Yet Norway's Jewish and Muslim populations are relatively small, and the procedure is carried out on some 2,000 boys a year only - less than 1 percent of all Norwegian boys.
All five Nordic countries disdain the practice of circumcision, whether Jewish or Muslim, and in 2013 they issued a joint statement calling for a ban on nonmedical male circumcision for minors.
Like all Christian European nations, Sweden does not practice male circumcision. Muslim and Jewish immigrants, however, have brought their circumcision practices into Sweden. This clash of cultures has created tension and conflict between Swedish human rights principles and the blood rites of foreign religions.
Present. Rates vary widely, from over 90% in Israel and many Muslim-majority countries, 86.3% in South Korea, to 80% in the United States, to 58% in Australia, to 45% in South Africa, to 20.7% in the United Kingdom, to under 1% in Japan and Honduras.
According to the World Health Organization, circumcision is most common in North Africa, West Africa, and the Middle East. In these areas, more than 80% of men and boys are circumcised. Malaysia, the Philippines, and South Korea also have high circumcision rates.
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The prevalence of circumcision varies widely in western countries led by the USA (71 per cent), New Zealand (33 per cent), Australia (27 per cent), the UK (21 per cent), France (14 per cent), Germany (11 per cent), Sweden (5 per cent), Italy (3 per cent) and Ireland (1 per cent).
Circumcision is also standard in the United States and parts of Southeast Asia and Africa, but is rare in Europe, Latin America, and most of Asia. A personal preference in favor of circumcision is more common in Anglophone countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
In Japan, routine male circumcision has never been implemented for newborns and children, and adult males are mostly circumcised at aesthetic clinics. However, media reports indicate a trend of Japanese mothers willing to have their sons circumcised.
European countries consider newborn circumcision an unnecessary surgical procedure which increases the costs of operating nationalised health systems, whereas in the US, circumcision is generally considered a simple, rapid operation with medical benefits which accrue throughout life.
Uncircumcised Muslims are rare. The rate of circumcision in Muslim nations is between 90 and 100 percent. This includes the Christians who form a significant part of some Arab states.
Yet Norway's Jewish and Muslim populations are relatively small, and the procedure is carried out on some 2,000 boys a year only - less than 1 percent of all Norwegian boys.
“ By contrast, circumcision in Germany has only been customary among two religious minorities, one of which was decimated during the Third Reich, and the other which only arrived in significant numbers in the last 40 years.
The only exception would have been the 4% who were Muslim and 2% Jewish who had religious circumcisions. In all, 89% of the circumcised men were Lutheran or not religious, i.e. were typical of a traditional Danish population.
How common are Circumcision? 30% of men are circumcised Worldwide. In Ireland, that number is even lower, and this is generally thought to be a result of embarrassment. We aim to change this and to help many thousands of Irish men who are suffering with easily treatable conditions.
Nationals from non-European countries (mainly America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) were more likely to be circumcised than Scottish men (50.0% and 13.1%, respectively, p<0.001).
Circumcision is rare in Iceland, as in much of Europe. It is difficult to find a doctor who is willing to perform one for religious reasons, said Imam Seddeeq, forcing Muslims to travel out of Iceland to uphold the tradition.
Circumcision is not practiced among Italy's Roman Catholic majority. Many immigrants in Italy are Muslim and practice circumcision for cultural and religious reasons, but sometimes have trouble accessing the practice in hospitals. For some, the hospital costs are too high.
Male circumcision is the removal of the prepuce [1]. It is one of the most common procedures performed in the world and makes up over 10% of pediatric urology cases [2]. An estimated 58.3% of male newborns and 80.5% of males aged 14-59 years in the United States are circumcised [3,4].
Circumcision rates have been falling for decades in Canada, with the most recent data cited by the Canadian Paediatric Society pegging it at about 32 per cent in 2009.
The children's hospitals of Zurich and St Gallen announced they had suspended the practice after the Cologne district court ruled last month that circumcision for religious purposes amounted to willful bodily harm which could be punishable under criminal law.
As in all other European countries, male circumcision is uncommon in Italy, a country with a strong Catholic heritage that values and promotes the integrity of the human body.
In China, the nation with the largest population in the world, circumcision is generally treated as a selective medical intervention to treat some diseases; only 2.66% of males have been circumcised, and EIMC is not a traditional practice, except among Muslims, who account for < 3% of the population [14].
Belgian men typically only get circumcised for medical reasons, meaning circumcised respondents may have problems unrelated to circumcision.
We found 15.8% (95% confidence interval (CI) 14.7 to 17.1) of British men aged 16–44 years reported being circumcised in Natsal 2000. Age specific prevalence was greatest among men aged 40–44 years (19.6%, 95% CI 16.8 to 22.7) compared to those aged 16–19 years (11.7%, 95% CI 9.0 to 15.2).