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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Bania (Maithili) of India

The Bania (Maithili) of India, numbering approximately 66,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a cluster of merchant and trading communities traditionally associated with commerce, finance, and accounting. They are an Indigenous people in the Bania people cluster of the South Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary language is Maithili and their primary religion is Hinduism.

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Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Bania
Primary Language(s): Maithili (mai)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 66,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Dispersed CP Activity
People Group ID: PG048035

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Pray for the Bania (Maithili) of India

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Maithili
Language Family: Indo-European

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Media Resources in Maithili:

Films:

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Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Maithili:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Maithili bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 1), which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Dispersed CP Activity (GSEC: 3), this people group is less than 2% evangelical but there has been dispersed church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Bania (Maithili):
Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Bania (Maithili) are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Bania (Maithili):
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Bania (Maithili) are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Next steps for the Bania (Maithili):
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Bania (Maithili) of India

But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.
readPsalm 130:4

Pray that God will bring those who have hard hearts to repentance and trust in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
readRomans 1:19-20

Pray that God will use His creation – the “things that have been made” – to spark a fresh and passionate curiosity among them to draw near to the Maker and that, as they seek Him, He will make a way for them to hear the gospel and receive it with joy.

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.
readGenesis 50:20

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will forgive those who do them harm and trust God as they walk in His ways.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
readEphesians 6:12

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures the discernment they need to recognize the spiritual battle they are fighting. Pray God will protect their faith as they abide in Him.

Bania (Maithili) Across Countries (ROP3 - 116364) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Definitions page.

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