Gan Chinese in China

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

Identity

The Gan Chinese are part of the great Han Chinese nationality - the largest ethnic group in the world. Gan, however, is a distinct language that differs from Mandarin and other Chinese varieties.


History

The Xia Dynasty (2200-1700 BC): The Chinese claim 5,000 years of continuous history, beginning with the mythological Xia Dynasty. The very existence of the Xia is doubtful, as archaeological evidence has not been found to support the written accounts of the time. According to legend, the Xia was preceded by three sovereigns. The first sovereign, Fuxi, was thought to be half human and half dragon. His wife, Nugua, is credited with having created humans from clay. Fuxi taught men how to hunt, fish, and farm. The first emperor, Huang Di, is said to have invented the calendar, boats, and pottery. After 500 years, the Xia leaders "became corrupt and were ... overthrown by the Shang." Jiangxi, where most Gan live, was incorporated into the Chinese empire at any early date but remained sparsely populated until the eighth century.


Customs

Jiangxi is famous for its abundance of silver. Extensive mining caused the formation of a wealthy ruling class. Today, Jiangxi is one of the most densely populated provinces in China.


Religion

Although the majority of Gan are nonreligious, there has been a revival of Buddhism and Daoism since the relaxing of restrictions on religion in recent years. Zhuangzi (369-286 BC) was an early leader of Daoism. His writings introduced the idea of the unity of opposites, ying and yang. This led to the notion of accepting life without struggle.


Christianity

In 1900 the diabolical Boxer Rebellion broke out across China. Thirty thousand Chinese Catholics and 2,000 Protestants were massacred, as anti-foreign and anti-Christian feelings ran hot. The number of Christians in China more than doubled in the six years following the massacres. In 1901 one missionary in Jiangxi reported 20,000 converts. There are an estimated 400,000 Christians among the Gan Chinese today. The Jesus film has recently been translated into the Gan language, although most Gan are adequately bilingual in Mandarin.


Prayer Points

Scripture Prayers for the Han Chinese, Gan in China.


Profile Source:   Operation China, Asia Harvest  Copyrighted ©   Used with permission  

People Name General Han Chinese, Gan
People Name in Country Han Chinese, Gan
Natural Name Gan Chinese
Pronunciation Gahn
Alternate Names Gan; Han Chinese; Kan
Population this Country 22,169,000
Population all Countries 22,169,000
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 4
Unreached No
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 5  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed
People ID 18474
ROP3 Code 114080
ROP25 Code 301734
ROP25 Name Chinese
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 More than 35 million speakers of Gan Chinese live in Jiangxi Province and the southeastern corner of Hubei Province, including Dachi, Xianning, Jiayu, and Chongyang counties. The Gan account for approximately 3% of all Chinese in China. The greatest concentrations live along the Fuhe River, the lower reaches of the Ganjiang River, and around Poyang Lake. Small numbers of Gan speakers also live in eastern and southwestern Hunan, southern Anhui, and the northwestern part of Fujian Province.   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 More than 35 million speakers of Gan Chinese live in Jiangxi Province and the southeastern corner of Hubei Province, including Dachi, Xianning, Jiayu, and Chongyang counties. The Gan account for approximately 3% of all Chinese in China. The greatest concentrations live along the Fuhe River, the lower reaches of the Ganjiang River, and around Poyang Lake. Small numbers of Gan speakers also live in eastern and southwestern Hunan, southern Anhui, and the northwestern part of Fujian Province..   Source:  Operation China, 2000

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Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Primary Religion: Ethnic Religions
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
15.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 6.50 %)
8.50 %
Ethnic Religions
52.50 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
24.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Chinese, Gan (22,169,000 speakers)
Language Code gan   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Chinese, Gan (22,169,000 speakers)
Language Code gan   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Chinese, Gan

Primary Language:  Chinese, Gan

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (1940)
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
Film / Video Indigitube.tv Video / Animation Create International
Film / Video World Christian Videos World Christian Videos
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2024  Create International  All rights reserved.  Used with permission
Profile Source Operation China, Asia Harvest  Copyrighted ©  Used with permission 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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