The Munda are a tribal (Adivasi) people of the Jharkhand region, which is spread over on five states of India (Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhatisgarh and Orissa), and in parts of Bangladesh. Ādivāsīs (in Devanagari script: आदिवासी literally "original inhabitants" comprise a substantial indigenous minority of the population India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Jharkhand ( Hindi: झारखंड Bengali: ঝাড়খণ্ডdʒʰaːɽkʰəɳɖ is a state in eastern India. Bihar ( Hindi:बिहार Urdu: بہار bɪhaːr) is a state in eastern India. West Bengal ( Bengali: পশ্চিমবঙ্গ Poshchim Bônggo poʃtʃim bɔŋgo is a state in eastern India. Chhattisgarh ( Chhattisgarhi / Hindi: छत्तीसगढ़ tʃʰət̪t̪iːsgəɽʰ, a state in central India, formed when the sixteen Orissa (ଓଡ଼ିଶା is a state located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. ( Bengali: বাংলাদেশ inc-Latn Bangladesh) officially Their language is Mundari, which belongs to the Munda subgroup of the Austro-Asiatic language family; the Munda language group is in fact named after the Munda people. The Munda languages are a Language family spoken by about nine million people in central and eastern India and Bangladesh. The Austro-Asiatic languages are a large Language family of Southeast Asia, and also scattered throughout India and Bangladesh. There are some two million Munda people (twenty lakhs). A lakh (also written lac, and lackh in an Indian english language news source India PR Wire 8 Oct '08 is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to

Contents 1 Religion and Identity 2 Counting 3 Notable Mundas 4 Bibliography 5 Further reading 6 External links

Religion and Identity

• About 25 percent of the population are Christians. Christianity is India's third-largest religion, with approximately 24 million followers constituting 2 Mundas have their own religion, called Sarna, in which they worship nature. They believe in a supreme being called Sing Bonga, which literally means "Sun God". 'Sarna' is supposedly not part of Hinduism as emphasized by some. Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent.
• Common surnames (Gotras) are: Topno, Barla, Aind, Hemrom, Guria, Herenge, Surin, Horo, Sanga, Samad, Kongari, Bage, Purty, Demta, Tiru, Munda, Kerketta Etc.
• Jesuit Father John-Baptist Hoffmann (1857-1928) spent his life studying the language, customs, religion and life of the Mundas, a people with whom he had fallen in love. The Society of Jesus ( Latin: Societas Iesu, SJ and SI or SJ, SI) is a Catholic religious order John-Baptist Hoffmann (21 June 1857 Wallendorf, Germany - 19 November 1928 Trier, Germany was a German Jesuit priest, Missionary He published the first Munda grammar in 1903. Year 1903 ( MCMIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar or a Common year starting Later (with the help of Menas Orea, a Munda wise man and scholar to whom he paid a rich tribute) Hoffmann brought out a most extraordinary Encyclopaedia mundarica (15 volumes) gathering all that was then known on the Munda people. The first edition was published in 1937, after his death. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A third edition came out of the press in 1976. Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Counting

• "One"-Mi-a-en
• "Two"-Bariya
• "Three"-Apiya
• "Four"-Upuniya
• "Five"-Modeya
• "Six"-Turiya
• "Seven"-Eya
• "Eight"-Irliya
• "Nine"-Ariya
• "Ten"-Geleya
• "Twenty"-Hissi.

Other higher numbers are pronounced by combining words from these in required order like "Twelve"-Gel-bariya[ten-two]

Notable Mundas

• Birsa Munda, leader of a late 19th century political independence movement during British colonial rule in India
• Jaipal Singh, He formed Adivasi Mahasabha in 1938, himself as its president. Birsa Munda (1875– June 9 1900) was a national leader in the late 19th century political independence movement during the British Raj in India Jaipal Singh Munda ( January 3, 1903 &ndash March 20, 1970) was a Munda tribal man who captained the Indian After independence the name of the party was changed to Jharkhand Party to accommodate non-tribal to achieve long term goals. He was the first to demand a separate Jharkhand state for tribals. He captained the Indian field hockey team to clinch gold in the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. He is well known for his sportsmanship and political skills.

Bibliography

• HOFFMANN, John-Baptist: Mundari Grammar, Calcutta, 1903.
• HOFFMANN, John-Baptist: A Mundari Grammar with exercises, 2 vol. , Calcutta, 1905-09.
• HOFFMANN, John-Baptist: Encyclopaedia mundarica, 15 vol. , Patna, 1930-37.
• PONETTE, P. (ed): The Munda World. Hoffmann commemoration volume, Ranchi, 1978.

Further reading

• Parkin, R. (1992). The Munda of central India: an account of their social organization. Delhi: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195630297

External links

• Sarna - A case study in religion On the religion of the Munda tribals

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