Yonzhi December 21

Location: More than 3,000 and explorer, stumbled represented in pictures INNER MONGOLIA members of the Yonzhi tribe, across the Yonzhi in 1929. riding a white horse, with GANSU a nomadic Tibetan people He recalls, “The people the sun and a rainbow to his

Xining group, live in a virtually were astonished at sight of right and the moon to his • Tongren •Madoi • •Lanzhou inaccessible area of eastern our party. One asked, ‘Why left. “All Tibetans worship Qinghai Province. They this array of arms and force Anye Machen; every •Songpan primarily inhabit the Heha when visiting our territory?’ monastery has either a Scale SICHUAN 0 KM 400 Chen Valley, near the town We continued up the valley picture or image of him.

Population in : Tibetans call Cheb Chu. The to the very foot of Amnyi Anye means ‘old man’ and 3,000 (1996) Yonzhi area lies within Druggu, the mountain god of corresponds to our ‘saint’. 3,270 (2000) Gonghe County, east of the the Yonzhi tribe. The last Ma means ‘peacock’ and 4,030 (2010) . The imposing few tents we passed were chen ‘great’.”3 Location: Qinghai Religion: Tibetan Buddhism Anye Machen Mountain cursed by some plague, the Christians: None Known range, considered sacred by nomads said. The inmates Christianity: The Yonzhi are all Tibetans, lies to the east lay dying outside, covered one of the most 2 Overview of the of the Yonzhi tribe. The with yak-hair rugs.” unreachable people groups Yonzhi highest peak is the 6,282- in China — if not all the meter (20,604 ft.) Machen Customs: The Yonzhi are world. Their region is Countries: China Gangri. In the short summer nomadic, living in yak-hair snowbound for most of the Pronunciation: “Yon-jee” months the area comes tents and moving every few year with temperatures Other Names: alive with flowers. “Red and weeks to find new pastures plummeting to minus 40˚ Population Source: 3,000 (1996 AMO); blue poppies, bright, fresh, for their yaks, sheep, and Celsius (–40˚F). The Yonzhi Out of a total Tibetan population and unharmed, looked goats. move around frequently, of 4,593,330 (1990 census) happily out of their bed of relocating their homes and Location: E Qinghai: Near the snow.… The scenery Religion: In addition to herds to new pastures. Their Anye Machen Mountains in Gonghe County became more and more worshiping Amnyi Druggu, communities are only Status: beautiful as we descended. the Yonzhi’s Mountain deity, accessible by foot or Officially included under Tibetan The little meadows, the Yonzhi live in the vicinity horseback. To the Yonzhi, Language: Sino-Tibetan, clearings in the juniper of Anye Machen Mountain. the gospel remains untold. Tibeto-Burman, Bodic, Bodish, forest, were full of They believe it contains a It is possible no Yonzhi has Tibetan, Northern Tibetan flowers… out in all their powerful god of the same ever heard the name of Dialects: 0 glory.”1 The Yonzhi share name. He is often Jesus Christ. Religion: Tibetan Buddhism, Polytheism their homelands with many Christians: None known blue sheep, gazelles, and Scripture: None wolves. Jesus film: None Gospel Recordings: None Identity: The Yonzhi are a Christian Broadcasting: None distinct ethnic group who ROPAL code: None live in a remote area that has changed little for hundreds of years. They are Status of Evangelization considered by some to be a 100% part of the Golog, who in turn are officially counted as part of the Tibetan nationality in China.

0% 0% Language: The Yonzhi speak a variety of Golog Tibetan, A B C the regional language. Few A = Have never heard the gospel Yonzhi have a knowledge of B = Were evangelized but did not become Christians Chinese. C = Are adherents to any form of Christianity History: For countless generations the Yonzhi have lived simple lives, unaffected by events in the rest of the world. Joseph Rock, the famous botanist Paul Hattaway

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