Jain community

The Jains in India are the last direct representatives of the ancient Śramaṇa tradition. They follow Jainism, the religion taught by the twenty-four propagators of faith called tirthankaras. Total Jain Population is estimated to be 7+ million people worldwide.

Jainism has a fourfold order of muni (male monastics), aryika (female monastics), Śrāvaka (layman) and sravika (laywoman). This order is known as a sangha.

The Jains have highest literacy rate in India, 94.1.% compared with the national average of 65.38%. They have the highest female literacy rate, 90.6.% compared with the national average of 54.16%. It is also believed that the Jains have the highest per capita income in India. Jain community though very small in numbers, contributes a significant percent of Income tax revenue of India.

There are about 110 different Jain communities in India and overseas. They can be divided into six groups based on historical and current residence.

Virchand Gandhi made a presentation of Jainism at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893, marking one of the earliest appearances of Jainism outside India. The World Jain Congress was held in Leicester in 1988.

The Jain population in India according to 2011 census is 0.37% i.e. 4,451,753 (Males 2,278,097; Females 2,173,656) out of the total population of India 1,210,854,977 (Males 623,270,258; Females 587,584,719). The tabular representation of Jain population in India as per 2011 Census data released by government in major states is:

It is likely that the actual population of Jains may be significantly higher than the census numbers.

The Jain population in United States is estimated to be about 10,000 to 200,000.

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Wikipedia