Bengali Christians

Bengali Christians
বাঙালি খ্রিস্টান
Bangali Khrishtan
North façade of the St. Paul's Cathedral, Calcutta
Total population
1,370,000
Regions with significant populations
 India730,000 (West Bengal)[1]
 Bangladesh640,000[2]
Languages
Bengali
Religion
Christianity (Catholicism, Protestantism, Indian Orthodox)
Related ethnic groups
Bengali Muslims, Bengali Hindus, Bengali Buddhists

Bengali Christians (Bengali: বাঙালি খ্রিস্টান) are adherents of Christianity among the Bengali people. Christianity took root in Bengal after the arrival of Portuguese voyagers in the 16th century. It witnessed further conversions among the Bengali upper-caste elite during the 19th century Bengali Renaissance.

Bengali Christians played significant role in Bengali culture, education, commerce and society. Some of the most influential thinkers and advocates during the Indian independence struggle from British Raj where Bengali Christians. The region is home to venerable missionary institutions, including the Missionaries of Charity founded by Mother Teresa.

Archdiocese of Calcutta
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dhaka
  1. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2015-08-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ Luchesi, Brigitte (1999), "Bangladesh", in Fahlbusch, Erwin, Encyclopedia of Christianity 1, Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, pp. 182–183, ISBN 0802824137