Cimulin Qiang in China

The Cimulin Qiang have only been reported in China
Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Buddhism (Tibetan)
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

Qiang history dates back as far as the Western Zhou Dynasty (1100-771 BC), when considerable numbers of Han people migrated west and formed mixed communities with the Di and Qiang.

The Cimulin Qiang language is very different from other varieties of Qiang. "The Chinese character for Qiang is a combination of yang (sheep) and ren (people), with the composite meaning of 'people tending sheep'." Cimulin Qiang, which is a Northern Qiang language, is not tonal, whereas Southern Qiang varieties consist of between two to six tones. Many of the Cimulin Qiang are bilingual in Tibetan, while others living near the towns are able to speak Chinese. In addition, speakers of Northern Qiang dialects have been placed under the Tibetan nationality.


What Are Their Lives Like?

One of the Qiang festivals is called Jishanhui, which women are not allowed to attend. They sacrifice a cow or sheep on an altar to the god of the mountains. They ask for a good harvest and peace for the village.


What Are Their Beliefs?

The Northern Qiang language groups have embraced Tibetan Buddhism more zealously than the Southern Qiang, because of centuries of influence from neighboring Tibetans. The Northern Qiang also worship a multitude of Chinese and Tibetan deities, of which the sky god is considered the greatest. There are shamans, witches, and mediums throughout the countryside. In 1994 one Christian interviewed a Qiang sorceress at a temple reputed to be 1,000 years old. The woman told the visitor, "'I have the power to put people into a trance, and make their spirits leave their bodies and travel to hell. Usually, we can then call their spirits back, but sometimes it doesn't work, and the person dies and is trapped in hell forever. The visitors told her about a God who has the power to take her spirit to heaven. She was delighted and wanted to know more. Most Qiang people, like this sorceress, have absolutely no awareness of the gospel.

One Christian ministry has incorrectly reported there to be "no Qiang Christians remaining," but a small Qiang church does exist in China. There are a very small number of Northern Qiang Christians, including some families living in Songpan. There are no church buildings, but some believers. We don't know if there are any Christians specifically among the Cimulin Qiang. Several short-term mission teams in the early 1990s were arrested and expelled from China for distributing literature in the Qiang region.


What Are Their Needs?

The Qiang peoples need to have a revelation of the true God who made heaven and earth, unlike the gods they worship which have no power.


Prayer Points

Pray that the Qiang believers, even though small in number, will have a powerful testimony and draw their people to faith in the Lord.
Pray that despite setbacks in the past that mission groups would be able to penetrate these regions with the gospel.
Pray that the communist authorities would be thwarted in their efforts to prevent the gospel from getting to the Qiang people.
Pray that the light of the Lord would shine brilliantly upon the Qiang people and draw them to belief in the true God.


Scripture Prayers for the Qiang, Cimulin in China.


References

Operation China, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission.


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

The Qiang

Source:  Asia Harvest      Download

People Name General Qiang, Cimulin
People Name in Country Qiang, Cimulin
Natural Name Cimulin Qiang
Pronunciation Tzoo-moo-leen Chee-ung
Alternate Names Chiang; Cimulin; Dzorgai; Jiang; Qiang, Dzorgai; Tz'u-mu-lin; Tz'u-mu-lin Ch'iang
Population this Country 17,000
Population all Countries 17,000
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 18659
ROP3 Code 114285
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 A Chinese source lists a 1990 figure of 9,800 speakers of Cimulin Qiang living in five districts within Heishui (Black Water) County in northwest Sichuan Province. The total Qiang population in the 1990 census was 198,252 - a four-fold increase from the 1964 figure of only 49,105. Most of the increase can be attributed to the reclassification of additional peoples under the Qiang, rather than to biological growth.   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 A Chinese source lists a 1990 figure of 9,800 speakers of Cimulin Qiang living in five districts within Heishui (Black Water) County in northwest Sichuan Province. The total Qiang population in the 1990 census was 198,252 - a four-fold increase from the 1964 figure of only 49,105. Most of the increase can be attributed to the reclassification of additional peoples under the Qiang, rather than to biological growth..   Source:  Operation China, 2000
Primary Religion: Buddhism (Tibetan)
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
70.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.01 %)
0.01 %
Ethnic Religions
30.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Qiang, Northern (17,000 speakers)
Language Code cng   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Cimulin
Dialect Code 15822   Global Recordings Listing
Language Written Unknown
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Qiang, Northern (17,000 speakers)
Language Code cng   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Cimulin
Dialect Code 15822   Global Recordings Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Qiang, Northern

Primary Language:  Qiang, Northern

Bible Translation Status:  Unspecified

Resource Type Resource Name Source
None reported  
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2024  Operation China, Asia Harvest  All rights reserved.  Used with permission
Map Source Bethany World Prayer Center  
Video Source Asia Harvest
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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