Religion in Jharkhand [1]
Hinduism is the majority religion in Jharkhand, followed by nearly 67.83% of total population as of 2011 census. There has also been a significant population of followers of Islam and Sarnaism, with 14.53% and 12.52% respectively[ citation needed ] and Christianity being a significant minority, followed by 4.3%. A small numbers of Sikhs and other religion are also present. [1]
Jharkhand is a diverse state of India and has a diverse religious population, where the majority of the population follow Hinduism, with Islam as the second most followed religion. [2] The state has also a very high proportion of tribal population, where the majority religion is Sarnaism. [3] In recent times, due to missionary activities, there has been a significant rise of Christianity in Jharkhand which is more than the national average population of Christians in India. [4] A small community of Agrahari Sikh and Jains. [5]
Religion Census | Total population | Hinduism | Islam | Christianity | Budhisim | Sikhism | Jainism | Other religions | Not Stated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 [6] | 38,786,184 | 33,075,664 | 4,373,360 | 415,548 | 1,092 | 37,947 | 8,165 | 874,408 | |
| 1961 [6] | 46,455,610 | 39,347,050 | 5,785,631 | 502,195 | 2,885 | 44,413 | 17,598 | 755,838 | |
| 1971 [7] | 56,353,369 | 47,031,801 | 7,594,173 | 658,717 | 4,806 | 61,520 | 25,185 | 976,997 | 170 |
| 1981 [8] | 69,914,734 | 58,011,070 | 9,874,993 | 740,186 | 3,003 | 77,704 | 27,613 | 1,179,878 | 287 |
| 1991 [9] | 86,374,465 | 71,193,417 | 12,787,985 | 843,717 | 3,518 | 78,212 | 23,049 | 1,443,258 | 1,309 |
| 2001 [10] | 26,945,829 | 18,475,681 | 3,731,308 | 1,093,382 | 5,940 | 83,358 | 16,301 | 3,514,472 | 25,387 |
| 2011 [11] | 32,988,134 | 22,376,051 | 4,793,994 | 1,418,608 | 8,956 | 71,422 | 14,974 | 4,235,786 | 68,343 |
| Population by religion (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| S. No. | Religion | 2001 [12] | 2011 [1] |
| 1. | Hinduism | 68.50 | 67.83 |
| 2. | Islam | 13.80 | 14.53 |
| 3. | Sarnaism | 13.04 | 12.52 |
| 4. | Christianity | 4.05 | 4.31 |
| 5. | Sikhism | 0.31 | 0.22 |
| 6. | Others | 0.8 | 0.41 |
| 7. | Not stated | n/a | 0.19 |
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The Santal are an Austroasiatic-speaking Munda ethnic group of the Indian subcontinent. Santals are the largest tribe in the Jharkhand and West Bengal in terms of population and are also found in the states of Odisha, Bihar, Assam and Tripura. They are the largest ethnic minority in northern Bangladesh's Rajshahi Division and Rangpur Division. They have a sizeable population in Nepal. The Santals speak Santali, the most widely spoken Munda languages of Austroasiatic language family.
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Simdega district is one of the 24 districts of Jharkhand state, India, and Simdega town is the administrative headquarters of this district. As of 2011, this district is the least densely populated district and the third least populous district of Jharkhand after Lohardaga and Khunti districts. Simdega District was carved out from erstwhile Gumla district on 30 April 2001. It is currently a part of the Red Corridor.
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Khonds are an indigenous Adivasi tribal community in India. Traditionally hunter-gatherers, they are divided into the hill-dwelling Khonds and plain-dwelling Khonds for census purposes, but the Khonds themselves identify by their specific clans. Khonds usually hold large tracts of fertile land, but still practice hunting, gathering, and slash-and-burn agriculture in the forests as a symbol of their connection to, and as an assertion of their ownership of the forests wherein they dwell. Khonds speak the Kui language and write it in the Odia script.
Chuhra, also known as Bhanghi and Balmiki, is a Dalit caste in India and Pakistan. Populated regions include the Punjab region of India and Pakistan, as well as Uttar Pradesh in India, among other parts of the Indian subcontinent such as southern India. Their traditional occupation is sweeping, a "polluting" occupation that caused them to be considered untouchables in the caste system.
Asia is the largest and most populous continent and the birthplace of many religions including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism, Taoism, and Zoroastrianism. All major religious traditions are practiced in the region and new forms are constantly emerging. Asia is noted for its diversity of culture. Islam and Hinduisms are the largest religion in Asia with approximately 1.2-1.3 billion adherents each.
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Religion in India is characterised by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. Throughout India's history, religion has been an important part of the country's culture and the Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four of the world's major religions, namely, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism, which are collectively known as native Indian religions or Dharmic religions and represent approx. 83% of the total population of India.
The Sikhs are adherents to Sikhism, the fifth largest organized religion in the world, with around 25 million adherents. Sikh History is around 500 years and in that time the Sikhs have developed unique expressions of art and culture which are influenced by their faith and synthesize traditions from many other cultures depending on the locality of the adherents of the religion. Sikhism is the only religion that originated in the Punjab region with all other religions coming from outside Punjab. All the Sikh gurus, many saints, and many of the martyrs in Sikh history were from Punjab and from the Punjabi people. Punjabi culture and Sikhism are mistakenly considered inseparably intertwined. "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, strictly not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhism has seldom sought converts, most Sikhs share strong ethno-religious ties, therefore it is a common stereotype that all Sikhs share the same ethnicity. Many countries, such as the U.K., therefore misconcievingly recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikhs included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".
Roughly 8.6 per cent of India's population is made up of "Scheduled Tribes" (STs), traditional tribal communities. In India those who are not Christians, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Buddhists, or Zoroastrians are identified as Hindus. The reason being varied beliefs and practices allowed in Hindusim and according of Hindusim as a geographical identity than merely Religious ones. Though, many of the Scheduled Tribes have modes of worship not typical to mainstream Hindusim but ontologically form part of the cultural practices of the land, as Nature or ancestral worship, with varying degrees of syncretism.
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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.
Sarnaism is a religious faith of the Indian subcontinent, predominantly followed by indigenous communities in the Bangladesh and India's Chota Nagpur Plateau region across states like Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh.
Religion in West Bengal is composed of diversified beliefs and practices. As per the 2011 census, Hinduism is the largest and biggest religion practiced by Indian Bengalis in the state, followed by Islam which is the second largest and biggest minority religion in the state. Smaller percentage of people adheres to Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Animism, Zoroastrianism & Judaism or are Irreligious
Hinduism is a majority religion in Odisha, which is followed by nearly 93.6% of the total population of the state. Odisha has a very rich cultural heritage of Hinduism and the state has second highest percentage of Hindus, after Himachal Pradesh. The state is home for the tribal culture and historical Hindu temple, the notable includes the Jagannath Temple in Puri and Lingaraja Temple. Ratha Yatra of Puri is one of the biggest Hindu pilgrimage in India. The state has also many Historical sites.
Sari Dharam is the religion of the Santal people residing in India. Sari Dharam is one of the religious belief in eastern region of Indian states like Jharkhand, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and Assam. However, Santals also practices Sarnaism.
