structural:summarization, information:classification, structural:expansion
Religion

The region is traditionally known as a Hanbali stronghold, and after the 18th century became known for its strict interpretation of Islam and is generally considered a bastion of religious conservatism. The founder of the interpretation of Salafism, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, was born in 'Uyayna, a village in the Najd.

The majority of people in the region consider themselves as Salafi Muslims. The name derives from advocating a return to the traditions of the "ancestors" (salaf), the first three generations of Muslims said to know the "purest" form of Islam. Those generations include the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his companions (the Sahabah), their successors (the Tabi‘un), and the successors of the successors (the Taba al-Tabi‘in). Practically, Salafis maintain that Muslims ought to rely on the Qur'an, the Sunnah and the 'Ijma (consensus) of the salaf, giving them precedence over later Islamic hermeneutic teachings.