Depo March 4

Location: Approximately 6,000 people belonging to the Depo GUIZHOU tribe live in the Panzhihua area •Panzhihua of southern Sichuan Province, •Dayao •Wuding and in Wuding and Luquan • •Chuxiong counties in northern Yunnan • Province. Most Depo villages Scale 0 KM 160 contain no more than ten families. In the majority of Population in : 5,000 (1990) locations the Depo share their 6,275 (2000) villages with members of other 7,870 (2010) ethnic minorities. Wuding Location: Sichuan, Yunnan Religion: Chistianity County and Luquan County Christians: 700 (where only 747 Depo were reported to live in 1957)1 Overview of the Depo experienced a massive earthquake in October 1995. Countries: China Fifty people were killed, 1,000 Pronunciation: “Deh-po” injured, and 200,000 people Other Names: Adou, Adoupuo, Gan Yi, Bai Yi, White Yi, Baiyizhe were left homeless. Population Source: 5,000 (1990 AMO); Identity: The Depo also call 1,100 in Yunnan (1999 J. Pelkey); themselves Adou or Adoupuo. Out of a total Yi population of 6,572,173 (1990 census) Neighboring people call them Location: Gan Yi, which is not the same S Sichuan: Panzhihua area; as the Eastern Nasu group N Yunnan: Wuding and Luquan profiled in Operation China. The

counties Paul Hattaway Eastern Nasu are also Status: Officially included under Yi commonly called Gani. The Chinese Customs: One of the greatest festivals Language: Sino-Tibetan, character for Gan Yi means “sweet Yi,” celebrated by the different Yi groups is the Tibeto-Burman, Burmese-Lolo, while the character used for the Gani New Rice Festival, which takes place in the Lolo, Northern Lolo, Yi, Eastern Yi means “dry Yi.” The Depo have largely eighth month of the lunar calendar every Dialects: 0 been assimilated by the Eastern Nasu. year. The people celebrate the end of the Religion: Christianity, Animism, No Religion rice harvest by drinking alcohol, singing, Christians: 700 Language: The Depo language, which may and dancing. On three different days in the Scripture: None now be identical to Eastern Nasu, is part of sixth lunar month the Depo celebrate the Jesus film: None the Eastern Yi group of Tibeto-Burman Plum Raising Festival. They test the Gospel Recordings: None languages. Eastern Yi includes numerous ripeness of their plums and also use the different groups living in Guizhou Province event as an excuse to get drunk, dance, Christian Broadcasting: None and nearby areas of northeast Yunnan. The and let their hair down. ROPAL code: None Yi groups in northern Yunnan, especially around Wuding, are now so mixed together Religion: Wuding and Luquan counties, Status of Evangelization that specific linguistic information is where the Depo live, have been thoroughly 65% difficult to obtain. evangelized and contain one of the highest concentrations of Christians in all of China. 23% History: This tribe claims to have been In the past, animals, rivers, trees, and even 12% migrating for most of their past. They say rocks were worshiped by the Depo. They they originally lived in the area of believed that these natural objects were northeast Yunnan Province before moving sources of spiritual power. They also A B C south to Dongchuan. “Some time later they believed that the spirits of animals could A = Have never heard the gospel B = Were evangelized but did not moved again — most of them going to “bite” a person, so regular offerings were become Christians Sichuan, but some of them crossing made to placate them. C = Are adherents to any form of 2 Christianity Luquan to eastern Wuding County.” For centuries the Depo have been slaves to the Christianity: A relatively high percentage of Eastern Nasu. Today, their language and Depo believe in Christ, especially among customs are almost identical to their former those living in the highly evangelized Fawo masters’. District of Wuding County in Yunnan Province. The Depo in Sichuan have had less exposure to the gospel.

DEPO 119