mormonism into a Latin American
country. The (Colonia) Juarez Stake, Mexico's
first, was created in 1895 in the northern state
of Chihuahua. It was comprised of Mormon colonists who had moved there from the United
States. The Juarez Stake is an anomaly within
normal hierarchical diffusion patterns because it
consisted of the wholesale relocation of a Mormon population into a largely rural area. Therefore, a large population base to increase potential converts was not required. The colonies in
Chihuahua have remained small Mormon communities to this day.
Initial advantages of early Mormon migration in
the late 1800s coupled with many willing "adopters" in Mexico have resulted in some 1,158,236
Mexican Mormons in 2009. Only the United
States, Mexico, and Brazil have more than one
million LDS members. Diffusion of Mormonism within Mexico has also followed a mostly
hierarchical pattern, which has been dominated
by the primate urban center of Mexico City. It
was the second city in the country to become
headquarters for a stake in 1961 (after Colonia
Juarez). Figures 6-8 outline the progressive increase in stakes in the country with the cities ranked according to size (also Appendix 3). There
are varying estimates for the population size of
Mexico City depending on how the outlying districts are included and counted. This can result
in wide-ranging population figures. Whatever its
total population, Mexico City's sheer size helps
account for the 41 stakes that are currently headquartered there.
By 1974 there were five stakes in Mexico City and
two in Monterrey, the largest city in the north
of Mexico. Besides the Colonia Juarez Stake,
there were also stakes in Tampico, Monclova,
and Valle Hermosa. The early creation of stakes
in the smaller cities of Monclova and Valle Hermosa is probably related to the fact that they are
close to the Mormon colonies and to the United
States. This proximity and the early establishment of missions in the nearby cities of Torreon
and Monterrey have helped multiply stakes in
the whole region. In comparison, Guadalajara,
the second largest city, but more removed from
the United States, did not receive its first stake
and mission until 1975.
During the five years between the end of 1974
and 1979 the number of stakes in Mexico increased rapidly to 53. The number of cities
with stakes grew to 31, which began to show the
continuing pattern of stakes being distributed
all over the country. Forty (75.5 percent) of the
stakes were located in cities with over 100,000
people. Mexico City, Monterrey, and Puebla
(southeast of Mexico City) together accounted
for 22 of the 53 stakes. The large cities of Merida, Poza Rica, and Veracruz had two stakes
each. All the rest of the communities had just
one stake apiece.
In 1984 there were 77 stakes spread around the
country. The Mormon growth in Mexico City,
Monterrey, and Puebla continued, while Guadalajara finally received its second stake. Fiftynine (76.6 percent) of the stakes were in cities
of over 100,000. By 1989 there were some 105
stakes in the country with 80 (76.2 percent) of
them located in cities with more than 100,000
people. In 1994 the ratio of stakes in large cities
over 100,000 to the total number of stakes was
92 of the 126 stakes (73 percent) in the country.
It is interesting that although the total number
of cities with stakes continues to rise, the share
of stakes in communities with over 100,000 has
remained relatively constant at about 75 percent. It is also noteworthy that although Monterrey is smaller than Guadalajara, it has ten
stakes to Guadalajara's seven. This shows the
greater success that the diffusion of Mormonism has had in Monterrey over time as well as
its advantage of having a mission located there
earlier. The late (1989) creation of the first stake
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Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Figure 6: Mexico - Stakes and Missions 1969/1979
in the tourist destination of Acapulco may also
be related to the factors which have led to later
growth in Guadalajara.
The three stakes and five missions in existence
in Mexico in 1969 were only a precursor to
the rapid diffusion of Mormon stakes and missions throughout the country over the ensuing
40 years. In 1994 there were 124 stakes and an
estimated 800,000 Mormons in the country.
Another 15 years later the numbers of Mormon
adherents had increased to over 1.1 million and
120
the stakes had swelled to 220. Additionally,
there are twelve Mormon temples spread around
the county in most of the important LDS centers, which number is second only to the United
States (Figure 8). Still, LDS adherents make up
just one percent of Mexico’s population, which
leaves a great deal of potential for the diffusion
of Mormonism in that country. If the growth of
Mormonism in Mexico continues, new stakes
will placed around the country in the ongoing
hierarchical pattern.
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Figure 7: Mexico: Stakes and Missions 1989/1999
Religious Diffusion Summary
In most countries around the world where the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has
been successful, the patterns of stake (and mission) creation have provided a basis for understanding how the Mormon population has diffused
through a country over time. This method of tracking Mormonism's diffusion has shown that the
creation of a country's first mission, followed later
by a stake, almost always occurs in the largest city.
From there, the spread of missions and stakes has
generally proceeded outward down the hierarchy
of urban places, as well as increasing contagiously
within the immediate vicinity of the central city.
The specific rate of growth of Mormonism has determined how fast stakes are formed and thereafter spread throughout a country.
The conceptual model of Figure 9 is the same as
that of Figure 1 for the "Functional Perspective"
portion, but the "Spatial Perspective" component
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Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Figure 8: Mexico - Stakes and Missions 2010
now includes four Mormon specific diffusion
phases, rather than the three stages of Hager
trand. However, the four Mormon phases are
very similar to Hagerstrand's emphasizing that
the diffusion of Mormonism within nations has
followed a natural pattern often recognized in studies of the spread of other innovations.
How the workings of supply and demand (in the
"Functional Perspective") affect the specific rate
of growth within a country has not been studied
in this paper. However, the fact that growth rates
vary throughout the world has been shown. It follows that the greater the growth rate, the faster the
Mormon religion will spread throughout a nation,
and the more quickly it will progress through the
four general phases of spatial diffusion outlined
in the model. The unique population size, area
and shape, and rural/urban makeup have caused
the spatial manifestation of the phases of diffusion to vary somewhat among nations. However,
the countries studied in this research have followed this pattern during the modern era which
this paper has concentrated on.
Phase one is the "Initial Introduction" period.
This diffusion of the Church into a new country
is begun in at least one of three ways: by expatriate Mormons, usually from North America or
122
Europe, who move into a country, by citizens of
the country who join the Church elsewhere and
return to their own land, or by LDS missionaries
who are assigned to the country from a mission
in a neighboring nation.
Missionaries must be allowed into the country
by the government, while expatriates or returning citizens can often begin meeting together
before the Church is officially recognized in a
country. In either case, under favorable political
conditions, the Church eventually obtains recognition, missionaries begin to proselyte, and
branches are organized for the local Church
members. In most instances, these branches are
located in the largest city or cities of the country.
As the country nears the end of phase one, a
mission is formed in or near the country to increase the supply of missionaries. The mission is
headquartered in or near one of the major cities
where branches already are established. By this
time, most of the members are not expatriate
North Americans.
Diffusion phase two is the "Central Staging" period. Proselyting activity is concentrated around
the large city which houses the mission headquarters. The headquarters acts as central point
of diffusion in the region. The mission president
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Figure 9: Conceptual Model of the international diffusion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
123
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
uses all available information to determine the
best locations to place the missionaries. Over
time missionaries are sent to "open" other cities,
which are often the larger metropolitan areas
nearest to the mission headquarters. Diffusion
success finally results in the establishment of
a stake centered in the largest (or close to the
largest) city in the country. These developments
mark the end of phase two.
Phase three entitled "Metropolitan Movement" is
marked by the creation of additional stakes in the
central or primate city where the first stake was
created, and the manifestation of a hierarchical pattern of stake creation in other large cities around
the country. These new stakes encourage the establishment of new missions headquartered in other
large urban places spread around the country, as
well as the division of the existing mission in the
central city. The ability to create more missions,
however, depends on a growing supply of missionaries from the United States and elsewhere.
The additional stakes and missions act as new
dispersion sources for the diffusion of the Mormon religious innovation. More people in lower
order urban areas will be exposed to the religion
by the Mormon missionaries because of the
more accessible proximity to the religious innovation. This occurrence brings a country to the
last phase of the diffusion model.
The final phase is termed "Contagious Concentration". As the missions and stakes spread out
across a country, missionary activities become
more localized. Small towns and rural areas can
be more easily reached by missionaries, and new
Church units are organized in these places. The
diffusion of the Church becomes more contagious in its pattern, emanating from the centers
of stakes and missions.
This contagious pattern occurs because the ongoing creation of new Church units results in
the missions and stakes covering ever decreasing
124
areas with a constantly increasing membership.
Therefore, there are more members and missionaries to spread the Mormon religion
within smaller regions, which encourages
a larger measure of filling in. This phase continues indefinitely, with increasing numbers
of stakes and missions being created in more
locations throughout the country, until all
those in the population who would adopt Mormonism have. This level of diffusion has not
yet occurred in any country, and only the small
countries of Samoa and Tonga have significant
LDS shares of their total country populations
(see Table 1).
An interesting additional example is the Philippines, which is another country with significant numbers of Mormons. The diffusion
of Mormon stakes in the islands of the Philippines was initially hierarchical from Manila
outward to other areas of Luzon Island, as well
as to the islands of Cebu, Negros, and Mindanao. It appears that after this early diffusion,
the insulation of the various islands lessened
the influence of Manila in the hierarchic order
(except on Luzon Island). The Philippines thus
highlights the fact that each country’s distinct
geography affects the particular diffusion process of a country and how closely it adheres to
the model.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
has grown significantly throughout the world
since 1830 and especially since World War II,
but it is still a relatively small religion with
about 2 members per 1000 people in the world.
Although for Mormons there is a long way to
go before their message will spread to every
nation, kindred tongue and people, the diffusion of the LDS faith has continued around
the world in a well-planned and hierarchical
way that has allowed it to grow into the widely
diffused religious faith that it is.
S. M. OTTERSTROM
References
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Arrington, L.J. 1987. Historical Development of International Mormonism. Religious Studies and Theology 1:9-22.
Ballard, M. R. 2002. The greatest generation of missionaries. Ensign (November). Salt Lake City, UT:
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Bennion, L.C. 1995. The geographic dynamics of
Mormondom, 1965-95. Sunstone 18: 21-32.
Book of Mormon. 1983. Salt Lake City, Ut.: The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Brown, L. A. 1981. Innovation Diffusion: A New Perspective. New York: Methuen & Co.
Clawson, D. L. 2006. Latin America and the Caribbean: Lands and Peoples. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Cleary, E. L. 2009. How Latin America Saved the Soul
of the Catholic Church. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press.
Cleary, E. L. 2011. The Rise of Charismatic Catholicism
in Latin America. Gainseville, FL: University Press of
Florida.
Cliff, Andrew D., Peter Haggett, and M.R. Smallman-Raynor. 2000. Island Epidemics. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Crowley, W.K. 1978. Old Order Amish Settlement:
Diffusion and Growth. Annals of the Association of
American Geographers 2:249-64.
Deseret News Church Almanac (1991-1992). 1990. Salt
Lake City, Ut.: Deseret News Press.
Deseret News Church Almanac (1993-1994). 1992. Salt
Lake City, Ut.: Deseret News Press.
Deseret News Church Almanac (2010). 2010. Salt Lake
City, UT: Deseret News Press.
Ensign. May, 2010. Salt Lake City, UT: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Geonames.org. Accessed September 2010.
Hagerstrand, T. 1952. The Propagation of Innovation
Waves. Lund, Gleerup: Lund Studies in Geography.
Hemmasi, M. 1992. Spatial Diffusion of Islam: A
Teaching Strategy. Journal of Geography 91:263-72.
History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
1957. 7 Vol. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book Company.
Johnson GW, Johnson MA. 2007. On the trail of the
twentieth-century Mormon outmigration. BYU Studies 46(1): 41-83.
Johnson, P.T. 1966. An Analysis of the Spread of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Salt
Lake City, Utah Utilizing a Diffusion Model. unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, State University of Iowa.
Laing CR. 2002. The Latter-day Saint diaspora in the
United States and the south. Southeastern Geographer
42(2): 228-247.
LDS Church News. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret News
Press (www.ldschurchnews.com).
Louder, D.R. 1972. A Distributional and Diffusionary Analysis of the Mormon Church 1850-1970.
unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of
Washington.
Louder, D.R. 1975. A Simulation Approach to the
Diffusion of the Mormon Church. Proceedings of the
Association of American Geographers, 126-30.
Louder, D.R. and L. Bennion. 1978. Mapping
Mormons across the Modern West. In The Mormon
Role in the Settlement of the West, ed. Richard H.
Jackson, 135-67. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press.
Ludlow DH (ed.). 1992. Encyclopedia of Mormonism.
4 volumes. Macmillan Publishing Company: New
York.
Morrill, R. L. 1965. The Negro Ghetto: Problems
and alternatives, Geographical Review 55: 339-361.
Morrill, R. L., G.L. Gaile, and G.I. Thrall. 1988.
Spatial Diffusion. Newbury Park, CA: SAGE Publications Inc.
Moss, J.R., R. L. Britsch, J. R. Christianson, and R.
Cowan. 1982. The International Church. Provo, UT:
Brigham Young University Publications.
Otterstrom, S.M. 1990. The L.D.S. Church: Membership Growth Brings Per Capita GNP Decline. Honors thesis, Brigham Young University.
Otterstrom, S.M. 1994. The International Diffusion
of the Mormon Church. Unpublished Masters thesis, Brigham Young University.
Otterstrom, S.M. 2008. Divergent Growth of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the
United States, 1990-2004: Diaspora, Gathering,
and the East-West Divide. Population, Space and Place
14: 231-252.
Peffers, D.D. 1980. The Diffusion and Dispersion of
the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints: An Overview. unpublished Master's thesis,
Brigham Young University.
Pred, A.R. 1966. The Spatial Dynamics of U.S. Urban Industrial Growth, 1800-1914. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Stark, R. 1984. The Rise of a New World Faith.
Review of Religious Research 26:18-27.
Van Orden, B.A. 1993. "More Nations Than One": A
Global History of the LDS Church. Unpublished student packet. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University.
125
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Appendix 1: Brazil - Diffusion of Skates by Cities
CITY
Sao Paulo
Rio de Janeiro
Salvador
Fortaleza
Belo Horizonte
Brasilia
Curitiba
Manaus
Recife
Belem
Porto Alegre
Goiania
Campinas
Nova Iguacu
Maceio
Sao Luis
Natal
Teresina
Sao Bernardo
Campo Grande
Jaboatao
Osasco
Santo Andre
Joao Pessoa
Contagem
Sao Jose dos Campos
Uberlandia
Sorocaba
Ribeirao Preto
Cuiaba
Aracaju
Feira de Santana
Londrina
Juiz De Fora
Joinville
Niteroi
Florianopolis
Santos
Vila Velha
Diadema
Campos
Maua
Caxias do Sul
Sao Jose do Rio Preto
Olinda
Campina Grande
Piracicaba
Bauru
Canoas
Sao Vicente
Jundiai
Pelotas
Anapolis
Vitoria
Maringa
Guaruja
Porto Velho
Franca
Cariacica
Ponta Grossa
Caucaia
Petropolis
Uberaba
Rio Branco
Novo Hamburgo
Vitoria da Conquista
Barueri
126
POPULATION **
10,021,295
6,023,699
2,711,840
2,400,000
2,373,224
2,207,718
1,718,421
1,598,210
1,478,098
1,407,737
1,372,741
1,171,195
1,031,554
1,002,118
954,991
917,237
763,043
744,512
743,372
729,151
702,621
677,856
662,373
650,883
627,123
613,764
563,536
558,862
551,267
521,934
490,175
481,911
471,832
470,193
461,304
456,456
412,724
411,403
394,930
390,633
387,417
386,069
381,270
374,699
366,754
348,936
342,209
335,024
328,291
324,457
321,589
320,674
319,587
312,656
311,724
310,424
306,180
305,041
301,183
292,177
275,019
272,691
260,843
257,642
253,841
253,137
251,994
1969
2
1974
3
1
1
1979
5
3
1984
8
4
1989
9
4
1
2
1
2
1994
16
4
2
5
2
2
6
2
3
1
4
1
3
3
2
1
2
6
3
1
2
5
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
4
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
3
4
1
3
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
2
2004
22
5
3
7
3
4
9
5
5
3
5
2
3
1
3
1
2
1
2
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
4
2
1
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
1
1999
22
6
2
7
2
4
9
5
5
3
5
2
3
1
3
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2009 MISSIONS
28
4
6
1
4
2
11
1
4
1
5
1
10
1
8
1
6
1
3
1
5
2
2
1
4
1
1
4
1
1
4
2
1
2
1
2
1
1
3
1
1
1
1
4
2
1
2
1
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
1
1
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Praia Grande
250,027
Volta Redonda
249,580
Santa Maria
249,219
1
Gravatai
238,778
Imperatriz
218,106
Marilia
212,218
1
1
1
Sao Leopoldo
209,229
1
Itabuna
205,660
Sao Carlos
205,035
1
Hortolandia
203,533
Mossoro
202,005
Sete Lagoas
201,334
Palmas (Tocantins State)
196,272
Americana
196,022
Petrolina
194,650
Maracanau
193,259
Camacari
188,758
Rio Grande
187,838
Rio Claro
180,147
1
1
1
Passo Fundo
179,529
1
1
Aracatuba
170,024
1
Araraquara
168,468
1
1
1
1
Arapiraca
166,562
Lages
164,676
Sobral
157,996
Vale do Itajai (Itajai)
155,716
Sao Jose (next to Florianopol
147,559
1
Paranagua
141,013
Itu
137,586
Sao Jose dos Pinhais
124,224
Teresopolis
123,979
Uruguaiana
123,480
1
Santa Rita
119,893
Ribeirao Pires *
111,888
1
Camaragibe
111,119
1
Garanhuns
110,085
Guaratingueta
105,880
Birigui
102,277
Bage
98,940
1
Pinhais (near Curitiba)
89,335
1
1
1
Alegrete
87,236
Mogi Mirim
78,244
Sao Joao da Boa Vista
76,540
Itatiba
67,934
Tubarao
67,245
1
Cruz Alta
65,275
Ponta Pora
55,763
Caico
54,934
Rosario Do Sul
36,721
Boa Viagem
24,671
1
1
1
Arsenal *
Cascavel *
Livramento *
1
Monte Cristo *
1
TOTAL
2
9
19
46
56
108
population data not found
** Population from most recent estimate from GeoNames.org
Appendix 1 - Brazil: Diffusion of Stakes by Cities
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
187
1
1
1
0
228
1
1
1
185
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
27
127
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Appendix 2: Peru - Diffusion of Skates by Cities
CITY
POPULATION **
Lima
7,737,002
Arequipa
841,130
Trujillo
747,450
Chiclayo
577,375
Iquitos
437,620
Huancayo
376,657
Piura
325,466
Chimbote
316,966
Cusco
312,140
Pucallpa
310,750
Tacna
280,098
Ica
246,844
Juliaca
245,675
Sullana
160,789
Chincha (Alta?)
153,076
Huanuco
147,959
Ayacucho
140,033
Cajamarca
135,000
Puno
116,552
Tumbes
109,223
Cerro de Pasco
78,910
Pisco
61,869
Huacho
54,545
Moquegua
54,517
Ilo
53,476
Jaen
52,493
Sicuani
33,575
Canto Grande *
La Merced *
Mantaro *
Pomalca *
Ventanilla *
TOTAL
* population not found
128
1974
2
1979
7
1
1984
10
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1989
18
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1994
22
3
3
3
3
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
1999
32
6
7
5
3
1
2
2
2
1
4
1
1
2004
33
6
7
5
3
1
2
2
2
1
3
1
1
1
1
0
2
1
1
2
0
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
8
19
34
54
79
79
** Population from most recent estimate from GeoNames.org
2009 MISSIONS
37
5
6
1
7
1
5
3
1
2
1
3
2
1
1
3
1
1
1
0
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
90
9
S. M. OTTERSTROM
Appendix 3: Mexico - Diffusion of Skates by Cities
CITY
Mexico City
Guadalajara
Ciudad Juarez
Puebla (de Zaragoza)
Tijuana
Monterrey
Leon
Merida
Chihuahua
San Luis Potosi
Aguascalientes
Acapulco
Saltillo
Queretaro
Mexicali
Hermosillo
Morelia
Culiacan
Veracruz
Cancun
Torreon
San Nicolas
Toluca
Reynosa
Tuxtla Gutierrez
Tula
Durango
Matamoros
Jalapa
Villahermosa
Benito Juarez
Mazatlan
Apodaca
Nuevo Laredo
Cuernavaca
Irapuato
Pachuca
Coacalco
Tampico
Celaya
Tepic
Ciudad Victoria
Oaxaca
Ciudad Obregon
Ensenada
Tehuacan
Uruapan
Coatzacoalcos
Gomez Palacio
Los Mochis
Campeche
Tapachula
Monclova
Madero
Puerto Vallarta
Poza Rica
Metepec
La Paz
Chalco
Minatitlan
Cuautla
Piedras Negras
San Luis Rio Colorado
Chetumal
San Cristobal
Colima
Zamora
Orizaba
Zacatecas
Iguala
Ciudad Valles
POPULATION ** STAKES
11,285,654
1,640,589
1,512,354
1,392,099
1,376,457
1,122,874
1,114,626
717,175
708,267
677,704
658,179
652,136
621,250
611,785
597,099
595,811
592,797
582,469
568,313
542,043
524,066
507,816
505,881
498,654
481,128
468,825
457,140
435,145
425,148
362,401
355,017
354,717
352,064
349,550
343,769
339,554
319,581
313,405
309,003
305,901
280,592
269,923
262,566
258,162
256,565
241,429
237,308
230,717
228,577
214,601
205,212
197,961
195,764
192,736
187,134
174,526
172,982
171,485
163,996
150,895
146,178
139,619
139,254
134,412
128,996
127,235
124,916
121,348
118,562
112,106
109,504
1969
2
1974
5
2
1979
14
1
1
3
1
5
1
1989
21
2
3
4
2
8
1
3
3
1
1
1
1
1994
25
3
3
5
2
9
0
4
3
1
1
1
2
1
1999
37
8
4
7
3
9
1
4
3
2
2
1
2
1
2
2
1
3
4
2
3
1
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
2
1
1
2004
40
8
4
8
5
10
1
4
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
3
4
2
3
1
1
2
2
1
2
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
1
2
1
2
3
2
3
3
1
1
3
3
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
2
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
2
3
1
2
3
1
2
1
1
1
3
3
0
1
3
1
1
1
4
3
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
2
3
1
1
2
2
3
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1984
18
2
2
4
1
7
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2009 MISSIONS
41
5
8
2
4
8
1
6
1
10
2
1
1
6
1
3
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
2
3
1
4
1
3
3
1
1
1
2
3
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
0
2
1
1
2
1
1
3
1
3
1
1
1
1
4
1
3
0
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
2
2
3
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
129
Territoire en mouvement n°13. Visibilité et invisibilité, emplois et réemplois du religieux
Appendix 3: Mexico - Diffusion of Skates by Cities
Fresnillo
Guaymas
Delicias
Tuxtepec
Atlixco
Cardenas
Tlaxcala
Ciudad Mante
Salina Cruz
Teziutlan
Juchitan
Chiautempan
Papantla
Valle Hermoso
Acayucan
Cabo San Lucas
Tizimin
Guacamayas
Tuxpan
Amecameca
Galeana *
Atotonilco (Tula) *
Civac *
Colonia Dublan *
Colonia Juarez *
Tecalco *
Tierra Blanca *
Valle del Mezquital *
TOTAL
* population not found
130
105,488
103,449
102,969
92,121
85,891
85,350
84,670
79,981
73,648
70,819
67,637
48,322
47,958
47,831
46,990
42,601
41,993
39,447
32,462
31,718
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
127
1
178
0
1
1
1
1
1
199
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
3
11
53
78
106
** Population from most recent estimate from GeoNames.org
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
219
23