I have seen it mentioned in various places, including possibly here from even_sven, that African Christians seem to have higher levels of cultural dysfunction like alcoholism and possibly HIV rates (maybe because of lack of circumcision). So, I was wondering, are such differences between ethno-religious groups there a well-known, fact-based but “must not be discussed” view or is it more of cherrypicking the facts based on a particular place which might not apply uniformly to various other places?
Expanding on the above, if there is really a big difference in HIV mortality and in alcoholism, I would guess that this should be reflected in the economic situation, with the healthier groups being demonstrably more prosperous, at least all else being equal. Is something like that observed there or known as “common knowledge”? Or is let’s say alcoholism in that context not even constituting a big deal because let’s say (this is pure WAG on my part) it is much less disruptive of subsistence agricultural economy than of city life?
And indeed, what do you mean by African? Are you comparing people of similar ethnic backgrounds, because if you include groups like Arabs, even in sub-Saharan Africa, it might skew your results as many of them are of a higher status (Sudan and Mauritania, granted all ethnic groups there are Muslim.
I would not be surprised in the least if Christians have higher rates of alcoholism; the reasons for this should be apparent. As far as HIV, both moralize against sex (and adherents of both ignore proscriptions) so it is less obvious.
In Nigeria, isn’t the Muslim north less affluent than the south? Or do I have that backwards?
There is no way to generalize. Africa is a huge place, and every country has different forces at work.
In Cameroon, the country was pretty sharply divided. The tropical south was mostly Christian and the arid north was mostly Muslim. In general, the south was more prosperous. The culture was more aggressive and livelier. People often expressed their emotions in public. While some parts of traditional life stayed strong, in general it was more cosmopolitan and open to outside influences. People mostly wore western clothing, women often worked outside the home, and foreign music and movies were popular. Education was considered fairly important and almost everyone could speak French in addition to their local languages.
The north was dry and living conditions were tougher. In general the streets were much quieter and laid back. Traditional culture was much stronger and there was little outside influence. People largely lived in mud huts, wore African clothing, produced most of their food and household items themselves, and preferred local music. Education was considered less important (and indeed, there were few formal jobs so most education was indeed wasted) and most communication was in local languages. The moral code of the Fulbe people was a pervasive force even among non-Fulbe people. This code emphasizes facing the world with a sort of brave and quiet dignity. People were expected not to show their emotions and to accept fate with grace.
Anyway, these things go way beyond simple religion. Climate, ethnicity, history and economics are all a part of it. Within a community, there often were not huge differences between the religions. My village was a fairly even mix of Christians and Muslims. Traditionally it was Christian, but in that area Christianity was seen as a bit of a backwards-villager thing and people often converted or adopted Muslim customs to be more sophisticated.
People moved back and forth between the religions fairly easily, and most people had the idea that it was all the same God. Christians were marginally more likely to wear Western clothes, drink and to engage in social activism. Muslims were slightly more likely to have multiple wives, not send their kids to school, and to adhere to Fulbe values. But these differences were slight and not a sure thing.