Azong in China

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

Introduction / History

The Azong are one of 120 different subgroups of the officially recognized Yi nationality in China. One ethnographer, who has researched the Yi, wrote, "If the 'Yi' had a mutual and continuous history, perhaps this would lend some credence to their common classification, yet even here one is hard-pressed to find similarities or continuity. The official stance on the origin of the 'Yi' usually states they were descendants from the Qiang who migrated south from Qinghai and Gansu 2,000 to 3,000 years ago. While this is plausible and even probable in many cases, it does not follow, therefore, that this nationality has remained one homogeneous people group some 2,000 years later. ... How long have the 'Yi' been in existence? The answer is clear: 'they never were'."

When Marco Polo passed through the Yi areas of "Caindu" in the late thirteenth century, he recounted some of the unique sexual practices of the people at the time: "I must tell you of a custom that they have in this country regarding their women. No man considers himself wronged if a foreigner, or any other man, dishonor his wife, or daughter, or sister, or any woman of his family, but on the contrary, he deems such intercourse a piece of good fortune. And they say that it brings the favor of their gods and idols, and great increase of temporal prosperity."


What Are Their Lives Like?

Until recent years, when burial has been gradually phased out in favor of cremation by the central government, the Azong placed silver in the mouths of their dead. The body was buried in a favorable place with the name of the deceased written on the headstone. The oldest son was required to use the blood from his own finger to write the names of his parents on a wooden tablet, using Yi characters.


What Are Their Beliefs?

These tablets were then kept for three generations and used in ancestral rites, before they were burned. Ancestor worship mixed with animism remain the major religious beliefs among the Azong.

Although there are about 2,000 Christians among the "Yi" in Jiangcheng County, all of them are believed to be from among the Yuanyang Nisu group. There are no known Christians among the Azong. The languages of the Azong and Yuanyang Nisu are divergent enough to make mutual communication impossible. This has created a barrier to the spread of the gospel between different ethnic groups in this part of the country.


What Are Their Needs?

The Azong people need to submit to Jesus Christ so they can experience the abundant life he offers them in John 10:10.


Prayer Points

Pray for the spiritual blindness and bondage to the evil one to be removed so they can understand and respond to Christ.

Pray for the Lord to provide for their physical and spiritual needs as a testimony of his power and love.

Pray that the Azong people will have a spiritual hunger that will open their hearts to the King of kings.

Pray for an unstoppable movement to Christ among them.


Scripture Prayers for the Azong in China.


References

Operation China, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Azong
People Name in Country Azong
Pronunciation Ah-zong
Alternate Names
Population this Country 1,300
Population all Countries 1,300
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
People ID 18408
ROP3 Code 114002
ROP25 Code 300629
ROP25 Name Azong
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 According to Jamin Pelkey, 1,000 people belonging to the Azong ethnic group live in Jiangcheng County within Simao Prefecture of southern Yunnan Province. Other people groups included in the official Yi nationality who live in Jiangcheng County are the Xiangtang, Yuanyang Nisu, Alu, and Laowu. The area is hilly and lush, with abundant rainfall. Many of the ethnic groups in the region spill over into neighboring Vietnam and Laos.   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 According to Jamin Pelkey, 1,000 people belonging to the Azong ethnic group live in Jiangcheng County within Simao Prefecture of southern Yunnan Province. Other people groups included in the official Yi nationality who live in Jiangcheng County are the Xiangtang, Yuanyang Nisu, Alu, and Laowu. The area is hilly and lush, with abundant rainfall. Many of the ethnic groups in the region spill over into neighboring Vietnam and Laos..   Source:  Operation China, 2000
Primary Religion: Ethnic Religions
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.00 %)
0.00 %
Ethnic Religions
95.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
5.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Nisu, Eastern (1,300 speakers)
Language Code nos   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Unknown
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Nisu, Eastern (1,300 speakers)
Language Code nos   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Nisu, Eastern

Primary Language:  Nisu, Eastern

Bible Translation Status:  Translation Needed

Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2024  Operation China, Asia Harvest  All rights reserved.  Used with permission
Map Source Joshua Project / Global Mapping International  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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