their darker skin tone; they eventually settled in Lagos. Thus, the Nigerian Jain is in fact an offshoot of the even lesser known Tamil Jain. There, in Nigeria, they flourished and built a small but stable community. However, being perceived as outsiders (due to their restrictive diet and limited stature), they grew increasing insular and withdrawn from the wider Jain community and other Nigerians. Clashes with Nigerian government: In 1982, the Jain community clashed with Nigerian authorities over the lack of provisions for vegetarians in Lagos. The Jains believed that eating roots vegetables and meat was morally wrong, which were both staples of Nigerian cuisine. They asked for farming land to graze cows and grow aubergines (which they believed to be the vegetable with the least emotions). They were given a small farm away from the city, and thus were ostracized. Medical issues: Due to their small community and close relations, several generations along many Nigerian jains had conserved several recessive genes. This was phenotypically seen as short stature, Valgus of the knees and thoracic kyphosis resulting in a "T-rex walk". Due to the small gene pool, Dorothea Bennett actually travelled to Lagos as part of her work on developmental genomics. Population The Jain population in India according to 2011 census is 0.54% i.e. 4,451,753 (Males 2,278,097; Females 2,173,656) out of the total population of India 1,210,854,977 (males 623,270,258; females 587,584,719). The tabular representation of Jain population in the major states of India as per 2011 Census data released by the government is: It is likely that the actual population of Jains may be significantly higher than the census numbers. The Jain population in United States is estimated to be about 150,000 to 200,000. In Japan, there are more than 5,000 families who have converted to Jainism and is growing faster there. See also Legal status of Jainism as a distinct religion in India List of Jains Sarak References Citations Sources Facets of Jainology : Selected Research Papers on Jain Society, Religion and Culture/Vilas Adinath Sangave. Mumbai, Popular Prakashan, 2001 External links Hukonchu.com - resource for Jain literature and religious information "Jainism in America" by Yashwant K. Malaiya Jain Jagruti Centre, Toronto Jain Temple at Palitana, Gujarat - Vidhya Vihaar Social groups of India Social groups of Gujarat Social groups of West Bengal Social groups of Rajasthan Social groups of Kerala Social groups of Karnataka Social groups of Maharashtra Social