The Jenu Kuruba are also referred to by the names "Then Kurumba" or "Kattu Naikar." Their name means honey. They have fought for years to remain in the forests. They are spread out mainly along the border forests of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Most of them work as daily laborers for landlords in plantations in the region. They are very poor and struggle to make ends meet. A large number of their children drop out of school and take to daily labor early in life because of their family's financial situation. As a result, very few of them are literate. There is also a clear need for medical, social and economic development for this community.
Being a close-knit community, they rarely mingle with other neighboring tribal communities. If any Jennu Kurumba becomes friendly with an outsider, he might be expelled from his community.
The Jennu Kurumba people practice Hinduism, the ancient religion of South Asia. Hinduism is a catch-all phrase for the local religions of South Asia, so it is very diverse. At the popular level, Hindus worship and serve the gods of the Hindu pantheon. They visit Hindu temples and offer prayers, food, flowers, and incense to their gods in hopes of gaining protection and benefits. They do not have a personal or familial relationship with their gods like Christians or Jews. There are other Hindus who are much more philosophical, especially among the Brahmins.
Almost all Hindus participate in yearly celebrations like Holi, the festival of colors and the start of spring / Diwali, the festival of lights / Navratri, the celebration of autumn / and Rama Navami, Rama's birthday.
They were exposed to the Christian faith almost a century ago, but there are few if any visible results today. To them, Christianity is a foreign religion and below their standards, because Christians eat beef.
There is a need for loving Christian workers to present the gospel in a culturally appropriate manner. The Jennu Kurumbas speak a distinct language and research has shown that they need their own Scripture translation. They could then understand the love of God and enjoy freedom from fear and suspicion.
Pray for the Jennu Kurumba people to have open hearts to Jesus Christ and his ambassadors.
Pray for God to open doors for the Jennu Kurumba to welcome Jesus into their community.
Pray for missionary families to be encouraged and be a key means for the Jennu Kurumba to come to faith in Jesus.
Pray for wisdom, grace and empowering from above for the Scripture translation team.
Scripture Prayers for the Jenu Kuruba in India.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenu_Kuruba
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
Other PDF Profile |
People Name General | Jenu Kuruba |
People Name in Country | Jenu Kuruba |
Alternate Names | Kattu Naiakan; Kattu Naichan; Kattunaikan; Kuluvan; Kuruba. Jenu; जेनू कुरुबा |
Population this Country | 56,000 |
Population all Countries | 56,000 |
Total Countries | 1 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | Yes |
GSEC | 1 (per PeopleGroups.org) |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 1 |
People ID | 18778 |
ROP3 Code | 112348 |
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 |
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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 | 4 |
Karnataka 43,000 | |
Tamil Nadu 12,000 | |
Andhra Pradesh 70 | |
Kerala 30 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Hinduism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical Unknown) |
0.03 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
99.85 %
|
Islam |
0.07 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.02 %
|
Unknown |
0.03 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Kurumba, Jennu (35,000 speakers) | ||||||
Language Code | xuj Ethnologue Listing | ||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | ||||||
Total Languages | 6 | ||||||
Secondary Languages |
|
Primary Language | Kurumba, Jennu (35,000 speakers) |
Language Code | xuj Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 6 |
Secondary Languages | |
Kannada 5,300 | |
Tamil 4,400 | |
Telugu 1,700 | |
Malayalam 200 | |
Marathi 60 | |
People Groups | Speaking Kurumba, Jennu |
Primary Language: Kurumba, Jennu
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (2016) |
Bible-New Testament | No |
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 Kurumba, Jennu | Jesus Film Project |
General | Gospel resources links | Scripture Earth |
Photo Source | Copyrighted © 2023 Philipose Vaidyar All rights reserved. Used with permission |
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. |