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Khonds
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|
 A Khond woman in Odisha | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 1.74 million (2011) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 India •  Bangladesh | |
| Odisha | 1,627,486[1] |
| Andhra Pradesh (incl. Telangana | 103,290[1] |
| Chhattisgarh | 10,991[1] |
| Assam | 9,936 (1951 est.)[2] |
| Bangladesh | 1,898[3] |
| Languages | |
| Kui, Kuvi, Odia | |
| Religion | |
| Hinduism and some Christianity[4] | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Dravidian people • Dangaria Kandha • Gondi people | |
Khonds (also spelt Kondha and Kandha) are an indigenous Dravidian tribal community in India. Traditionally hunter-gatherers, they are divided into the hill-dwelling Khonds and plain-dwelling Khonds for census purposes, but the Khonds themselves identify by their specific clans. Khonds usually hold large tracts of fertile land, but still practice hunting, gathering, and slash-and-burn agriculture in the forests as a symbol of their connection to, and as an assertion of their ownership of the forests wherein they dwell. Khonds speak the Kui language and write it in the Odia script.
The Khonds are the largest tribal group in the state of Odisha. They are known for their rich cultural heritage, valourous martial traditions, and indigenous values, which center on harmony with nature. The Kandhamal district in Odisha has a fifty-five per cent Khond population, and is named after the tribe they revolted against the Britishers in 1846 due to the fear of being annexed.
They have designated Scheduled Tribe status in eight states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Jharkhand, and West Bengal,[5] with a population of 1,743,406 in the 2011 census. Of these, 93.35% reside in Odisha, 5.92% in Andhra Pradesh, and around 10,000 in Chhattisgarh, while in other states, their numbers are below one thousand. In addition to these scheduled states, they are also found in northeastern India, particularly in Assam, where their population was estimated at 9,936 in the 1951 census, primarily working as tea garden workers.[2] In Bangladesh, their population was 1,898 in the 2022 census.[3]
- ^ a b c "A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix". Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Archived from the original on 20 November 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
- ^ a b "Estimated Population by Castes, 5. Assam – Census 1951" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General, India. 1954. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 March 2024.
- ^ a b Population and Housing Census 2022 – Preliminary Report (PDF) (Report). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. August 2022. pp. 33–34. ISBN 978-984-352-977-0. OCLC 1378729652. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2024.
- ^ "ST-14 Scheduled Tribe Population By Religious Community - Odisha". census.gov.in. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
- ^ "List of notified Scheduled Tribes" (PDF). Census India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
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