Dhangar Oraon in Nepal


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

The Dhangar Oraon people of Nepal, whose native language is Kurux, live in the jungle plains of southeastern Nepal. They associate themselves with the greater Oraon community, who live primarily in India and Bangladesh. The Dhangar Oraon of Nepal migrated to their current homeland from India in the mid-1800s, but they have retained a strong connection to their culture and religion, and still speak their Kurux language. Although southern Nepal is an ethnically diverse area, Dhangar Oraon people tend to live in homogenous neighborhoods and maintain a strong community connection.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Dhangar Oraon home styles vary by area within Nepal, but are typically made of bamboo, mud, and cow dung, with thatched roofs.
Most Dhangar Oraon people in Nepal are farmers by occupation, but many do not own their own land. Despite living in rural areas, even the most remote settlements have easy access to major roads, larger towns, and cities. This allows for families to supplement farming income with other means of employment such as tailoring, metalworking, carpentry, technical jobs, office work and entrepreneurship.
Because they have maintained their culture and a strong family structure, Dhangar Oraon people have a strong internal support network. Many, however, do not own their own land or have the financial means to access higher education, healthcare, and other amenities.
Dhangar Oraon people tend to live in homogenous neighborhoods within diverse areas, and therefore are highly multilingual meaning that most of the population speaks 3 or more languages such as Maithili, Tharu, Bhojpuri, Sadri, and Tamang in addition to Nepali. Although school is taught in Nepali children still speak Kurux with friends and in their homes.


What Are Their Beliefs?

There are few Dhangar Oraon Christians in Nepal and only one known Dhangar Oraon church. Most people are very dedicated to their own religion.
The Dhangar Oraon people practice a unique nature-based religion which is centered around the Karam Festival, in which they worship the branches of the Karam tree. The festival lasts two days and consists of fasting, song and dance, and food offerings which are then eaten at the end of the day to break the fast. Their religion has other festivals throughout the year. Many Dhangar Oraon people also celebrate Hindu festivals, showing influence from Hinduism, the dominant religion in Nepal.
There is at least one church with Dhangar Oraon members in Nepal, and possibly one or two Indian Dhangar Oraon missionaries working in Nepal, but this is not yet confirmed.


What Are Their Needs?

There is one existing Bible in the Kurux language which is from a dialect in India. This version has been banned in India, but two other translations were in progress as of 2018. Sadly, many of the speakers in Nepal may have some difficulty understanding the vocabulary, as the Nepali dialect has some lexical differences from the Indian dialect. Kurux speakers in Nepal do not seem to be aware of the vast amounts of written literature available in the Kurux language (all based out of India). Kurux speakers in Nepal would benefit from learning to read their own language in an alphabet they already know. There are many Kurux resources available from India including hymn books, literature, sound recordings and the Jesus film, although some are outdated.
The Uranw community in India has a large Christian population and has made some efforts to connect with Kurux speakers in Nepal and northern Bihar. Cross-border connection and collaboration has the potential to reach many people with the gospel.


Prayer Points

Pray for a spiritual hunger that will overcome community pressure for conformity.
Pray for loving and dedicated workers.
Pray for Dhangar Oraon disciples to make more disciples.


Scripture Prayers for the Oraon, Dhangar in Nepal.


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Oraon
People Name in Country Oraon, Dhangar
Natural Name Dhangar Oraon
Alternate Names Dhagar; Dhanka; Jhagad; Jhagar; Kurka; Orang; Ranchi; Ranchiwalla; Saathi; Sadri; Uraon; ओराओं
Population this Country 45,000
Population all Countries 5,242,000
Total Countries 4
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 14210
ROP3 Code 107674
Country Nepal
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Total States on file 10
Largest States
Kosi
34,000
Sagarmatha
3,700
Narayani
3,500
Mechi
2,100
Janakpur
1,100
Lumbini
300
Bagmati
200
Mahakali
200
Gandaki
20
Bheri
20
Country Nepal
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Total States 10
  Kosi 34,000
  Sagarmatha 3,700
  Narayani 3,500
  Mechi 2,100
  Janakpur 1,100
  Lumbini 300
  Bagmati 200
  Mahakali 200
  Gandaki 20
  Bheri 20
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Hinduism
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
0.56 %
Christianity  (Evangelical Unknown)
2.94 %
Ethnic Religions
1.86 %
Hinduism
94.60 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.04 %
* From latest Nepal census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Kurux (34,000 speakers)
Language Code kru   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 10
Secondary Languages
Maithili
4,500
Rangpuri
300
Rawat
100
Santhali
100
Bengali
100
Bhojpuri
70
Odia
40
Kharia
40
Angika
30
Primary Language Kurux (34,000 speakers)
Language Code kru   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 10
Secondary Languages
  Maithili 4,500
  Rangpuri 300
  Rawat 100
  Santhali 100
  Bengali 100
  Bhojpuri 70
  Odia 40
  Kharia 40
  Angika 30
People Groups Speaking Kurux
Photo Source Gerald Roberts 
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.


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