The Eastern Tharu of Nepal

The Eastern Tharu of Nepal, numbering approximately 136,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Nepal, Narayani zone: Chitawan District; Lumbini zone, Nawalparasi District. They are an Indigenous people, in the Nepali-Pahari people cluster of the South Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Hinduism - Folk. They primarily speak Bhojpuri.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Eastern Tharu

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: Nepal
People Cluster: Nepali-Pahari
Primary Language(s): Bhojpuri (bho)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism - Folk
Population: 136,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG006193

Pray for the Eastern Tharu of Nepal

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Hinduism - Folk
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Bhojpuri
Language Family: Indo-European

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Media Resources in Bhojpuri:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Bhojpuri:

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Or check out the Bhojpuri bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Eastern Tharu

The Eastern Tharu are Unengaged and Unreached, 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.

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

Next steps for the Eastern Tharu

The Eastern Tharu 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.

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

Next steps for the Eastern Tharu

The Eastern Tharu 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.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Eastern Tharu of Nepal

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
readJohn 3:14-15

Pray that the lost among them will look to the One lifted up on the cross, believing in Him and receiving eternal life.

So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
readRomans 9:16

Pray that the merciful God who is at work in people's hearts will advance His gospel among them.

I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
readPsalm 89:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will declare and record His faithfulness and love to be passed on from generation to generation.

To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law.
read1 Corinthians 9:20

Pray that believers from similar cultures will be compelled by Christ's love to reach people who don't know the gospel, and that those people will receive the good news with joy.

Tharu, Chitwan (ROP3 - 102172) reported in the following countries:

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

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