To Index
back to India: Kerala, Hinduism
| Group | Where | Number of Adherents |
% of total pop. |
Number of congreg./ churches/ units |
Number of countries |
Year | Source | Quote/ Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Islam | India: Kerala | 6,788,364 | 23.33% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Kerala | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Kerala: pop. figure: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "below 1/4% "] |
| Jainism | India: Kerala | - | 0.01% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Mar Thoma Church | India: Kerala | 500,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| Nestorian | India: Kerala | 100,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| other | India: Kerala | 3,275 | - | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| Sikhism | India: Kerala | 2,224 | 0.01% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| St. Thomas Evangelical | India: Kerala | 10,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| Syrian Jacobites, Independent (Thozhiyur) | India: Kerala | 9,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar | India: Kerala | 5,600,000 | 20.00% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 720-721. | "Syrian Christians in India... Alternate Names: Malabar Christians "; Pg. 721: "Syrian Christians in Kerala are currently estimated to number around 5.6 million people. " |
| Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar - Bava Kakshi | India: Kerala | 1,000,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar - Methran Kakshi | India: Kerala | 1,100,000 | - | - | - | 1999 | *LINK* Web site: "Syro-Malabar Catholic Mission "; web page: "Church History " (viewed 23 July 1999). "Note: The figures given above are approximate, worked out from various sources. The exact numbers are not readily available. " | Table: "Christian Denominations in Kerala "; "Other Christians [other than Catholics]: Syrian Orthodox (Methran Kakshi) -1,100,000; Jacobite Syrian Orthodox (Bava Kakshi) - 1,000,000; Independent Jacobites (Thozhiyur) - 9,000; Marthomites - 500,000; St. Thomas Evangelical & Others - 10,000; Church of the East (Nestorians/Surais) - 100,000; Church of South India (CSI) and other Protestants - 700,000 " |
| Jainism | India: Madhya Pradesh | - | 1.00% | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Madhya Pradesh: pop. figure: "250,000 to 500,000 " percentage: "1/2 - 1% "] |
| Satnami Chamar | India: Madhya Pradesh | - | - | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 159-160. | "Chamars: Alternate Names: Untouchables; Scheduled Caste; Location: Northern India (mainly Uttar Pradesh state) "; "Chamars form one of the major occupational castes of India... In general, Chamars are Hindus... Given their low status in traditional Hindu society, it is not surprising that Chamars have been attracted to religions that downplay or reject notions of untouchability... Many are followers of devotional (bhakti) Hindu sects such as Kabir Panth. One such group is the Satnami Chamar of Madhya Pradesh. " |
| Vipassana Meditation Centers | India: Madhya Pradesh | - | - | 3 units |
- | 1999 | *LINK* web site: "Vipassana Meditation "; web page: "Vipassana Meditation Centers in India " (viewed 13 Feb. 1999) | counted meditation centers listed in directory; Madhya Pradesh locations: Balaghat, Bhilai-Durg, Bophal |
| Shaivism | India: Madras | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 642. | "Saivism is predominant in south India, particularly in Madras State. " |
| Buddhism | India: Maharashtra | 5,040,785 | 6.39% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Christianity | India: Maharashtra | 885,030 | 1.12% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Maharashtra | 64,033,212 | 81.12% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Maharashtra | 7,628,755 | 9.66% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Maharashtra | - | 1.00% | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Maharashtra: pop. figure: "Over 500,000 " percentage: "<1% "] |
| Jainism | India: Maharashtra | 965,840 | 1.22% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| other | India: Maharashtra | 99,768 | 0.13% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| Sikhism | India: Maharashtra | 161,184 | 0.20% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Sikhism | India: Maharashtra | 110,000 | - | - | - | 1993 | O'Brien, J. & M. Palmer. The State of Religion Atlas. Simon & Schuster: New York (1993). Pg 30-31. | 100,000 to 110,000 Sikhs (Map of "Largest Sikh Populations in India in 1993 ") |
| Vipassana Meditation Centers | India: Maharashtra | - | - | 5 units |
- | 1999 | *LINK* web site: "Vipassana Meditation "; web page: "Vipassana Meditation Centers in India " (viewed 13 Feb. 1999) | counted meditation centers listed in directory; Maharashtra locations: Igatpuri, Kolhapur, Nagpur, Dhule, Pune |
| Buddhism | India: Manipur | 711 | 0.04% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Chin | India: Manipur | 200,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 163-164. | "In India, another 400,000 live in Mizoram state, about 200,000 live in Manipur state, and some 200,000 are scattered throughout other parts of India. " [NOTE: This statistic is of cultural/ethnic affiliation, NOT a count of current practitioners of traditional Chin religion, as almost all Chin today are Christian.] |
| Christianity | India: Manipur | 626,669 | 34.11% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Manipur | 1,059,470 | 57.67% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Manipur | 133,535 | 7.27% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Manipur | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Pop. figure for this province: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "less than 1/4% "] |
| Jainism | India: Manipur | 1,337 | 0.07% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| other | India: Manipur | 14,066 | 0.77% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| Sikhism | India: Manipur | 1,301 | 0.07% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Buddhism | India: Meghalaya | 2,934 | 0.17% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Christianity | India: Meghalaya | 1,146,092 | 64.58% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Meghalaya | 260,306 | 14.67% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Meghalaya | 61,462 | 3.46% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Meghalaya | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Pop. figure for this province: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "less than 1/4% "] |
| Jainism | India: Meghalaya | 445 | 0.03% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| other | India: Meghalaya | 298,466 | 16.82% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| Sikhism | India: Meghalaya | 2,612 | 0.15% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Buddhism | India: Mizoram | 54,024 | 7.83% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Chakmas | India: Mizoram | 80,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 150-151. | "The Chakma population today is estimated to be around 550,000 people, but it is spread over 3 different countries... population spills over [from Bangladesh] into neighboring areas of southwest Mizoram State in India, where another 80,000 Chakmas live... " [NOTE: This is a tribal/ethnic group, not a distinct religion.] |
| Chin | India: Mizoram | 400,000 | - | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 163-164. | "In India, another 400,000 live in Mizoram state, about 200,000 live in Manipur state, and some 200,000 are scattered throughout other parts of India. " [NOTE: This statistic is of cultural/ethnic affiliation, NOT a count of current practitioners of traditional Chin religion, as almost all Chin today are Christian.] |
| Christianity | India: Mizoram | 591,342 | 85.73% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Mizoram | 34,788 | 5.04% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Mizoram | 4,538 | 0.66% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Mizoram | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Pop. figure for this province: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "less than 1/4% "] |
| Jainism | India: Mizoram | 4 | 0.00% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| other | India: Mizoram | 1,859 | 0.27% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| Sikhism | India: Mizoram | 299 | 0.04% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Buddhism | India: Nagaland | 581 | 0.05% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Christianity | India: Nagaland | - | 66.00% | - | - | 1977 | Wallechinsky, David & Irving Wallace; The People's Almanac: #2; New York: William Morrow & Co.: (1978), pg. 323. | "Two thirds of the population is Christian, and when evangelist Billy Graham visited Nagaland in 1973, his meetings drew 100,000 people. " |
| Christianity | India: Nagaland | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 709. | "Conversion to Christianity... has resulted in a total abandonment of tribal faiths in such areas as Nagaland, where foreign missionaries have been active since the end of the nineteenth century. " |
| Christianity | India: Nagaland | 1,057,940 | 87.47% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Nagaland | 122,473 | 10.13% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Nagaland | 20,642 | 1.71% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Nagaland | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Pop. figure for this province: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "less than 1/4% "] |
| Jainism | India: Nagaland | 1,202 | 0.10% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| other | India: Nagaland | 5,870 | 4.90% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census]; [ "other " is religions NOT Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain or Sikh] |
| primal-indigenous | India: Nagaland | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 709. | "Conversion to Christianity... has resulted in a total abandonment of tribal faiths in such areas as Nagaland, where foreign missionaries have been active since the end of the nineteenth century. " |
| Sikhism | India: Nagaland | 732 | 0.06% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Christianity | India: Nagaland - Naga | - | 92.97% | - | - | 1981 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 553. | "By 1947, about half of the Naga population had accepted Christianity. This number has been increasing in recent decades, and the 1981 census showed 92.97% of the Naga in Nagaland State as Christian. " |
| Buddhism | India: Nagpur | 250,000 | - | - | - | 1957 | Welles, Sam. The World's Great Religions, New York: Time Incorporated (1957), pg. 4. | "...Buddhism. In India, the land of its birth, from whence it has all but vanished, some 250,000 Hindu untouchables recently became Buddhists in a mass ceremony at Nagpur. " |
| Christianity | India: Nicobar Islands | 20,689 | 94.23% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 589. | "The 1981 Census of India recorded a population of 21,956 Nicobarese in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands... Few Nicobarese follow their ancient religion today. The 1981 census records that 94.23% of the Nicobarese identified themselves as Christian. " |
| Brahmans | India: Orissa | - | 2.88% | - | - | 1998 | Gall, Timothy L. (ed). Worldmark Encyclopedia of Culture & Daily Life: Vol. 3 - Asia & Oceania. Cleveland, OH: Eastword Publications Development (1998), pg. 126. | "Around 12% of Hindus in the upper Ganges plains are Brahmans. However, the numbers of Brahmans drop dramatically in areas distant from the Aryan heartland. In Assam, Orissa, and Tamil Nadu, for example, they make up less than 3% of the Hindu population. " [Other sources indicate Orissa is 96% Hindu. 96% * .03% = 2.88%] |
| Buddhism | India: Orissa | 9,153 | 0.03% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Christianity | India: Orissa | 425,000 | 1.70% | - | - | 1986 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: Global Prayer Digest 9/4/86); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | "PRAY FOR THE 24 MILLION HINDUS OF ORISSA STATE, INDIA Still today, of the nearly 25 million people in Orissa, only 1.7 percent claim to be Christians. More than 96 percent are Hindus. " |
| Christianity | India: Orissa | 666,220 | 2.10% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Hinduism | India: Orissa | 24,000,000 | 96.00% | - | - | 1986 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: Global Prayer Digest 9/4/86); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | "PRAY FOR THE 24 MILLION HINDUS OF ORISSA STATE, INDIA Still today, of the nearly 25 million people in Orissa, only 1.7 percent claim to be Christians. More than 96 percent are Hindus. " |
| Hinduism | India: Orissa | 29,917,256 | 94.67% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Islam | India: Orissa | 577,775 | 1.82% | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* web site: "Mission India " | Table: "Religion 1991 " [based on census] |
| Jainism | India: Orissa | - | - | - | - | 1984 | Folkert, Kendall W. "Jainism " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st published in 1984], pg. 261. | Figure 7.1: Distributions of the Jain population (in India) by number and as percentage of state population. [Orissa: pop. figure: "Below 10,000 " percentage: "below 1/4% "] |
