Introduction / History

The Yadav in Nepal are in every way related with the Yadav in the northern states, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, in India.

It's easy to find out who a Yadav is. Just ask them their name and they will tell you their first name followed by their title which is always Yadav.

Previously the Yadav were called Ahir. The name Ahir is derived from 'Abhira' which is a immigrant tribe found in the inscriptions and Hindu sacred books. The Abhira appear to have been one of the immigrant tribes from Central Asia. They are spoken of as robbers and foreigners. They claim connection to the god Krishna since he was a herdsman. In Nepal all Yadav will be called Yadav these days.

The Yadav are a caste comprisied of milkmen, cowherds, cattle breeders and laborers. Their traditional occupation is animal husbandry and selling animal products. The Yadav consist of both landowning and landless people. Some Yadav are businessmen, teachers, doctors, engineers and political leaders. In 2008 Nepal became a democratic country. The first president was Ram Baran Yadav.

Where Are they Located?

They are living almost all over South-Nepal. The highest concentration is in the provinces Janakpur, Sagarmatha, Narayani and Lumbini.

In India the Yadav have many language groups but in Nepal you can reach almost all of them by using 3 languages only (Nepali, Maithili and Bhojpuri).

What Are Their Lives Like?

The Yadav live in joint families. Most of them are vegetarian but many start eating fish, mutton, chicken and sometimes pork, but not beef. Child labor is common among them.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Yadav participate in the local traditional and socio-religious festivals. They have expertise in oral traditions and group singing in praise of the god Vishnu, Krishna or one of the many other gods that they worship. Similarly, they are good in musical dance and wrestling. In India in some places they are also known to do some mock-fighting with swords but in Nepal that is not known (as far as we know). Boys are favored for formal education. They are known to have more faith in astrology and talismans rather than in the services of a doctor.

What Are Their Needs?

They need to hear about the way of salvation. Most of the Yadav die never hearing the Name of Jesus once in a lifetime!

But also life, lifestyle and living standard are changing all over the nation. The next generation will need to get other kinds of jobs. To get those jobs they need education but proper education is missing in many places (especially in the villages).

Prayer Points

* Pray for the salvation of the Yadav people.
* Pray for short and long term workers / teams to come and pioneer new ministries among the Yadav.
* For new focused evangelism and church planting ministries.
* For literacy and community development work.
* For Christian social workers eradicating alcoholism.
* Christian workers to meet their spiritual and physical needs.
* For the practice of child labor to end among the Yadav people.
* For education to be made available to girls as well to the boys.