Churchgoing in Aberdeen, 1836–2016: The Statistical Record

Historiographical debate about religious change and secularisation in Scotland often fails to take a sufficiently long-term perspective and to subject the sources used to critical scrutiny. In this article, one possible metric of secularisation (churchgoing rates) is investigated for Scotland’s third largest city (Aberdeen), by a statistical examination of thirteen church censuses between 1836 and 2016. Emphasis is placed on the varying methodologies of the censuses and the limitations to their comparability. Churchgoing in the city has declined continuously, relative to population, since the mid-nineteenth century. Six possible explanations for this are proposed. By 1984, Aberdeen had the lowest rate of church attendance of any part of Scotland. Today, only 4 per cent of Aberdonians are in the pews on an average Sunday, one-tenth the proportion in 1836.