Arbaeen is often called the largest annual gathering on earth. The 2026 figures show why that title is more than a slogan — and why the walk to Karbala has become one of the most quietly diverse gatherings anywhere.
A road that speaks every language
Iraqi authorities recorded pilgrims from 172 nationalities entering the country in the weeks before this year’s observance, as reported by Shafaq News. Walk any stretch of the route and you will hear Persian, Urdu, Arabic, English, Hausa, Azeri, Turkish and dozens of tongues besides — often around the same pot of tea.
Not only for one community
While the great majority of pilgrims are Shia Muslims, the walk has long drawn a broader crowd. Sunni Muslims join, and so do people of other faiths entirely — Christians, Yazidis and others have all walked the road, and interfaith delegations are regularly invited to observe, as documented by the Religion Media Centre. The message of Karbala — that dignity and justice are worth standing for — is one many traditions recognise as their own.
This is why our page on what Arbaeen is makes a point newcomers sometimes find surprising: you do not have to be Muslim to be moved by Imam Hussain (as), or to be welcome on the road.
Hospitality that closes distances
What holds so varied a crowd together is not paperwork but hospitality. The people of Iraq welcome pilgrims from around the world with free food, drink and shelter, regardless of nationality, colour or creed. Strangers become neighbours over a shared meal; misconceptions dissolve over a night spent under the same tent. Observers from very different backgrounds often come away describing the same thing — a rare, unforced sense of common humanity.
Karbala belongs to everyone who ever chose truth over power.
Why it matters beyond Iraq
In an age of hardening borders and loud division, a road on which 172 nationalities eat from the same pot is worth noticing. Arbaeen does not ask everyone to believe the same things. It asks them to walk together toward a man who refused injustice, and to treat every fellow traveller as a guest. For a few weeks each year, millions manage exactly that.
If the human side of Arbaeen speaks to you more than the statistics, you are in good company — it is what draws many first-time walkers back. Our first-time guide is written for exactly that reader: curious, open, and wondering whether this journey might be theirs too.