section_path: Abstract
section_name: Abstract
paragraph_text: Theravāda (/ ˌ t ɛr ə ˈ v ɑː d ə /; lit. 'School of the Elders') is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism 's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed Theravādins (anglicized from Pali theravādī), have preserved their version of Gautama Buddha 's teaching or dhamma in the Pāli Canon for over two millennia.
  
  The Pāli Canon is the most complete Buddhist canon surviving in a classical Indian language, Pāli, which serves as the school's sacred language and lingua franca. In contrast to Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna, Theravāda tends to be conservative in matters of doctrine (pariyatti) and monastic discipline (vinaya). One element of this conservatism is the fact that Theravāda rejects the authenticity of the Mahayana sutras (which appeared c. 1st century BCE onwards).
  
  Modern Theravāda derives from the a sect of the Indian Sthavira Nikaya. This tradition began to establish itself in India from the 3rd century BCE onwards. It was in India that the Pāli Canon was written down and the school's commentary literature developed. From India, the Theravāda tradition subsequently spread to Southeast Asia. Theravāda is the official religion of Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Cambodia, and the main dominant Buddhist variant found in Laos and Thailand. It is practiced by minorities in India, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, North Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Taiwan. The diaspora of all of these groups, as well as converts around the world, also embrace and practice Theravāda Buddhism.
  
  During the modern era, new developments have included Buddhist modernism, the Vipassana movement which reinvigorated Theravāda meditation practice, the growth of the Thai Forest Tradition which reemphasized forest monasticism and the spread of Theravāda westward to places such as India and Nepal, along with Buddhist immigrants and converts in the European Union and in the United States.