Taxonomia Religionum

Family Trees

11 family groupings across the world's life frameworks

Derivation Network

Interactive force-directed graph showing historical derivation, splits, and influences between traditions. Drag nodes to rearrange. Scroll to zoom.

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Philosophical / Non-Theistic

Global (Western-origin)

Common ancestor: Greco-Roman philosophy and Enlightenment rationalism

No supernatural claimsReason as primary epistemologyEthics without divine commandNaturalistic worldviewHuman agency centralThis-worldly focus

Traditions

├─Stoicism(~300 BCE (Zeno of Citium))

└─Secular Humanism(Roots in Enlightenment (~18th century); formalized 20th century)

Arctic Indigenous

Circumpolar Arctic (Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Siberia)

Common ancestor: Inuit/Yupik oral and shamanic traditions

Animism (all beings have inua/soul)Shamanic mediation (angakkuq)Taboo systemAnimal-human reciprocityExtreme environment spiritualityNo divine rulers

Traditions

└─Inuit Spirituality(Prehistoric (~4,500+ years in Arctic))

North American Indigenous

Great Plains and Southwest (Lakota, Navajo territories)

Common ancestor: Diverse pre-Columbian oral traditions of Turtle Island

Sacred landscapeOral traditionCeremony as core practiceReciprocal relationship with animalsMedicine wheel / directional cosmologyVision and dream as revelationCommunity well-being as spiritual goal

Traditions

├─Navajo (Diné) Spirituality(Prehistoric (Southwest arrival 1000-1525 CE; traditions older))

└─Lakota (Sioux) Spirituality(Prehistoric (Great Plains traditions; documented from 18th century))

New Religious Movements

Global (19th-20th century origins)

Common ancestor: Various — syncretic, revivalist, or novel foundations

Founded in modern eraOften syncretic or revivalistCharismatic foundersAdaptation of older traditions

Traditions

├─Tenrikyo(1838 CE (Nakayama Miki))

├─Cao Dai(1926 CE)

└─Wicca / Neopaganism(1954 CE (Gerald Gardner))

Southeast Asian Syncretic

Indonesian Archipelago (Bali, Java)

Common ancestor: Pre-Hindu Austronesian animism layered with Hindu-Buddhist and Islamic influences

Visible/invisible world dualityAncestor venerationRitual balance and harmonySyncretic layeringSacred landscapeCommunal ceremony

Traditions

├─Kejawen (Javanese Mysticism)(Prehistoric roots; syncretic form ~15th century)

└─Balinese Hinduism (Agama Hindu Dharma)(~1st century CE influences; formalized ~14th-15th century)

Oceanic / Pacific & Australian

Pacific Islands, Australasia

Common ancestor: Austronesian and Aboriginal oral traditions

Mana/sacred powerAncestor spiritsLand as sacred/living entityOral traditionRitual purity/tapuThis-worldly ecological focusAnimism

Traditions

├─Aboriginal Australian Spirituality(~65,000+ years (oldest continuous spiritual tradition))

├─Hawaiian Traditional Religion(Prehistoric (~500-1300 CE arrival))

└─Maori Traditional Religion(Prehistoric (arrived in Aotearoa ~1300 CE))

African Traditional

West Africa (Yorubaland — Nigeria, Benin, Togo)

Common ancestor: Indigenous West African spiritual traditions

Supreme creator deityOrisha/spirit intermediariesAncestor venerationDivination systemsAse (life force)Cyclical reincarnationOral scriptural tradition (Odu Ifa)

Traditions

└─Yoruba Religion (Ifa/Isese)(Prehistoric (formalized traditions ~1000+ years old))

Iranian

Persia (modern Iran, Central Asia)

Common ancestor: Indo-Iranian religious traditions

Cosmic dualismEthical monotheismLinear eschatologyFree moral choiceFire as sacred symbol

Traditions

├─Manichaeism(3rd century CE (Mani, ~216-274 CE))

└─Zoroastrianism(~1500-1000 BCE (Zarathushtra))

East Asian / Taoic

East Asia (China, Japan, Korea)

Common ancestor: Ancient Chinese philosophical and animistic traditions

Harmony as highest valueCosmic balance (Yin-Yang)Ancestor venerationThis-worldly focusDe-emphasis on creator deityRitual propriety

Traditions

├─Shinto(Prehistoric (formalized ~8th century CE))

├─Taoism (Daoism)(~4th century BCE (as philosophy; religious Taoism later))

└─Confucianism(~551 BCE (Confucius))

Dharmic / South Asian

Indian Subcontinent

Common ancestor: Vedic and Shramanic traditions of ancient India

KarmaSamsara (cycle of rebirth)Dharma (cosmic/moral order)Liberation (moksha/nirvana) as ultimate goalCyclical cosmologyNon-violence (ahimsa)

Traditions

├─Sikhism(1469 CE)

├─Jainism(~6th century BCE (Mahavira; tradition claims much older))

├─Buddhism(~5th century BCE)

└─Hinduism(~1500 BCE (Vedic period; roots much older))

Abrahamic / Middle Eastern

Middle East (Levant, Arabian Peninsula)

Common ancestor: Patriarch Abraham / Shared Semitic monotheistic root

MonotheismLinear cosmologyProphetic revelationSacred scripture as authorityMoral law from GodFinal judgmentResurrection

Traditions

├─Mandaeism(~1st-2nd century CE (possibly older))

├─Druze(1017 CE)

├─Bahá'í Faith(1844 CE)

├─Islam(610 CE)

├─Christianity(~30 CE)

└─Judaism(~2000-1500 BCE)