Concept

Bengalis

Overview

Bengalis (Bengali: বাঙ্গালী, বাঙালি [baŋgali, baŋali] ), also rendered as endonym Bangalee, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of South Asia. The current population is divided between the sovereign country Bangladesh and the Indian regions of West Bengal, Tripura, Barak Valley of Assam, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and parts of Meghalaya, Manipur and Jharkhand. Most speak Bengali, a classical language from the Indo-Aryan language family.

Bengalis are the third-largest ethnic group in the world, after the Han Chinese and Arabs. They are the largest ethnic group within the Indo–European linguistic family and the largest ethnic group in South Asia. Apart from Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Manipur, and Assam's Barak Valley, Bengali-majority populations also reside in India's union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, with significant populations in the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Nagaland and Uttarakhand as well as Nepal's Koshi Province. The global Bengali diaspora have well-established communities in the Middle East, Pakistan, Myanmar, the United Kingdom, the United States, Malaysia, Italy, Maldives, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore.

Bengalis are a diverse group in terms of religious affiliations and practices. Approximately 70% are adherents of Islam with a large Hindu minority and sizeable communities of Christians and Buddhists. Bengali Muslims, who live mainly in Bangladesh, primarily belong to the Sunni denomination. Bengali Hindus, who live primarily in West Bengal, Tripura, Assam's Barak Valley, Jharkhand and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, generally follow Shaktism or Vaishnavism, in addition to worshipping regional deities.

The total number of native speakers of the Bengali language worldwide is generally estimated at 300-310 million, a figure based on a synthesis of linguistic research and census-derived estimates. According to the consolidated findings of available data, two-thirds of Bengali speakers originate from present-day Bangladesh, meaning they are either of Bangladeshi descent or were born within the territory of Bangladesh. In contrast, about one-third of Bengali speakers are Indian citizens or of Indian origin, with the majority residing in the regions of West Bengal, Tripura, and Assam.

Bengalis have influenced and contributed to diverse fields, notably the arts and architecture, language, folklore, literature, politics, military, business, science and technology.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).

Possible passages

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These Indians wear a garment made of rushes cut from the river, beaten flat, platted like a mat, and worn as a corselet. Other Indians, living to the east of these, are nomads, and eat raw flesh; they are called Padæans. When any one of this community is sick, if it be a man, the men who are his nearest connections put him to death, alleging that if he wasted by disease his flesh would be spoiled; and no matter if…
Herodotus, The Boys' and Girls' Herodotus
States what Bengalis is.
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For 90 in fact even if a man has come to old age they slay him and feast upon him; but very few of them come to be reckoned as old, for they kill every one who falls into sickness, before he reaches old age. 100.
Herodotus, The History of Herodotus — Volume 1
States what Bengalis is.
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The cities and towns of this country are the greatest of all in the Middle Kingdom. The inhabitants are rich and prosperous, and vie with one another in the practice of benevolence and righteousness. Every year on the eighth day of the second month they celebrate a procession of images. They make a four-wheeled car, and on it erect a structure of five stories by means of bamboos tied together.
Confucius, Chinese literature
Close in meaning to Bengalis; the term itself is not named.
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Philosophers who discussed Bengalis

Amartya Sen

Related ideas

Place in the tradition

Part of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.

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