Soligar in India

The Soligar have only been reported in India
Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge
* Data can be from various sources including official census, agencies, and local research. Data from these sources can sometimes differ even by orders of magnitude. Joshua Project attempts to present a conservative, balanced estimate.

Subgroups: 1

Subgroup Name Population
Urali 600

Introduction / History

Their name Soligar means "people of the bamboo," derived from their belief that their ancestors originated from bamboo. The Biligiri Ranga (BR) Hills Wildlife Sanctuary is situated between the Western and the Eastern Ghats on the banks of river Cauvery in Kemmannagundi district, Karnataka. This wildlife sanctuary is spread over an area of 540 square kilometers and is covered with mixed deciduous forest. It is also the hub of varied species of wildlife and is rich in flora and fauna. The Soligar people have made this region their home. It is spread across the South Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. However, the majority of them are concentrated in and around the BR Hills in Karnataka.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Soligar believe that human life is intertwined with the eco-system. Their love for nature is reflected in their local tribal laws, such as that fruits and berries should be harvested only from the trees that flower in abundance, and very ripe or raw fruits should not be collected. These people are basically hunter-gatherers whose lives are solely dependent on forest produce.


What Are Their Beliefs?

The Soligar community is Hindu by faith: they are pious and follow the religious traditions very carefully. There is no effective missionary work among the Soligar, though a few nongovernmental organizations work among them. Entry into this tribal area is highly restricted, so reaching them becomes all the more difficult. High levels of illiteracy and difficulty in accessing them pose challenges for any mission work.


What Are Their Needs?

The Soligar people's literacy level is just average, though many are proficient in the spoken form of Kannada. There are a few primary schools in the Soligar tribal area, but they have to travel out of their neighborhood to continue their higher education as there are no high schools near them. Many of the Soligar are illiterate and they drop out of school for various socioeconomic reasons.


Prayer Points

Pray for loving workers to go to the Soligar people, and for their hearts to be ready to receive their savior.
Pray for families of believers loving and serving others to grow reproducing churches.
Pray for a chain reaction of families reaching families that result in thousands of new disciples who share their faith with others.
Pray for grace and truth expanding into their entire society as all believers learn to love others.


Scripture Prayers for the Soligar in India.


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Soligar
People Name in Country Soligar
Alternate Names Gowda; Makkalu; Malaival; Malaival Makkalu; Sholaga; Sholagar; Sholigar; Solaga; Soligaru; Urali; Urali Gounder; Urali Sholagar; Urali Solagar; सोलीगर
Population this Country 7,100
Population all Countries 7,100
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group No
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 18148
ROP3 Code 113656
Country India
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 11  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Total States on file 4
Largest States
Tamil Nadu
6,800
Karnataka
200
Telangana
40
Puducherry
20
Districts Interactive map, listing and data download
Specialized Website South Asia Peoples
Country India
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 11  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Total States 4
  Tamil Nadu 6,800
  Karnataka 200
  Telangana 40
  Puducherry 20
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Hinduism
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical Unknown)
0.54 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
99.38 %
Islam
0.05 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.03 %
* From latest India census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Sholaga (4,800 speakers)
Language Code sle   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 10
Secondary Languages
Tamil
900
Kannada
400
Telugu
300
Marathi
30
Tulu Konkani
Malayalam Bhili Hindi
Primary Language Sholaga (4,800 speakers)
Language Code sle   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 10
Secondary Languages
  Tamil 900
  Kannada 400
  Telugu 300
  Marathi 30
  Tulu 10
  Konkani 0
  Malayalam 0
  Bhili 0
  Hindi 0
People Groups Speaking Sholaga

Primary Language:  Sholaga

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (2022)
Bible-New Testament Yes  (2022)
Bible-Complete No
YouVersion NT (www.bible.com) Online
Possible Print Bibles
Amazon
World Bibles
Forum Bible Agencies
National Bible Societies
World Bible Finder
Virtual Storehouse
Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Sholaga Jesus Film Project
General Scripture Earth Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
General YouVersion Bible versions in text and/or audio YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App Android Bible app: Sholaga YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App iOS Bible app: Sholaga YouVersion Bibles
Photo Source Kalyan Varma - Wikimedia  Creative Commons 
Map Source People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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