The Yonzhi are a distinct ethnic group who live in a remote area that has changed little for hundreds of years. They are considered by some to be a part of the Golog, who in turn are officially counted as part of the Tibetan nationality in China.
For countless generations the Yonzhi have lived simple lives, unaffected by events in the rest of the world. Joseph Rock, the famous botanist and explorer, stumbled across the Yonzhi in 1929. He recalls, "The people were astonished at sight of our party. One asked, 'Why this array of arms and force when visiting our territory?' We continued up the valley to the very foot of Amnyi Druggu, the mountain god of the Yonzhi tribe. The last few tents we passed were cursed by some plague, the nomads said. The inmates lay dying outside, covered with yak-hair rugs."
The Yonzhi are nomadic, living in yak-hair tents and moving every few weeks to find new pastures for their yaks, sheep, and goats.
In addition to worshiping Amnyi Druggu, the Yonzhi's Mountain deity, the Yonzhi live in the vicinity of Anye Machen Mountain. They believe it contains a powerful god of the same name. He is often represented in pictures riding a white horse, with the sun and a rainbow to his right and the moon to his left. "All Tibetans worship Anye Machen; every monastery has either a picture or image of him. Anye means 'old man' and corresponds to our 'saint'. Ma means 'peacock' and chen 'great'."
The Yonzhi are one of the most unreachable people groups in China - if not all the world. Their region is snowbound for most of the year with temperatures plummeting to minus 40° Celsius (-40°F). The Yonzhi move around frequently, relocating their homes and herds to new pastures. Their communities are only accessible by foot or horseback. To the Yonzhi, the gospel remains untold. It is possible no Yonzhi has ever heard the name of Jesus Christ.
Scripture Prayers for the Yonzhi in China.
Profile Source: Operation China, Asia Harvest Copyrighted © Used with permission |
People Name General | Yonzhi |
People Name in Country | Yonzhi |
Pronunciation | Yon-jee |
Population this Country | 4,200 |
Population all Countries | 4,200 |
Total Countries | 1 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | Yes |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 1 |
Alternate Names | |
People ID | 18731 |
ROP3 Code | 114366 |
Country | China | ||
Region | Asia, Northeast | ||
Continent | Asia | ||
10/40 Window | Yes | ||
National Bible Society | Website | ||
Persecution Rank | 17 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | ||
Location in Country | More than 3,000 members of the Yonzhi tribe, a nomadic Tibetan people group, live in a virtually inaccessible area of eastern Qinghai Province. They primarily inhabit the Heha Chen Valley, near the town Tibetans call Cheb Chu. The Yonzhi area lies within Gonghe County, east of the Yellow River. The imposing Anye Machen Mountain range, considered sacred by all Tibetans, lies to the east of the Yonzhi tribe. The highest peak is the 6,282 meter (20,604 ft.) Machen Gangri. In the short summer months the area comes alive with flowers. "Red and blue poppies, bright, fresh, and unharmed, looked happily out of their bed of snow.… The scenery became more and more beautiful as we descended. The little meadows, clearings in the juniper forest, were full of flowers… out in all their glory." The Yonzhi share their homelands with many blue sheep, gazelles, and wolves. Source: Operation China, 2000 |
Country | China |
Region | Asia, Northeast |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
National Bible Society | Website |
Persecution Rank | 17 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Location in Country | More than 3,000 members of the Yonzhi tribe, a nomadic Tibetan people group, live in a virtually inaccessible area of eastern Qinghai Province. They primarily inhabit the Heha Chen Valley, near the town Tibetans call Cheb Chu. The Yonzhi area lies within Gonghe County, east of the Yellow River. The imposing Anye Machen Mountain range, considered sacred by all Tibetans, lies to the east of the Yonzhi tribe. The highest peak is the 6,282 meter (20,604 ft.) Machen Gangri. In the short summer months the area comes alive with flowers. "Red and blue poppies, bright, fresh, and unharmed, looked happily out of their bed of snow.… The scenery became more and more beautiful as we descended. The little meadows, clearings in the juniper forest, were full of flowers… out in all their glory." The Yonzhi share their homelands with many blue sheep, gazelles, and wolves.. Source: Operation China, 2000 |
Primary Language | Tibetan, Amdo (4,200 speakers) |
Language Code | adx Ethnologue Listing |
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
Primary Language | Tibetan, Amdo (4,200 speakers) |
Language Code | adx Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 1 |
People Groups | Speaking Tibetan, Amdo |
Primary Language: Tibetan, Amdo
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (2016) |
Bible-New Testament | Yes (2020) |
Bible-Complete | No |
Bible-NT Audio | Online |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Resource Type ▲ | Resource Name |
---|---|
Audio Recordings | Audio Bible teaching |
Audio Recordings | Online New Testament |
Audio Recordings | Online Scripture / Portions |
Audio Recordings | Story of Jesus audio |
Film / Video | God's Story video |
Film / Video | Indigitube.tv Video / Animation |
Film / Video | Jesus Film: view in Tibetan, Amdo |
Film / Video | My Last Day video, anime |
Film / Video | The Hope Video |
General | Biblical answers to your questions |
General | Four Spiritual Laws |
General | Gospel resources links |
Mobile App | Download audio Bible app from Google Play Store |
Text / Printed Matter | Tools for faith conversations |
Text / Printed Matter | Topical Scripture booklets and Bible studies |
Primary Religion: | Buddhism |
Religion Subdivision: | Tibetan |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent |
---|---|
Buddhism |
60.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical 0.00 %) |
0.00 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
40.00 %
|
Hinduism |
0.00 %
|
Islam |
0.00 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.00 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
Christian Segments ▲ | Percent |
---|---|
Anglican |
Unknown
|
Independent |
Unknown
|
Orthodox |
Unknown
|
Other Christian |
Unknown
|
Protestant |
Unknown
|
Roman Catholic |
Unknown
|
Photo Source | Copyrighted © 2022 Operation China, Asia Harvest All rights reserved. Used with permission |
Map Source | Joshua Project / Global Mapping International |
Video Source | Asia Harvest |
Profile Source | Operation China, Asia Harvest Copyrighted © Used with permission |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Read more |