Kharia in India


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge
* From latest India census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.

Introduction / History

The Kharia (Lewa Kunbi) people live in the Western Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. They have gotras such as Shendilya, Kashyap and Bharadwaj. They are known as Lewa Patil.

They speak the Marathi and Telegu languages and use the Devanagari script. A few of them also speak Hindi. The incidence of colour-blindness is reported in 5 percent of the Kharia population.

The Kharia men are non-vegetarian but their women are vegetarian. Jowar is their staple cereal and they eat rice occasionally. The economy of the Lewa Kunbi is mainly based on agriculture. They either cultivate their own land or work for others on a share-cropping basis. They participate in the local weekly markets. The problem of alcoholism is prevalent among the men.

The Kharia generally follow monogamy. The women contribute to the family economy as wage earners and take part in socio-religious activities. In a marriage a series of rituals are performed simultaneously at the bride and groom's residences. Marriage rituals include the thread wearing ceremony, the exchange of garlands and circumambulating the sacred fire seven times.

The Kharia have an association, which looks after the socio-economic development of the community. They cremate the dead and observe death pollution for ten days.

The Kharia worship both family and village deities. The Brahmin officiates as a priest at their rituals. Their traditional customs prevent them from exchanging water and cooked food with certain communities, such as, the Bhangi, Chamar and Mahar. Ancestor worship is also prevalent among them. Diwali is the main festival celebrated by the Lewa Kunbi.

Alternate names: Kunbi Khaire, Kunbi Lonari, Kunbi Tirole, Kunbi Hindre.


Prayer Points

For the salvation of the Kharia people and that God may send several Christian workers to work among them and meet their spiritual and physical needs.
That the LKharia people may be freed from alcoholism, ancestors' worship, colour-blindness and be able to accept all the communities without caste prejudice.


Scripture Prayers for the Kharia in India.


Profile Source:   India Missions Association - Edited by Philipose Vaidyar  Copyrighted ©   Used with permission  

People Name General Kharia
People Name in Country Kharia
Alternate Names Haria; Khaire Kunbi; Kharvi; Kulu; Kunbi; खारिया
Population this Country 902,000
Population all Countries 926,000
Total Countries 3
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 2
Unreached No
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 6  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed
People ID 17153
ROP3 Code 112503
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 21
Largest States
(only 15 largest shown)
Odisha
263,000
Assam
238,000
Jharkhand
231,000
West Bengal
71,000
Chhattisgarh
58,000
Bihar
14,000
Arunachal Pradesh
3,800
Madhya Pradesh
3,000
Andaman and Nicobar
2,300
Tripura
1,700
Maharashtra
1,200
Nagaland
800
Delhi
200
Meghalaya
200
Manipur
200
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 21  (only 20 largest shown)
  Odisha 263,000
  Assam 238,000
  Jharkhand 231,000
  West Bengal 71,000
  Chhattisgarh 58,000
  Bihar 14,000
  Arunachal Pradesh 3,800
  Madhya Pradesh 3,000
  Andaman and Nicobar 2,300
  Tripura 1,700
  Maharashtra 1,200
  Nagaland 800
  Delhi 200
  Meghalaya 200
  Manipur 200
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Hinduism
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
0.06 %
Christianity  (Evangelical Unknown)
31.44 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
63.71 %
Islam
0.17 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.01 %
Unknown
4.60 %
* From latest India census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Kharia (310,000 speakers)
Language Code khr   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 35
Secondary Languages
(only 15 largest shown)
Assamese
144,000
Odia
108,000
Bengali
79,000
Hindi
76,000
Chhattisgarhi
21,000
Marathi
3,900
Santhali
2,800
Mundari
2,100
Kurux
2,100
Koda
1,800
Sadri
1,400
Bhojpuri
1,100
Munda
800
Ho
700
Punjabi, Eastern
500
Primary Language Kharia (310,000 speakers)
Language Code khr   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 35
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown)
  Assamese 144,000
  Odia 108,000
  Bengali 79,000
  Hindi 76,000
  Chhattisgarhi 21,000
  Marathi 3,900
  Santhali 2,800
  Mundari 2,100
  Kurux 2,100
  Koda 1,800
  Sadri 1,400
  Bhojpuri 1,100
  Munda 800
  Ho 700
  Punjabi, Eastern 500
People Groups Speaking Kharia

Primary Language:  Kharia

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (1951)
Bible-New Testament Yes  (1992)
Bible-Complete No
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 Kharia Jesus Film Project
General Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
Text / Printed Matter Topical Scripture booklets and Bible studies World Missionary Press
Photo Source Ramesh Lalwani - Flickr  Creative Commons 
Map Source People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project.  
Profile Source India Missions Association - Edited by Philipose Vaidyar  Copyrighted ©  Used with permission 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.