Bolozi in China

The Bolozi have only been reported in China
Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

Until the 1960s the Bolozi were renowned for their plundering of other villages. Being a mix of Tibetans and Qiang, the Bolozi were known to have a wild, violent streak. They became the scourge even of other Tibetan communities living in the area. The Bolozi raided communities on horseback, carrying away anything they liked and killing if they so desired. Today they lead a far more peaceable existence, tending to crops and livestock in the green hills of northern Sichuan.

The Bolozi may have become a distinct ethnic group as the result of marriage between Tibetans and Qiang people. They were first described by Scottish missionary Thomas Torrance in the 1930s. The Bolozi have been counted as part of either the Tibetan or Qiang nationalities by the Chinese authorities. This classification has caused the Bolozi to be hidden to outsiders. Even among the Bolozi themselves there is a growing tendency to identify themselves as Tibetans. Within a generation or two there may be no remembrance of their distinct ethnic origins.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Bolozi families engage in a wide variety of occupations, which include herding of yaks, sheep, and goats, engaging in agricultural production, and trading with the Tibetans and Han Chinese. Villages in the remote area are watered by fast-flowing rivers. They have rickety bridges made of wooden boards and chains.


What Are Their Beliefs?

Tibetan Buddhism has never taken a grip among the Bolozi to the extent that it has among other Tibetan groups. Most are polytheistic animists who try to keep peace with the vindictive spirits they believe control their lives.

The Bolozi are virtually untouched by the gospel. There are believed to be just a handful of Han and Qiang Christians in Songpan, the result of pre-1949 missionary efforts. In 1919 there were 543 foreign missionaries working in Sichuan Province, but few ever labored in this remote area in the north of the province. The Church Missionary Society did commence work in Songpan in the 1920s, but no known outreach has ever been conducted to the wild Bolozi people. As a result, the Bolozi today are unreached and unevangelized.


What Are Their Needs?

The Bolozi people need to submit to Jesus Christ so they can experience the abundant life he offers in John 10:10.


Prayer Points

Pray for bold workers who are driven by the love of the Holy Spirit to go to them.

Pray for an unstoppable movement to Christ among them.

Pray for the authority of Christ to bind hindering spiritual forces to lead them from darkness to light.

Pray for signs and wonders to happen among them and for great breakthroughs with a rapid multiplication of disciples and house churches.


Scripture Prayers for the Bolozi in China.


References

Operation China, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Bolozi
People Name in Country Bolozi
Pronunciation Boh-luo-tzi
Alternate Names Bolotse; Bolotsze; Po-lo-tzu
Population this Country 2,800
Population all Countries 2,800
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
People ID 18418
ROP3 Code 114013
ROP25 Code 301340
ROP25 Name Bolozi
Country China
Region Asia, Northeast
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 19  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Between 1,000 and 2,000 Bolozi people live in and around the village of Xiao Heshui, to the west of Songpan in northern Sichuan Province. Smaller numbers live scattered along the Min River as far south as Wenchuan. One early missionary wrote, "In Weizhou [now Wenchuan] most of the people are either Qiang or a mixed race, though there are some… Bolotsze [Bolozi] as well."   Source:  Operation China, 2000
Country China
Region Asia, Northeast
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 19  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Between 1,000 and 2,000 Bolozi people live in and around the village of Xiao Heshui, to the west of Songpan in northern Sichuan Province. Smaller numbers live scattered along the Min River as far south as Wenchuan. One early missionary wrote, "In Weizhou [now Wenchuan] most of the people are either Qiang or a mixed race, though there are some… Bolotsze [Bolozi] as well.".   Source:  Operation China, 2000
Primary Religion: Ethnic Religions
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
20.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.00 %)
0.00 %
Ethnic Religions
79.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
1.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Qiang, Southern (2,800 speakers)
Language Code qxs   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Qiang, Southern (2,800 speakers)
Language Code qxs   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Qiang, Southern

Primary Language:  Qiang, Southern

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (2023)
Bible-New Testament No
Bible-Complete No
Possible Print Bibles
Amazon
World Bibles
Forum Bible Agencies
National Bible Societies
World Bible Finder
Virtual Storehouse
Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Film / Video Jesus Film Jesus Film Project
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2024  Operation China, Asia Harvest  All rights reserved.  Used with permission
Map Source Joshua Project / Global Mapping International  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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