Vaddar (Sikh traditions) in India


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Other / Small (Sikhism)
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

For most of their history the Vaddar (aka, Bovi) people wandered the subcontinent looking for jobs to support their families. The word Bhovi means "earth-digger". During the Partition of 1947, the Muslim Vaddars tended to move to Pakistan while the Hindu and Sikh Vaddars remained in India. The large majority of the Vaddars (aka, Bhovi) are Hindus but there are also a sizable number of Muslims and a small group of Sikhs.


Where Are they Located?

Sikh Vaddar people live in Punjab, the original homeland of Sikhism.


What Are Their Lives Like?

The traditional occupations of the Vaddars have been as stonecutters, diggers of wells and canals and as transporters of earth and stones. Many Vaddars now have settled in villages and work as farm laborers on other people's land. The primary language of the Muslim Vaddars in Pakistan is Oadki. Many also speak Punjabi and Urdu, which allow them to speak with others outside their group.

The Vaddars of Pakistan and India are endogamous, that is, they marry within their own community. The Vaddar women have a role in the economic, social and religious spheres of their community and contribute to the family income. Caste councils promote their interests and settle legal disputes.


What Are Their Beliefs?

Most Vaddar people are members of other religious communities, but a small number are Sikhs. Sikhism originated from a 15th century teacher named Guru Nanak Dev as a reform movement. He rejected the Hindu caste system, taught that all people were equal and that all have equal access to God. The Sikh God is formless, without gender and is to be found in everyone. One gets closer to God by living a good life and by practicing charity. Like Hindus, Sikhs believe in reincarnation and the law of karma; you reap what you sow in your previous life. Like Muslims, the Sikhs worship only one God.

One may recognize a Sikh man by his distinctive turban. All the 10 great Sikh gurus wore turbans. Sikh teaching mandates that a person not cut his or her hair. They worship their holy book, the Granth Sahib, which is a collection of hymns.

There are roughly the same number of Sikhs as there are Jews in the world, but Sikhs are most concentrated in Punjab, their homeland. However, you will find smaller numbers of Sikhs all over the world. Many of the best Indian restaurants in the West are owned and operated by Sikhs.


What Are Their Needs?

Sikh Vaddar people need to put all their trust in Jesus Christ, the only one who can forgive sin and offer abundant life.


Prayer Points

Pray for the Holy Spirit to give Sikh Vaddar people teachable and understanding hearts.
Pray that a strong movement of the Holy Spirit will bring entire Sikh Vaddar families into a rich experience of God's blessing.
Pray for Sikh Vaddar families to be drawn by the Holy Spirit to seek forgiveness, and to understand the adequacy of Christ's work on the cross.
Pray for teams of believers to do sustained, focused prayer for the Lord to open the hearts of Sikh Vaddar family leaders to experience God's blessing through a movement of family-based discovery Bible studies.


Scripture Prayers for the Vaddar (Sikh traditions) in India.


References

https://www.sikhiwiki.org/index.php/Vaddar_Sikhs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waddar_language
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Digambar_Ghodke/publication/311922163_Language_and_Culture_of_the_Waddar_Community_in_Maharashtra/links/58628b2108aebf17d39556c2/Language-and-Culture-of-the-Waddar-Community-in-Maharashtra.pdf


Profile Source:   Keith Carey  

The Sikhs

Source:  Asia Harvest      Download

People Name General Vaddar (Sikh traditions)
People Name in Country Vaddar (Sikh traditions)
Pronunciation wah-DAR
Alternate Names Beldar Rajput; Od; Odde; Odh; Orh; Vadar; Waddar; Wadde; वादडर (सिख ट्रेडिशन्स)
Population this Country 2,100
Population all Countries 2,100
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 18195
ROP3 Code 113710
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 5
Largest States
Punjab
1,200
Haryana
700
Delhi
100
Karnataka
50
Himachal Pradesh
10
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 5
  Punjab 1,200
  Haryana 700
  Delhi 100
  Karnataka 50
  Himachal Pradesh 10
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Other / Small (Sikhism)
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.00 %)
0.00 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
100.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
* From latest India census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Punjabi, Eastern (1,100 speakers)
Language Code pan   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 7
Secondary Languages
Hindi
500
Oadki
200
Telugu
30
Sindhi
30
Kannada Haryanvi
Primary Language Punjabi, Eastern (1,100 speakers)
Language Code pan   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 7
Secondary Languages
  Hindi 500
  Oadki 200
  Telugu 30
  Sindhi 30
  Kannada 10
  Haryanvi 10
People Groups Speaking Punjabi, Eastern

Primary Language:  Punjabi, Eastern

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (1818-1954)
Bible-New Testament Yes  (1815-2011)
Bible-Complete Yes  (1959-2021)
FCBH NT (www.bible.is) Online
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
Audio Recordings DAVAR Partners recording, complete Bible DAVAR Partners International
Audio Recordings Online Audio Scripture Talking Bibles
Audio Recordings Recorded oral Bible Oral Bibles
Film / Video Following Jesus video Jesus Film Project
Film / Video God's Story video God's Story
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Punjabi, Eastern Jesus Film Project
Film / Video Magdalena video Jesus Film Project
Film / Video Story of Jesus for Children Jesus Film Project
General Bible for Children Bible for Children
General Bible in text or audio or video Internet Publishing Sevice
General Bible in text or audio or video South Asia Bibles
General Biblical answers to your questions Got Questions Ministry
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Four Spiritual Laws Cru
General Scripture Earth Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
General YouVersion Bible versions in text and/or audio YouVersion Bibles
General Zume Resources Zume Project
General Zume Training Zume Project
Mobile App Android Bible app direct APK download SIL
Mobile App Android Bible App: Punjabi Bible (ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਬਾਈਬਲ) Indian Revised Version (IRV) Operation Agape
Mobile App Android Bible app: Punjabi, Eastern YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App Android Bible Radio app: Punjabi Bible Radio Shalom Design S2dio
Mobile App Android Book Reading app: Open Bible Stories (Punjabi) Shalom Design S2dio
Mobile App iOS Bible app: Punjabi, Eastern YouVersion Bibles
Mobile App iOS Bible Radio App: Punjabi Bible Radio iOS Revive India
Text / Printed Matter Children and youth resources One Hope
Text / Printed Matter Download scripture in this language eBible.org
Text / Printed Matter Literacy primer for Punjabi, Eastern Literacy & Evangelism International
Text / Printed Matter Tools for faith conversations Cru
Text / Printed Matter Topical Scripture booklets and Bible studies World Missionary Press
Photo Source (Representative photo)
wallpaperflare  Creative Commons 
Map Source People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project  
Video Source Asia Harvest
Profile Source Keith Carey 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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