Title: Bibliometric analysis on indigenous entrepreneurship: tracing the past, present and future directions in the Indian context

Authors: Kumar Gaurav; Jogeswar Mahato; Nishant Sinha

Addresses: National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), New Delhi, India ' Indian Institute of Management Sambalpur, Odisha, India ' National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), New Delhi, India

Abstract: Indigenous entrepreneurship has become crucial for poverty alleviation for the indigenous or tribal communities due to their socio-economic marginalisation. In the context of globalisation, several policies, initiatives, and activities have been implemented for the benefit of indigenous entrepreneurship. However, academic studies on indigenous entrepreneurship are relatively few and unexplored. Thus, the present study has conducted a bibliometric analysis to gain in-depth structural insights into the topic and to popularise the concept of indigenous entrepreneurship. The present study has examined 255 research articles on indigenous entrepreneurship published between 2003 and 2023 that are retrieved from the Scopus database. The research articles were analysed using Biblioshiny and VOS viewer, two popular applications of bibliometric analysis. The findings of the study will serve as an essential and valuable resource for the academics and policy professionals engaged in indigenous entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the study will help scholars to grasp the peculiarities of indigenous entrepreneurship.

Keywords: entrepreneurship; indigenous; tribal; communities; bibliometric analysis.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2026.155701

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2026 Vol.59 No.1, pp.73 - 96

Received: 02 Apr 2025
Accepted: 21 May 2025
Published online: 11 Aug 2026 *

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