CHRISTIAN EDUCATION AND IDENTITY FORMATION AMONG ORAON YOUTH IN CHHATTISGARH : A SOCIOCULTURAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

This paper explores the influence of Catholic missionary education on the identity formation of Oraon (Uraon) youth in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2023 and 2025 in Jashpur, Ambikapur, and Raigarh districts, it analyzes how faith‐based schooling intersects with indigenous belief systems, kinship structures, and aspirations for social mobility. Semi‑structured interviews, focus‑group discussions, and curriculum analysis reveal four broad patterns. First, Christian education reconfigures traditional identity markers—language, ritual, dress—embedding them within a biblical moral framework. Second, missionary schools provide symbolic and material capital that facilitate upward mobility, yet often at the cost of linguistic and ritual continuity. Third, a hybrid ecospiritual consciousness emerges, wherein Catholic liturgy co‑exists with customary reverence for the forest and ancestral spirits. Finally, educated Oraon youth act as cultural brokers, mediating between clan elders and modern institutions. The study contributes to debates on acculturation, indigenous education, and the politics of recognition, showing that identity among Oraon youth is not merely assimilated or retained but actively re‑articulated through Christian schooling. The emerging identity among Oraon youth is neither entirely tribal nor fully Christian—it is a dynamic, hybrid, and evolving cultural construct shaped by personal experiences and institutional teachings.