India is the primary home of the Pano or Pan people, though a small number are in Bangladesh. Many Pans live in the Indian states of West Bengal, Jharhand and Andhra Pradesh. The Pan people are distributed in the Balasore, Cuttack, Puri, Dhankanal and Ganjam districts of Odisha and on the border with West Bengal and Bihar. The Pan are Odia speaking people while some of them also speak Hindi.
They have occupational sub-groups known as Bunapano and Dhulipano. Many use Shamal as their surname.
They are non-vegetarian and rice is their staple food. The majority live by farming or fishing. They take menial jobs and they have low status. Pan people have faced considerable health problems related to contaminated water, poor diet, respiratory infections and lack of medical care. Several charitable groups have made efforts to help them with these problems. This has helped, but most of them still face these same problems. Most worship Hindu and village deities and participate in ancestral worship.
They are divided into several lineages, which regulate marriage alliances and indicate one's ancestry. They have only one clan, the Nagasa. Their traditional and primary occupation is to serve as serfs to the land holding communities. However, a few of them are engaged in private business, in cultivation, as daily wage laborers and as musicians.
The Pan worship gods and goddesses such as Mahadev and Durga. Their village deities are Lakshmi, Mongla and Jogmaya. Jogmaya is their chief deity. The Pan have presumed kinship with other communities such as the Mahaprasad, Mokar and the Maitra. They act as musicians during the worship and life cycle rituals of other communities.
Pan Christians in both India and Bangladesh face marginalization for not conforming to the majority religion.
Pray for God to send several Christian workers to work among them and meet their spiritual and physical needs.
Pray for community development programs and opportunities to hear the gospel.
Pray that many in Pan communities will know Jesus as the only savior.
Scripture Prayers for the Pan in Bangladesh.
India Missions Association, Edited by Philipose Vaidyar, Copyrighted © Used with permission.
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
People Name General | Pan |
People Name in Country | Pan |
Alternate Names | Oriya Pan; Pan Tanti; Panaba; Panassa; Pano; Panoriya; Panothia; Pantanti; Samasi; Sawasi; Sut Bauri; Tantabai; Tanti; Tantubai; पं |
Population this Country | 4,400 |
Population all Countries | 1,615,000 |
Total Countries | 2 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | Yes |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 1 |
People ID | 17840 |
ROP3 Code | 113314 |
ROP25 Code | 306484 |
ROP25 Name | Pan Pano |
Country | Bangladesh | ||||||
Region | Asia, South | ||||||
Continent | Asia | ||||||
10/40 Window | Yes | ||||||
National Bible Society | Website | ||||||
Persecution Rank | 26 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | ||||||
Total States on file | 4 | ||||||
Largest States |
|
Country | Bangladesh |
Region | Asia, South |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
National Bible Society | Website |
Persecution Rank | 26 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Total States | 4 |
Rangpur 1,500 | |
Sylhet 1,400 | |
Dhaka 1,100 | |
Rajshahi 300 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Hinduism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical 0.00 %) |
0.00 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
100.00 %
|
Islam |
0.00 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.00 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
* From latest Bangladesh census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Bengali (2,500 speakers) | |||
Language Code | ben Ethnologue Listing | |||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | |||
Total Languages | 3 | |||
Secondary Languages |
|
Primary Language | Bengali (2,500 speakers) |
Language Code | ben Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 3 |
Secondary Languages | |
Sylheti 1,000 | |
Odia 900 | |
People Groups | Speaking Bengali |
Primary Language: Bengali
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1800-1980) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (1801-1984) |
Bible-Complete | Yes (1809-2022) |
FCBH NT (www.bible.is) | Online |
YouVersion NT (www.bible.com) | Online |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Photo Source | Anonymous |
Map Source | People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project. |
Profile Source | Joshua Project |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more. |