Bhunjia in India


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge
* Data can be from various sources including official census, agencies, and local research. Data from these sources can sometimes differ even by orders of magnitude. Joshua Project attempts to present a conservative, balanced estimate.

Introduction / History

Bhunjia people are listed as a Scheduled Tribe of India. They have two major groups, namely Chokutia Bhunjia and Chinda Bhunjia in the states of Chhatisgarh and Odisha. Both outsiders and insiders call them Bhunjia. In some villages they live with people of other castes called Magi.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Their livelihood is agriculture plus in Odisha some people are involved in animal husbandry and fishing. A few of them are employed as teachers while others collect and sell firewood.


What Are Their Beliefs?

Almost all Bhunjia (99.87% according to the census) are Hindu though they include elements of the traditional tribal religion.


What Are Their Needs?

The state government of Odisha is working with about 500 Bhunjia families in community development. The literacy rate among those families is about 35% while people not covered under this project have a lower literacy level about 19%. Presently, Bhunjia is considered to be a dialect of Halbi [hlb].

Language development is ongoing with Halbi and it needs to be determined if Bhunjia people can use Halbi literature or if it will be necessary to produce adaptations into their dialect. There is a definite need for language development in the Bhunjia language. Among themselves Bhunjia people mostly speak their own vernacular rather than the language of wider communication. Speaking a second language is very difficult for women and children.


Prayer Points

Pray that God will send culturally sensitive workers who will show them the way to the cross.
Pray for a Disciple Making Movement to flourish among this people group.
Pray for the Bhunjia people to be blessed with peace, joy and spiritual prosperity as they follow Jesus Christ.


Scripture Prayers for the Bhunjia in India.


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Bhunjia
People Name in Country Bhunjia
Alternate Names Bunjia; भूनजिया
Population this Country 29,000
Population all Countries 29,000
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 16425
ROP3 Code 111576
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
Odisha
14,000
Chhattisgarh
11,000
Maharashtra
2,500
Madhya Pradesh
1,700
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
  Odisha 14,000
  Chhattisgarh 11,000
  Maharashtra 2,500
  Madhya Pradesh 1,700
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Hinduism
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
0.07 %
Christianity  (Evangelical Unknown)
0.06 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
99.62 %
Islam
0.15 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.03 %
Unknown
0.08 %
* From latest India census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Bhunjia (12,000 speakers)
Language Code bhu   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 27
Secondary Languages
(only 15 largest shown)
Hindi
3,900
Chhattisgarhi
3,500
Oriya, Adivasi
2,600
Odia
2,400
Marathi
900
Pengo
800
Gujarati
100
Bhili
80
Desiya
40
Santhali
30
Bengali
20
Telugu
20
Kannada
20
Kacchi
20
Kharia
20
Primary Language Bhunjia (12,000 speakers)
Language Code bhu   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 27
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown)
  Hindi 3,900
  Chhattisgarhi 3,500
  Oriya, Adivasi 2,600
  Odia 2,400
  Marathi 900
  Pengo 800
  Gujarati 100
  Bhili 80
  Desiya 40
  Santhali 30
  Bengali 20
  Telugu 20
  Kannada 20
  Kacchi 20
  Kharia 20
People Groups Speaking Bhunjia

Primary Language:  Bhunjia

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes
Bible-New Testament Yes  (2022-2023)
Bible-Complete No
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
General YouVersion Bible versions in text and/or audio YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App Android Bible app: Bhunjia YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App iOS Bible app: Bhunjia YouVersion Bibles
Photo Source Government of Odisha - Wikimedia  Creative Commons 
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.


Joshua Project logo    Terms of Use   Privacy Policy   Contact Us   Copyright © 2024