Daur in China


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

The Daur were first mentioned in Chinese records in AD 620. They are thought to be the "remnants of the Chinese garrison left by the Tan tai-tszui (618-626)." A portion of this garrison were committed to fox hunting and were called dahuli (those who hunt foxes). The Daur fought against Tsarist Russia and also opposed Japan from 1937 to 1945.

The Daur are one of the 55 official minority groups in China. In the past they were a larger and more influential group than today. In 1928 there were as many as 300,000 Daur in China. Their numbers have dwindled this century mainly as a result of war, disease, and assimilation to Mongolian or Chinese culture and language.

Most Daur can still speak their language, which has been described as "an aberrant, and in some respects, archaic branch of northern Mongolian." The exceptions are the Daur living in Aihui and Hulan counties who switched to speaking Chinese in the 1930s.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Daur society is divided into a hierarchical structure. Each group of people with the same family name (hala) live in the same group of three or four villages. Each hala is then comprised of several clans (mokon) who live in the same village. On his wedding day, a Daur bridegroom must fetch his bride at sunrise and make a present of wine, meat, and pastry to everyone he meets on the way - whether he knows them or not. After the ceremony the Daur enjoy an afternoon of horse races. The sport of field hockey may have been invented by the Daur. They are first mentioned as playing hockey in the History of the Liao Dynasty (916-1125).


What Are Their Beliefs?

For centuries each Daur clan has depended upon shamans. No wedding, burial, long journey, or any other important event was attempted without first consulting the shaman. He, in turn, contacted the spirit realm and announced, for a fee, whether an event should take place or not. Some of the Daur who live alongside Mongolians have embraced Tibetan Buddhism.

Until recently the Daur in China were a completely unreached people with no knowledge of the gospel. In the early 1990s missionaries showed the JESUS Film in Mandarin to the Daur. In a short time, more than 1,000 Daur became Christians. The JESUS Film is now available in the Daur language. In 1997 the new Daur church faced persecution from the authorities, but the believers stood firm in their faith. The Daur Christians are actively involved in evangelism and have a deep burden to see their whole ethnic group come to Christ.


What Are Their Needs?

The Daur people need someone to teach them more about Christ and how to take him to other families.


Prayer Points

Pray for the Lord to intervene in their families, calling people to his side.

Pray for loving workers.

Pray for their hearts to be drawn to the Lord of lords.

Pray for a church planting movement to thrive in their communities.


Scripture Prayers for the Daur in China.


References

Operation China, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Daur
People Name in Country Daur
Pronunciation DAO-urh
Alternate Names Daghur; Dagour; Daguor; Dagur; Dahur; Daor; Dawar; Dawo'er; Qiqihar; Tahur; Thauerh
Population this Country 198,000
Population all Countries 200,000
Total Countries 2
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 4
People ID 18433
ROP3 Code 114030
ROP25 Code 301978
ROP25 Name Daur
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 Heilongjiang province: Nenjiang prefecture, Fuyu and Nehe counties; Nei Mongol Autonomous Region: Hulun Buir league, Hailar prefecture, Morin Dawa (Molidawa) Daur autonomous banner, Oroqen autonomous banner and Ewenki autonomous banner; Qiqihar prefecture, Qiqihar city; northwest Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region: Tacheng prefecture (Ili dialect).   Source:  Ethnologue 2017
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 Heilongjiang province: Nenjiang prefecture, Fuyu and Nehe counties; Nei Mongol Autonomous Region: Hulun Buir league, Hailar prefecture, Morin Dawa (Molidawa) Daur autonomous banner, Oroqen autonomous banner and Ewenki autonomous banner; Qiqihar prefecture, Qiqihar city; northwest Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region: Tacheng prefecture (Ili dialect)..   Source:  Ethnologue 2017
Map of Daur in China Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Primary Religion: Ethnic Religions
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
20.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 1.20 %)
1.50 %
Ethnic Religions
73.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
5.50 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Daur
Language Code dta   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Qiqiha'er
Dialect Code 9158   Global Recordings Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 2
Secondary Languages
Chinese, Mandarin
Primary Language Daur
Language Code dta   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Qiqiha'er
Dialect Code 9158   Global Recordings Listing
Total Languages 2
Secondary Languages
  Chinese, Mandarin
People Groups Speaking Daur

Primary Language:  Daur

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (2003-2004)
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
Audio Recordings Story of Jesus audio Jesus Film Project
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Daur Jesus Film Project
Film / Video World Christian Videos World Christian Videos
General Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2024  Operation China, Asia Harvest  All rights reserved.  Used with permission
Map Source People Group location: IMB. Map geography: ESRI / GMI. Map design: Joshua Project.  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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