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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Koli Mahadev of India

The Koli Mahadev of India, numbering approximately 1,815,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as a Scheduled Tribe of western India, concentrated in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra. Traditionally hill‑dwelling farmers and forest users, they derive their name from their devotion to Mahadev (Shiva) and from the Mahadev hill ranges They are an Indigenous people, with Koli as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Koli people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Hinduism. They primarily speak Marathi.

Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Anonymous

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Koli
Primary Language(s): Marathi (mar)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Hinduism
Population: 1,815,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041370
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Pray for the Koli Mahadev 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: Folk Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

98%
%
Folk Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Marathi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Marathi Speakers

Media Resources in Marathi:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Marathi:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Marathi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

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): Expanding Unreached People Group, (LPI: 2), 0.5% to 2% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity (GSEC: 2), this people group is less than 2% evangelical but there has been initial or concentrated church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Koli Mahadev:
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 Koli Mahadev 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 Koli Mahadev:
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 Koli Mahadev 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 Koli Mahadev:
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 Koli Mahadev of India

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
readPsalm 46:10

Pray that those who do not yet worship Jesus will be still and know that He is God, that He will be exalted among them and in all the earth.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts!
readPsalm 96:8

Pray for people here to humbly give God the glory due His name.

The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot... indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
readPsalm 16:5-6

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and face hardship, they will remember that God is their portion and cup and that He has a beautiful inheritance for them.

For the needy shall not always be forgotten, and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.
readPsalm 9:18

Pray that God will raise up believers who can help meet emotional and physical needs among this people group. Ask Him to open doors for them and give them the courage to walk into difficult situations and share the hope of the gospel boldly.

Koli Mahadev Across Countries (ROP3 - 112576) 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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