The word Mahli means bamboo. The Mahli are a scheduled tribe.
They live in Odisha, Bihar and West Bengal. They speak Hindi or Bengali.
They mainly do basket work for a living. Some of them work in agriculture. The Mahli of Bihar speak Sadri and read and write in Devanagari. They are not vegetarians and eat rice, maize and wheat as cereals. They have a community council to look after their needs. Their literacy level is low so the gospel will need to be given in oral form.
The Mahali people practice Hinduism, the ancient religion of India. 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.
The Mahali people need a John 10:10 blessing: The abundant life Jesus offers those who are willing to submit to his lordship.
Pray that the the council leaders come to Jesus Christ and lead others to Him.
Pray that gospel recordings will lead them to salvation.
Scripture Prayers for the Mahali in India.
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
People Name General | Mahali |
People Name in Country | Mahali |
Alternate Names | महाली |
Population this Country | 98,000 |
Population all Countries | 98,000 |
Total Countries | 1 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | No |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 2 |
People ID | 20711 |
ROP3 Code | 117139 |
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) | ||
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 | 1 |
West Bengal 96,000 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Hinduism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.03 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical Unknown) |
3.34 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
93.54 %
|
Islam |
0.20 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.02 %
|
Unknown |
2.87 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Bengali (44,000 speakers) | |||||||||||||||
Language Code | ben Ethnologue Listing | |||||||||||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | |||||||||||||||
Total Languages | 16 | |||||||||||||||
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) |
|
Primary Language | Bengali (44,000 speakers) |
Language Code | ben Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 16 |
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) | |
Hindi 19,000 | |
Mahali 8,100 | |
Santhali 7,800 | |
Munda 1,200 | |
Kurux 400 | |
Nepali 400 | |
Marathi 300 | |
Odia 100 | |
Punjabi, Eastern 100 | |
Adi 100 | |
Koda 70 | |
Mundari 60 | |
Boro 60 | |
Telugu 50 | |
Sora 40 | |
People Groups | Speaking Bengali |
Primary Language: Bengali
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1800-1980) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (1801-1984) |
Bible-Complete | Yes (1809-2022) |
Bible-NT Audio | Online |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Photo Source | Anonymous |
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. |