People
The Bombay Presidency had a large and diverse population. The census of 1901 gave a total of 25,468,209. By religion the population was 19,916,438 Hindu, 4,567,295 Muslim, 535,950 Jain, 78,552 Zoroastrian, and approximately 200,000 Christian.
In Sindh Islam had been the predominant religion from the Arab conquest in the 8th century. In Gujarat the predominant religion is Hinduism, although Muslim kingdoms have left their influence in many parts of the province. The Deccan is the home of the Marathi, who constituted 30% of the population. The Konkan is notable for various Christian castes, owing their origin to Portuguese rule; while in the Carnatic, Lingayatism, a Hindu reformation movement of the 12th century, was embraced by 45% of the population. The Marathas were the predominant caste and number (1901) 3,650,000, composed of 1,900,000 Kunbis, 350,000 Konkanis, and 1,400,000 Marathas not otherwise specified.
The chief languages of the Presidency were Sindhi in Sindh, Kutchi in Kutch, Gujarati and Hindustani in Gujarat, Marathi in Thana and the central division, Gujarati and Marathi in Khandesh, and Marathi and Kannada in the southern division. There were also Bhil (120,000) and Gipsy (30,000) dialects.
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—Bruno Bettelheim (20th century)