Followers of Christianity are a significant minority in Odisha state of India. According to the 2011 Census, Christians make up about 2.77% of the population (about 1,160,000 people). [1] Kurukh, Sora, Kharia and Panos are notable ethnic groups with a significant Christian population.
Church of God (Anderson), Evangelical Missionary Society in Mayurbhanj and Jeypore Evangelical Lutheran Church are among the Protestant denominations of Odisha. [2] Christ Church the full Gospel Church, Gospel Outreach Ministries, India Evangelistic Association, Orissa Baptist Evangelistic Crusade and The Pentecostal Mission are among the non-Catholic denominations of Odisha as well. [3] [4] The Church of North India is present in Odisha as well with the dioceses of Cuttack, Phulbani, and Sambalpur. The diocese of Chota Nagpur also serves a small part of Odisha. [5] and Christian Revival Church is also serving.
The first version in the Odia language of India [6] was translated by William Carey in 1808 and was distributed among pilgrims at Puri to introduce them to Christianity. Then came the standard version by Amos Sutton in the 1840s. [7]
The archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar is Archbishop John Barwa. Its suffragan dioceses are:
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| Source: [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Christians are mostly from the adivasi or tribal communities of the state with 8,16,981 Christians among STs and the major tribes are as below with number of Christians and percentage of Christians in each tribe. [14]
| Tribe | Christians | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Munda | 1,74,119 | 31.1% |
| Khond | 1,59,783 | 9.8% |
| Oraon | 1,49,866 | 41.8% |
| Soura | 1,36,369 | 25.5% |
| Kharia | 87,069 | 39.1% |
| Sabar | 37,933 | 7.3% |
| Kisan | 25,675 | 7.7% |
The figures indicate % of Christians within the districts: [15]
Odisha, formerly Orissa, is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the eighth-largest state by area, and the eleventh-largest by population, with over 41 million inhabitants. The state also has the third-largest population of Scheduled Tribes in India. It neighbours the states of Jharkhand and West Bengal to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west, and Andhra Pradesh to the south. Odisha has a coastline of 485 kilometres (301 mi) along the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean. The region is also known as Utkaḷa and is mentioned by this name in India's national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. The language of Odisha is Odia, which is one of the Classical languages of India.
Odia is a classical Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the official language in Odisha, where native speakers make up 82% of the population, and it is also spoken in parts of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Odia is one of the many official languages of India; it is the official language of Odisha and the second official language of Jharkhand. The Odia language has various dialects, including the Baleswari Odia, Central Odia, Ganjami Odia, Sundargadi Odia, Sambalpuri, Desia and Tribal Community dialects who have adopted the Odia language.
Rayagada district is a district in southern Odisha, a state in India, which became a separate district in October 1992. Its population consists mainly of tribes, primarily the Khonds and the Soras. In addition to Odia, Kui and Sora are spoken by the district's indigenous population. It was founded by Maharajah Biswanatha Deba Gajapati of the Surjyabansha dynasty of Jeypore.
Mayurbhanj district is one of the 30 districts in the Odisha state of eastern India. It holds the distinction of being the largest district in Odisha by area. The district's headquarters is located in Baripada, with other major towns including Rairangpur, Karanjia, and Bahalda. As of 2011, Mayurbhanj ranks as the third-most populous district in Odisha, following Ganjam and Cuttack.
Koraput district is a district of India in southern Odisha, with headquarters at Koraput. The district is located in the Eastern Ghats and is known for its hilly terrain, rich and diverse types of mineral deposits and its tribal culture and traditions. The district headquarters town of Koraput and its largest city, Jeypore are major centres of trade and commerce for South Odisha and fall on an important road connecting Visakhapatnam to Raipur.
Sambalpur District is a district in the western part of state of Odisha, India. The historic city of Sambalpur is the district headquarters.
Cuttack district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in India. It is located in the coastal part of the state and its administrative headquarters are located in the city of Cuttack. As of 2011 Census, after Ganjam, it is the second most populous district of Odisha, with a population of 2,624,470. The name is an anglicized form of Kataka or Katak meaning Fort – referring to the Barabati Fort. The district is bisected by the river Mahanadi and its numerous distributaries and occupies a large portion of the river's delta. It is bounded by the Angul, Dhenkanal, Nayagarh and Khurda districts to the west while its southern and eastern boundaries touch Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara and Jajpur districts.
Kendrapara District is an administrative district of Odisha state in eastern India. The town of Kendrapara is the district headquarters. Kendrapara District is situated in the eastern portion of the state, and is bounded on the north by Bhadrak district, on the east by the Bay of Bengal, on the south by Jagatsinghpur District, on the west by Cuttack District on the northwest by Jajpur District.
Boudh District is an administrative and a municipal district, one of the thirty in the Odisha, India. The district headquarters of the Boudh District is the city of Boudh.
Bissam Cuttack is a town and Notified Area Council in the Rayagada district of Odisha, India.
Protestants in India are a minority and a sub-section of Christians in India and also to a certain extent the Christians in Pakistan before the Partition of India, that adhere to some or all of the doctrines of Protestantism. Protestants in India are a small minority in a predominantly Hindu majority country, but form majorities in the north-eastern states of Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland. They are also significant minorities in Punjab region, Konkan region, Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, with various communities in east coast and northern states. Protestants can trace their origins back to the Protestant Revolution of the 16th century. There are an estimated 20 million Protestants and 16 million Pentecostals in India.
Odia Muslims are a community of people hailing from the Indian state of Odisha who follow Islam. They mostly descend from indigenous converts to Islam along with a small proportion that migrated from northern India.
Sambalpuri is an Indo-Aryan language variety spoken in western Odisha, India. It is alternatively known as Western Odia, and as Kosali, a recently popularised but controversial term, which draws on an association with the historical region of Dakshina Kosala, whose territories also included the present-day Sambalpur region.
Christians are a religious community residing in the Indian state of Jharkhand. As per 2011 Census of India, 4.3% of people in Jharkhand are Christians. Christians are majority in Simdega district of Jharkhand.
Jeypore Evangelical Lutheran Church is a major Lutheran Christian denomination in India. It was established in 1882. At that time, the founder of The Schleswig Holstein Evangelical Lutheran Mission Society of Germany (SHELM) in Germany was Pastor Christian Jensen, who was praying for the people of India. Pioneer missionaries Rev. Ernest Pohl and Rev. Herman Bothmann came to India and reached the Koraput district of Odisha on 31 May 1882 and started mission work.
James Peggs. was the first missionary to be sent out by the English General Baptists Missionary Society in 1821. Peggs and William Bampton served in Cuttack, Orissa in India.
Evangelization of Meghalaya began in the 19th century during the British era. In the 1830s, American Baptist Foreign Missionary Society had become active in Northeast to evangelize indigenous tribes to Christianity. Later, they were offered to expand and reach into Sohra Meghalaya, but they lacked the resources to do so and declined. Welsh Presbyterian Mission took the offer and they began work at Sohra mission field. By the early 1900s, other Protestant denominations of Christianity were active in Meghalaya. The outbreak of World Wars forced the preachers to return home to Europe and America. It is during this period that Catholicism took root in Meghalaya and neighbouring region. Currently, Catholics, Presbyterians and Baptists are three most common Christian denominations found in Meghalaya.
Orissa Baptist Evangelistic Crusade (OBEC) is an association of Baptist Christian churches in the state of Odisha in Eastern India. It is affiliated to the Baptist World Alliance. Its headquarters is in Bhubaneswar.
Chatikona is a small village of Rayagada district in the state of Odisha, India. It is one of the identified Tourist Centres of Odisha.
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