The Telugu Brahmins are among the highest status peoples of southwest India. Brahmin means "one who knows God." There is a disagreement among sources as to whether the Telugu Brahmins were Aryans who came from north India or Dravidians who came north from Tamil Nadu. As their names suggests, they speak the south Indian language of Telugu. They also speak Hindi and English. Some of the Telugu Brahmins have left the priesthood to pursue secular occupations such as being government officials, military leaders and business owners. Some Telugu today continue the traditional Brahmin roles as temple priests, scholars and professors. Telugu Brahmins are also active in the arts as actors, filmmakers, musicians and painters.
Most Telugu Brahmins live in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Smaller numbers live in Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and other regions of India.
Within the Telugu Brahmins, the Niyogi group serves in government, the military and business. They will eat meat except for beef. The Vaidiki group is priests dedicated to the god Vishnu and his temples. They are strict vegetarians. They perform religious ceremonies for other Hindu castes. They also engage in jobs like teaching, administration and science.
The Telugu Brahmin are endogamous. They marry only within their Brahmin caste.
Families arrange marriages with the consent of the young people. Sons inherit property with the eldest son receiving the family home.
Like other Brahmins, they encourage their children to get university educations and graduate degrees so they can obtain high positions in society.
The Telugu Brahmins practice Hinduism, the ancient religion of India. The Telegu Brahmins worship and serve the many gods of the Hindu pantheon. They study the Vedas, the oldest writings of Hinduism. Some see Vishnu as the supreme god and others see Shiva as the chief deity. The Telugu Brahmins often perform the essential rituals of the yearly Hindu holidays such a Holi, the festival of colors, Diwali, the festival of lights and Navratri, the nine-day celebration of autumn. The Telugu Brahmin cremate their dead.
The Telugu Brahmins need humility to see that they are sinners who require God's forgiveness. They need to see that the Bible not the Vedas is the source of true spiritual wisdom and knowledge of God. They need to see Christ's love and mercy lived out before their eyes by His followers.
Pray that the Telugu receive a hunger for the truth of the Word of God.
Pray that Christians befriend the Telugu Brahmins and show them the love and grace of Christ and tell them the gospel.
Pray that the Lord raises up a disciple-making movement among the Telugu Brahmin community and that Telugu Brahmin churches are planted.
Scripture Prayers for the Brahmin Telugu in India.
https://www.quora.com/Who-are-the-Dravida-Brahmins-in-Andhra-Pradesh
http://www.vepachedu.org/manasanskriti/Brahmins.html
Profile Source: David Kugel |
Brahmin of India profile for Children and Family Missions Activities |
Global Prayer Digest: 2012-08-08 |
Global Prayer Digest: 2020-04-10 |
People Name General | Brahmin Telugu |
People Name in Country | Brahmin Telugu |
Natural Name | Telugu Brahmin |
Pronunciation | TEL-uh-goo BRAH-min |
Alternate Names | Telugu Brahman; Telugu Brahmin; ब्रामिन, तेलुगु |
Population this Country | 1,237,000 |
Population all Countries | 1,237,000 |
Total Countries | 1 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | Yes |
GSEC | 1 (per PeopleGroups.org) |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 25 |
People ID | 19983 |
ROP3 Code | 115766 |
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 | 20 | |||||||||||||||
Largest States (only 15 largest shown) |
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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 | 20 |
Andhra Pradesh 991,000 | |
Karnataka 65,000 | |
Telangana 58,000 | |
Tamil Nadu 58,000 | |
Maharashtra 32,000 | |
Odisha 13,000 | |
Puducherry 2,900 | |
Chhattisgarh 1,700 | |
Kerala 1,500 | |
West Bengal 1,400 | |
Delhi 800 | |
Gujarat 800 | |
Jharkhand 800 | |
Madhya Pradesh 600 | |
Assam 400 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Hinduism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical 0.00 %) |
0.00 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
99.99 %
|
Islam |
0.00 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.01 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Telugu (1,237,000 speakers) |
Language Code | tel Ethnologue Listing |
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
Primary Language | Telugu (1,237,000 speakers) |
Language Code | tel Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
People Groups | Speaking Telugu |
Primary Language: Telugu
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1812-1966) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (1818-1989) |
Bible-Complete | Yes (1854-2022) |
Bible-NT Audio | Online |
Bible-NT Text | Online |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Photo Source | Sissssou - Flickr Creative Commons |
Map Source | People Group Location: Omid. Other geography / data: GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project |
Profile Source | David Kugel |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Read more |