The Chakma are not the same as the smaller Chak tribe, who live south of them. The Chakma inhabited the Chittagong Hill Tracts since long before the region became part of the Mughal empire in 1666. Buddhism flourished in Bangladesh from the 5th to 12th centuries. Since the 13th century, Buddhism has been confined to the Chittagong area. Chakma people inhabit Bangladesh and adjoining areas of northeast India. In India the Chakma are a scheduled (official) tribe that lives in the northeastern states near Bangladesh.
In Bangladesh they have long found themselves at odds with the predominantly Muslim Bengalis. The construction of the Kaptai Dam in the 1960s caused 18,000 Chakma people to lose their homes, and that may be the origin of the present problems. Since the mid-1970s the Chakma have been involved in a secretive guerilla war against Bangladeshi soldiers. The fighting stems from the influx of large numbers of Bengali settlers, who have moved into the Chittagong area and taken over Chakma land by force. The Bengali government does little to stop the illegal settlers, and the Chakma have fought back out of frustration as they see their lives being rapidly destroyed. Thousands of Chakma have been killed, hundreds of women and girls raped, and Buddhist temples smashed and looted. Tens of thousands of Chakma refugees have fled across the border into India. The Chakma people live in a part of India where there are believers nearby, and not just any believers, but people who follow Christ with all their hearts.
The Chakma people live in a part of India where there are believers nearby, and not just any believers, but people who follow Christ with all their hearts
The Chakma are officially Buddhists, but at the family level they worship Hindu deities like Lakshmi and Ganga. Buddhist monks from other Buddhist communities, act as religious teachers and performs Buddhist rites.
According to the India Missions Association, 7,275 Chakma in India are Christians. Overall, the troubled Chakma people remain an unreached and unevangelized people group.
The Chakma people in India need a safe place to make a living and raise families. They need protection from those who want to do them harm. Experiencing turmoil and an uncertain future, they need the inner peace and hope that only faith in Christ can bring.
Pray for the Lord to provide justice, mercy and salvation to the Chakma people in India.
Pray that the trauma they face will make them look to the sovereign Lord for protection.
Pray for the Lord to thrust out workers to the Chakma people in Bangladesh and India.
Scripture Prayers for the Chakma in India.
Peoples of the Buddhist World, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
People Name General | Chakma |
People Name in Country | Chakma |
Pronunciation |
CHAHK-mah
|
Alternate Names | Chakama; Chawngma; Daingnet; Doingnak; Thet; Tsak; चागमा |
Population this Country | 260,000 |
Population all Countries | 823,000 |
Total Countries | 3 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | No |
GSEC | 4 (per PeopleGroups.org) |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 5 |
People ID | 11293 |
ROP3 Code | 101976 |
ROP25 Code | 301643 |
ROP25 Name | Chakma |
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 | 8 | |||||||||
Largest States |
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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 | 8 |
Mizoram 115,000 | |
Tripura 110,000 | |
Assam 24,000 | |
Arunachal Pradesh 9,100 | |
Meghalaya 1,200 | |
West Bengal 500 | |
Delhi 100 | |
Nagaland 60 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Buddhism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
82.67 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical Unknown) |
4.89 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
11.94 %
|
Islam |
0.14 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.15 %
|
Unknown |
0.21 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Chakma (125,000 speakers) | |||||||||||||||
Language Code | ccp Ethnologue Listing | |||||||||||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | |||||||||||||||
Total Languages | 48 | |||||||||||||||
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) |
|
Primary Language | Chakma (125,000 speakers) |
Language Code | ccp Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 48 |
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) | |
Bengali 54,000 | |
Kok Borok 23,000 | |
Darlong 8,500 | |
Mizo 3,000 | |
Assamese 1,900 | |
Khasi 600 | |
Chin, Paite 400 | |
Chin, Mara 300 | |
Hindi 300 | |
Chin, Hakha 200 | |
Santhali 200 | |
Garo 100 | |
Naga, Konyak 100 | |
Nepali 90 | |
Magahi 80 | |
People Groups | Speaking Chakma |
Primary Language: Chakma
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1924-1955) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (1926-2012) |
Bible-Complete | Yes (2021) |
FCBH NT (www.bible.is) | Online |
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 |
Audio Recordings | Story of Jesus audio | Jesus Film Project |
Film / Video | Jesus Film: view in Chakma | Jesus Film Project |
Film / Video | World Christian Videos | World Christian Videos |
General | Bible for Children | Bible for Children |
General | Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video | Faith Comes by Hearing |
General | Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video | Faith Comes by Hearing |
General | Gospel resources links | Scripture Earth |
General | Gospel website in this language | General / Other |
General | YouVersion Bible versions in text and/or audio | YouVersion Bibles |
Mobile App | Android Bible app: Chakma | YouVersion Bibles |
Mobile App | iOS Bible app: Chakma | YouVersion Bibles |
Text / Printed Matter | Literacy primer for Chakma | Literacy & Evangelism International |
Photo Source | Copyrighted © 2023 Kerry Olson All rights reserved. Used with permission |
Map Source | Anonymous |
Profile Source | Joshua Project |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more. |