01 · A living language
Begin with the language
CIIL identifies Juang as a Munda language within the Austroasiatic family, spoken in parts of Keonjhar, Angul and Dhenkanal. Juang is the language’s name; Munda describes a wider language group.
This is a starting point, not a complete map of speakers. Community identity, home language and the language someone uses at school or work need not be the same.
CIIL also describes Juang being written in the Odia script. A shared writing system is a bridge for readers; it does not make the languages identical.
02 · A living language
Words within a living culture
SCSTRTI describes the majang, also called mandaghar, as a community institution with roles in gatherings, music and shared resources. Its account also records an origin belief connecting ancestors to Rusi Tangar near Gonasika. This is a reported tradition, not an archaeological finding.
Begin with a story its teller wants to share. Ask how place names are pronounced, who taught the story and whether it is appropriate to publish. A public retelling should keep the teller’s context, credit and choice of words.
Where the voices were counted · Census 2011
Recorded as Juang
30,377people in Odisha
0.07%of Odisha’s 2011 population
This is the individual mother-tongue entry in the Census table. It counts reported mother tongues in 2011, not everyone who can speak the language today.
Largest recorded counts: Kendujhar (23,313); Dhenkanal (5,784); Anugul (687).
Explore all 30 districts →Census C-16 · Sheet1, row 185. Original table
On the reading shelf
Juang · a book to open together
Compare the language columns with a willing reader or teacher. Ask how their own usage differs from the printed example.
Open the original learning booklet (PDF) ↗A shared page
- English
- Odia
- Juang
The linked booklet places these languages alongside one another. This panel describes its layout; it does not reproduce or translate its vocabulary.
- First edition
- November 2018
- Published by
- Special Development Council, Keonjhar
- Compiled by
- Kshetrabasi Juanga, Sudarshan Juanga, Sudhakar Kunar
Continue with the work
Browse published supplementary readers ↗Follow your curiosity
One voice.
Another doorway.
Sources, image credits & editorial notes
Prepared for Utkal Project, founded and edited by Ahimanikya Satapathy. Research checked 2026-10-01. English introduction checked against the cited publications. Fluent-speaker and specialist review remain pending; original-language phrases, translations and recordings are not supplied.. Opening lines and reading prompts are original editorial invitations.
Reading and evidence
- CIIL · Juang language collection
Language overview checked 30 September 2026. Used for Juang as a Munda language within Austroasiatic and broad district connections. Subgroup debates, old speaker counts and generalized social descriptions are not adopted.
Used in: Begin with the language. - SCSTRTI · Juang community profile
Direct institutional profile inspected for broad geography and attributed cultural context. Older terminology, universal claims and population figures omitted. No field or speaker review.
Used in: Words within a living culture. - SCSTRTI · Juang trilingual learning booklet (2018)
Original PDF inspected: publication credits on PDF page 3 and comparison table on PDF page 10. Selected pages only; vocabulary and pronunciation have not received fluent-speaker review. Linked for reading; pages and illustrations are not reproduced.
Used in: Reading shelf.
Images and reuse
Research and presentation prepared with AI assistance. No speaker recording or complete literary text is reproduced. Help improve the collection.
Editorial preview · awaiting Founder and language or literary review.