Many people were outraged by the chain's initiative to launch a new, independent collection for Ramadan. Well before this year's Islamic holiday, Ikea targeted a specific audience with its collection and believes that this is acceptable.

„When the crescent moon appears on February 17, Ramadan begins.” This is how the advertisement posted on Ikea’s Danish Facebook page begins, as pointed out by the Danish BT portal.

A „Gokvällå” kollekcióval a svéd bútoróriás készen áll a muszlim háttérrel rendelkező vásárlók fogadására. A kollekciót skandináv és keleti design keverékeként írják le, amelynek része egy félhold alakú LED-lámpa is.

Vækker opsigt: Ikea lancerer ny kollektion forud for ramadanen https://t.co/PMQZuQEhuZ pic.twitter.com/ZU2nKYpl0A

— B.T. (@btdk) January 20, 2026

When asked by the press about the launch of the collection, Ikea responded:

For many people, this is a special time of year when the home becomes an important meeting place for iftar, reflection, and celebration.

The concept will also be rolled out in Norway, Joachim Dagenborg, press officer at Ikea Norway, confirmed to the Norwegian newspaper Nettavisen.

„It is important for us to show that we can offer everything you need for celebrations, regardless of what holiday it is. Whether it’s Ramadan or Christmas, we offer everything,”

said Dagenborg.

The Norwegian Ikea website states: „Ramadan is a time when family, friends, and neighbors gather to eat together after the daily fast and share joyful moments. It is a magical month with nighttime celebrations, warm hearts, and open homes. This year’s GOKVÄLLÅ collection has everything you need to create the wonderful atmosphere of Ramadan, from joyful decorations to decorative pillows and textiles, festive copper cutlery, sparkling fairy lights, and cozy lanterns. All you need to add is delicious food.”

They continue:

It’s time to fill your home with the festive spirit of Ramadan!

The advertisement for the collection, available from January 29, also includes a special offer for meals related to the Islamic holiday:

„With Ramadan approaching, it’s time to refresh your dining room. Create a warm and friendly atmosphere that is perfect for iftar, suhoor, and every moment in between.”

Iftar menu in Oslo, event in a Christian church

Furuset in Oslo has gone one step further during the festive season. The restaurant offers a special Iftar meal, which is a dinner eaten after sunset, after breaking the fast. Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting, during which one must abstain from food and drink from dawn to sunset.

Meanwhile, a parish of the Norwegian Church (Den norske kirke) caused outrage by inviting Muslims to an iftar dinner at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Oslo.

 

Many find it incomprehensible that the church would celebrate a holiday of another religion and ask: what does this say about the church’s own faith? One Norwegian podcast explored the question of whether the West is romanticizing Islam and whether the church has lost the courage to stand up for what it believes in.

A survey published in 2025 clearly shows that Muslim communities in Norway are growing, while membership of the Church of Norway is declining.

Membership of the Church of Norway fell from 85 percent to 62 percent between 1994 and 2024.

The Jerusalem Post reported that in 2024, Norway experienced a significant change in religious affiliation as 15,000 people left the Church of Norway. This development contributes to the continuing decline in church membership, which fell from 85 percent of the Norwegian population in 1994 to 62 percent in 2024. The decline reflects changing trends in Norwegians’ identification with religious institutions.

As the proportion of members of the Church of Norway declines, a record number of people are joining other religious and philosophical communities. Since 2024, the number of members of communities outside the Church of Norway has increased by 18,000, bringing their total number to over 775,000. This growth reflects the diversification of the population’s religious and philosophical affiliations.

According to data from Statistics Norway (SSB), more than 4.2 million Norwegian citizens belong to a religious or philosophical community, which corresponds to about 75 percent of the Norwegian population. The Church of Norway and other Christian religious communities have 3.8 million members.

Muslim culture has clearly been introduced to Norway by immigrants, whose composition has changed significantly over the past two decades. Today, there are significantly more immigrants from Africa and the Middle East and fewer from Scandinavian countries.