Fourth Largest

The Dongxiang people is the 4th largest of China’s 10 Muslim peoples. Literally, Dongxiang means “eastern villages” hinting that the Dongxiang came from further west. In fact it is thought that they originally came from the Sarta people of Central Asia. Between the 12th and 13th century, Genghis Khan invaded the Central Asia and captured the Muslim Sarta people - a term that once referred to Muslim traders in Central Asia. He brought them back to China and many intermarried with Mongol soldiers, some of the Sarta became slaves to the Mongols and some were sent to Gansu province as settlers. They fought for the Mongols in war and farmed their land in peace time. The largest concentrations of the Dongxiang still live in rugged and dry mountains of Gansu province, others are found in Qinghai, Ningxia and Xinjiang Provinces in north-western China south of Mongolia and north-east of Tibet.

The Struggles

Over the generations they also mixed with Han, Mongolian, Hui and Tibetan peoples. Due to their seclusion in the remote area of the Northwest China for several centuries, the Dongxiang people formed their own unwritten language which is related to the Mongol language. Even if they do not have a system of writing they do have rich oral traditions including legends, stories, folk songs, riddles and proverbs. Many of them also know spoken Mandarin. However, government statistics show that the Dongxiang are among the poorest and least literate of China’s 56 ethnic minorities. Many of them have only had slightly over one year of schooling. Most Dongxiang children find it difficult to learn Chinese. Some international aide agencies have been spurred to act in collaboration with the Chinese government to begin bringing a solution to this problem. A Dongxiang - Chinese dictionary was recently produced which is proving to be a great help.

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Three Treasures

The Dongxiang mainly engage in agriculture. Livestock rearing, especially of sheep, plays an important role in their economic life. Their major products include potatoes, wheat, maize, hemp, rapeseed and other industrial crops. The Dongxiang's "three treasures", apricots, melons and other fruits, enjoy good reputation throughout China. There are possibly 200 Christians among the Dongxiang, however most of them are not organised in house groups or churches.

Prayer Requests:

* Ask God to send Chinese Christians to live and announce the Gospel among the Dongxiang people. May there be opportunities to help them with medical, educational, social and agricultural projects.

* May God open the hearts of the Dongxiang in order that they could enter His kingdom.

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Hui Muslims in Linxia City, China

Today in the city one immediately notices that a large portion of the population are Hui Muslims, in fact there are equal number of Hui to Han Chinese (The Han Chinese is the predominate Chinese ethnic group). Formerly during their regional political and military dominance the Hui made Linxia one of their major bases since it was strategically located on the border of China and the Tibetan region. A large Hui mosque is located in the center of town and one can often see old Muslim men with long beards and white caps everywhere throughout the city.

In addition to the Hui, Linxia is home to the Dongxiang, a zealous Muslim people group. The Dongxiang mainly live in the town of Suonoba situated on a high ridge near the city Linxia. Some Dongxiang have green or blue eyes and fair hair, a sign of the Central Asian ancestry of this group. Reaching the Dongxiang with the Gospel is made more difficult because the city is tightly controlled by the police. The Dongxiang people are widely known as the controllers of the drug trade and the prostitution rackets in Northwest China. The Dongxiang also have the lowest literacy rate of China's 55 official minorities. A mere 12% of adults are able to read Chinese. Overall, Linxia provides the ideal gateway to reach out to the needy Dongxiang, as well as the Hui Muslims in the city.

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Christian Presence in Linxia City, China

There has been some Christian presence in Linxia since the early part of 20th century, but frustrated in their attempts to establish a church among the Hui and Dongxiang Muslims, the missionaries refocused their attention towards the more receptive Han Chinese. Today there is a small church among the Han in Linxia. Recently when the pastor was asked if there was any hope of reaching the Hui or Dongxiang in their area, he replied "It is impossible!" The small number of believers in Linxia seem to have given up all hope of reaching out to their Muslim neighbours. As a result, the vast majority of people in Linxia today have never been exposed to the Gospel.

Pray for the Muslims in China:

* Ask God to glorify his name among the inhabitants of Linxia.

* Pray that the Han Chinese people would reach out to the Hui and Dongxiang Muslims with the Gospel message (Luke 1:37).

* Pray for former Muslim Christian workers to choose Linxia as a place to reach out to and that a church would be establish among these Muslim groups.

* Pray that Christians from other parts of China would focus on Linxia for ministry and church planting.

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