The Cham are one of the ancient ethnic groups in Southeast Asia. When Marco Polo traveled through the area in 1285, he reported that Chamba was... "a very rich region, having a king of its own. The people are idolaters and pay a yearly tribute to the Great Kaan, which consists of elephants and nothing but elephants...."
The Cham language is part of the Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian language family. It is divided into two varieties, Western Cham and Eastern Cham, which enjoy only limited mutual intelligibility.
A small number of Cham people live in the capital city of Laos, Vientiane. The Cham are one of the most well-known and interesting people groups in Southeast Asia, but few are aware of their existence within the country of Laos, although one tourist book does mention them... "A very small number of Muslims live in Vientiane, mostly Arab and Indian merchants whose ancestry dates back as far as the 17th century. Vientiane also harbors a small community of Chams, Cambodian Muslims who fled Pol Pot's Democratic Kampuchea in the 1970s. The latter now have their own mosque in Vientiane."
The majority of Cham live in Cambodia. More live in Vietnam, while others live in countries as diverse as Malaysia, Thailand, USA, France, Saudi Arabia and Libya. The Cham Diaspora reflects their history as a great sea-faring people.
There are very few Cham people in Laos. The vast majority are in other countries.
Cham villagers are extremely poor and their settlements convey a sense of impermanence. They are now largely integrated into the Cambodian lifestyle and many now speak Khmer.
While all Western Cham (including those in Laos) are Muslims, the Eastern Cham follow a complicated religious mix including Brahmanism, a sect of Hinduism that venerates Siva.
The Western Cham are a completely unreached people group in Asia. There are handful of known believers among them in Canada and the United States, however.
The Cham in Laos are strong Muslims. Pray Christ would place a hunger in their hearts to find grace and mercy in Jesus Christ.
Pray Christian believers in Vientiane would share the gospel with the Cham.
Pray that obstacles to the flow of the gospel be removed.
Scripture Prayers for the Cham, Western in Laos.
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
People Name General | Cham, Western |
People Name in Country | Cham, Western |
Natural Name | Western Cham |
Pronunciation |
chom
|
Alternate Names | Cambodian; Cambodian Cham; Chăm (Chàm); Chiem; Chiem Thanh; Hoi; Thanh; Tjam; West Cham; Western Cham |
Population this Country | 700 |
Population all Countries | 328,000 |
Total Countries | 7 |
Indigenous | No |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | No |
GSEC | 1 (per PeopleGroups.org) |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 1 |
People ID | 15361 |
ROP3 Code | 110776 |
ROP25 Code | 301650 |
ROP25 Name | Cham |
Country | Laos | ||
Region | Asia, Southeast | ||
Continent | Asia | ||
10/40 Window | Yes | ||
Persecution Rank | 31 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | ||
Location in Country | Vientiane Municipality Source: Faces of the Unreached in Laos, 1999 |
Country | Laos |
Region | Asia, Southeast |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
Persecution Rank | 31 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Location in Country | Vientiane Municipality. Source: Faces of the Unreached in Laos, 1999 |
Primary Religion: | Islam |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical 0.31 %) |
0.31 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
0.00 %
|
Islam |
99.69 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.00 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
Primary Language | Cham, Western (700 speakers) |
Language Code | cja Ethnologue Listing |
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
Primary Language | Cham, Western (700 speakers) |
Language Code | cja Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
People Groups | Speaking Cham, Western |
Primary Language: Cham, Western
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1968-2015) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (2021) |
Bible-Complete | No |
FCBH NT (www.bible.is) | Online |
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: view in Cham, Western | Jesus Film Project |
Film / Video | LUMO film of Gospels | Bible Media Group/LUMO |
General | Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video | Faith Comes by Hearing |
General | Gospel resources links | Scripture Earth |
Photo Source | Copyrighted © 2023 Cambodia Research Network All rights reserved. Used with permission |
Map Source | Anonymous |
Profile Source | Joshua Project |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more. |