Bihari People

Bihari People

The Biharis (Bihari: बिहारी, بِہاری Bihārī) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group originating from the present state of Bihar with a history going back three millennia. Biharis speak Bihari languages such as Magahi, Bajjika, Bhojpuri, Maithili, amongst other local dialects, as well as Hindi or Urdu. Proponents of Madheshi identity in Nepal however claim Bihari is a technical terminology that excludes homogenous peoples of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand & Terai-Madhesh, and hence Madheshi identity derived from Madhyadesh is better suited terminology for the ethnic group of which Bihari and several closely related linguistic groups like Awadhi, Bundeli, Bagheli, etc could be a subset. Madhyadesh also has mentions in ancient scriptures as a region, this is not true for Bihar or UP.

Besides the state of Bihar, Biharis can be found throughout North India, West Bengal, Assam, Maharashtra and also in the neighbouring countries of Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. A large number of Biharis traveled to various parts of the world in the 19th century to serve as indentured labour on sugarcane and rubber plantations in Guyana, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji, Mauritius and Natal-South Africa. During the partition of India in 1947, many Biharis of the Islamic faith migrated to East Bengal (later East Pakistan and subsequently Bangladesh). Bihari people are also well represented in Pakistan's (formerly West Pakistan) Muhajir population as a result of the partition of India, as well as the recent repatriation of some Bihari refugees from Bangladesh to Pakistan.