DesireeTietjen at 09:39, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T09:39:39Z

New page

{{Short description|none}} 
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox religious group|group=Guyanese Hindus |image=|image_caption=|flag=[[File:Om symbol.svg|75px|link=Om]]|pop='''257,000''' (2021) {{increase}}'''31.0%''' of the population|regions={{hlist|[[Guyana]]|[[United States]]|[[Canada]]|[[United Kingdom]]|[[Netherlands]]| [[Suriname]]|[[Trinidad and Tobago]]|[[Saint Martin (island)|St. Martin]]}}|scriptures=[[Vedas]]{{·}}[[Puranas]]{{·}}[[Upanishads]] {{·}}''[[Ramayana]]'' (incl. ''[[Ramcharitmanas]]'' version){{·}}''[[Mahabharata]]'' (incl. ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]''){{·}}[[Hindu texts|other Hindu texts]]
|rels='''[[Hinduism]]''' ([[Sanātana Dharma]]) '''Majority sect''' [[Sanātanī#Sanātanī as a denomination|Sanātanī]] '''Minority sects''' [[Arya Samaj in Guyana|Arya Samaj]]{{·}}[[Caribbean Shaktism|Caribbean Shaktism (Kali Mai Dharam/Madrasi Hinduism)]]{{·}}[[Sathya Sai Baba movement]]{{·}}Sieunarini (Sir Narain/Shiv Narayani) Panth{{·}}[[Hindu atheism]]{{·}}others
|langs=[[Sanskrit]] {{·}} [[Tamil language|Tamil]] (''[[liturgical languages]]'') [[English language|English]] ([[Guyanese Creole|Guyanese English Creole]]){{·}}[[Caribbean Hindustani#Guyanese Hindustani|Guyanese Hindustani]]
|related-c=[[Hinduism in Trinidad and Tobago|Trinidadian and Tobagonian Hindus]]{{·}}[[Hinduism in Suriname|Surinamese Hindus]]{{·}}[[Hinduism in Jamaica|Jamaican Hindus]]{{·}}[[Hinduism in the West Indies|other Caribbean Hindus]]}}
{{Hinduism by country}}

'''[[Hinduism]] in [[Guyana]]''' is the religion of about 31.0% of the population in 2021.<ref name="Religions in Guyana">{{cite web|url=http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/guyana#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010&region_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2016|title=Religions in Guyana|website=globalreligiousfutures.org|access-date=10 February 2022|archive-date=9 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209192305/http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/guyana#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010&region_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> This makes Guyana the country with the highest percentage of [[Hindu]] residents in the [[Western Hemisphere]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/rankings/hindu/|title=Percent Hindu – country rankings|website=the Global Economy|access-date=5 November 2018}}</ref>

==History ==
After the [[Slavery Abolition Act 1833|1833 Slavery Abolition Act]] in the [[British Empire]], the need for labour led to the recruitment of Indians in Guyana and other [[British West Indies|British West Indian]] territories. Upon arrival, the new workers had to adapt to the extreme tropical conditions, along with their new contracts and working conditions. Between 1835 and 1918, 341,600 indentured labourers were imported into British Guyana from India.<ref>Despres, Leo, "Differential Adaptions and Micro-Cultural Evolution in Guyana," ''Southwestern Journal of Anthropology'', 25:1, 22.</ref>

From 1852, Christian missionaries attempted to convert East Indians during the [[indentured servitude]] period, but this was met with little success. In response to Christian proselytizing, Hindu priests and monks began administering spiritual rites to all Hindus.

In the late 1940s, reform movements caught the attention of many Guyanese Hindus. In 1910, [[Arya Samaj]] arrived in Guyana.

==Demographics==
Hinduism had been slowly decreasing for many decades. In 1991, 35.0% of the Guyanese population adhered to Hinduism, decreasing to 28.4% in 2002,<ref name="gov.gy">{{cite web|url=http://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy/pubs/Chapter2_Population_Composition.pdf |title=Chapter Ii |access-date=2018-11-03}}</ref> 24.8% in 2012<ref name="state.gov">{{cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/269230.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815171203/https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/269230.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2017-08-15 |title=Organization |website=www.state.gov }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! '''Year'''
! '''Percent'''
! '''Decrease'''
|-
| '''1980'''
| '''35.7%'''
| '''-'''
|-
| '''1991'''
| '''35.0%'''
| style="background: red" | '''-0.7%'''
|-
| '''2002'''
| '''28.4%'''
| style="background: red" | '''-6.6%'''
|-
| '''2012'''
| '''24.8%'''
| style="background: red" | '''-3.6%'''
|-
| '''2021'''
| '''31.0%'''
| style="background: green" | ''' 6.2'''
|-
|}

===Geographical distribution of Hindus===

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Region !! Percent of Hindus (2002) || Percent of Hindus (2012)
|-
| [[Barima-Waini]] || 8.1% || 0.4%
|-
| [[Pomeroon-Supenaam]]|| 37.3% || 33.2%
|-
| [[Essequibo Islands-West Demerara]] || 46.5% || 37.7%
|-
| [[Demerara-Mahaica]] || 24.4% || 20.8%
|-
| [[Mahaica-Berbice]] || 39.0% || 34.1%
|-
| [[East Berbice-Corentyne]] || 46.4% || 42.1%
|-
| [[Cuyuni-Mazaruni]] || 5.6% || 3.5%
|-
| [[Potaro-Siparuni]] || 6.4% || 1.0%
|-
| [[Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo]] || 0.5% ||0.4%
|-
| [[Upper Demerara-Berbice]]|| 4.7% || 0.8%
|-
! Guyana !! 28.4% || 24.8%
|}
[[Tamil people|Tamil (Madrasi)]] Hindus forms the majority in [[East Berbice-Corentyne]] region and practice [[Caribbean Shaktism]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rBkiZSDl9V8C&pg=PA11|title=Translating Kali's Feast: The Goddess in Indo-Caribbean Ritual and Fiction|first1=Stephanos|last1=Stephanides|first2=Karna Bahadur|last2=Singh|date=3 November 2018|publisher=Rodopi|via=Google Books|isbn=978-9042013711}}</ref>

According to the 2012 census, 39.8% of the Guyana's population is of East Indian origin and 24.8% are Hindus.<ref name="state.gov"/> The remainder is mostly [[Islam in Guyana|Muslim]] (6.8%) or Christian (62.7%). according to new census The Hindu population in Guyana has been steadily increasing over the years. According to the 2012 Census, Hindus constitute approximately 24% of the total population, showing growth in both absolute numbers and as a percentage of the population.<ref>Guyana Bureau of Statistics. 2012 Population Census. Retrieved from https://www.statisticsguyana.gov.gy</ref>

==Public Holidays==
[[Holi]]-Phagwah and [[Deepavali]] are National Holidays in Guyana.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90256.htm|title=Guyana}}</ref>

==Temples==
[[File:Central Vaidik Mandir, Georgetown, Guyana..jpg|thumb]]

*[[Tain Hindu Mandir]]
*Central Vaidik Mandir
*Sita Ram Toolsie Vade Ganesh Mandir
*Shree Maha Kali Devi Temple
*Edinburgh Shree Krishna Mandir
*Hampton Court Mandir
*D'Edward Vighneshwar Mandir

==See also==
{{col div|colwidth=20em}}
*[[Religion in Guyana]]
*[[Hinduism in Belize]]
*[[Hinduism in French Guiana]]
*[[Hinduism in South America]]
*[[Hinduism in Suriname]]
*[[Hinduism in Trinidad and Tobago]]
*[[Hindu eschatology]]
{{colend}}

==References==
<references />

== External links ==

{{South America topic|Hinduism in}}

{{Portal|Hinduism|Guyana|North America}}
[[Category:Hinduism in Guyana| ]]
[[Category:Religion in Guyana]]

Hinduism in Guyana - Revision history

DesireeTietjen at 09:39, 20 January 2026