Neisu, Da Hei September 5 ➤

and slave-owners. “Although GUIZHOU their counterparts in Sichuan emerged from the slave system • as late as the 1950s, this Mile • GUANGXI Qiubei • •Guangnan people seem to have begun •Kaiyuan slowly adopting new ways •Pingbian Scale hundreds of years ago.… The 0 KM 160 VIETNAM Da Hei Neisu entered Honghe Prefecture from Luoping and Population in : 6,300 (1999) Qiubei counties and from as far 6,450 (2000) away as . That this 8,100 (2010) people migrated from Zhaotong Location: Yunnan Prefecture lends credence to a Religion: Polytheism Christians: None Known possible connection between this and the Liangshan Nosu Overview of the system of slavery.”7 Da Hei Neisu Countries: China Customs: Although it is Pronunciation: “Da-Hay-Nay-soo” possible that dialects and Other Names: Da Hei Yi, Black Yi, cultures have diverged between Big Black Yi, Wopu, Nasu, the communities living so far Greater Neisu, Neisupo, Nisu, Xiqi apart, the Da Hei Neisu Population Source: continue to see themselves as 6,300 (1999 J. Pelkey); Out of a total Yi population of a homogeneous people group. 6,572,173 (1990 census) A Da Hei Neisu wedding usually Location: Yunnan: Mile (2,200), lasts from four to seven days.

Luxi (1,500), Luliang (1,300), Paul Hattaway After marriage it is customary Lunan (800), and Shizong (500) counties Location: More than 6,300 Da Hei (Greater for the new husband and wife to sleep in 1 Status: Black) Neisu live in Yunnan Province. They separate beds. Da Hei Neisu traditional Officially included under Yi inhabit widespread communities in four dress has disappeared in most regions, Language: Sino-Tibetan, different prefectures. They live within Mile2 and many customs are also on the decline. Tibeto-Burman, Burmese-Lolo, and Luxi counties of Honghe Prefecture; Lolo, Northern Lolo, Yi, Eastern Yi Shilin (Lunan) County in Kunming Religion: The Da Hei Neisu are polytheistic Dialects: 0 Municipality; Shizong and Luoping counties animists who believe a person’s soul Religion: Polytheism, Animism, Shamanism of Prefecture; and Qiubei County in leaves the body at death or when the 3 Christians: None known Wenshan Prefecture. person is sick. To prevent this from Scripture: None happening, they tie string around the wrists Jesus film: None Identity: Commonly called Da Hei Yi (Big of an ill person and fasten it to a bedpost Gospel Recordings: None Black Yi) by the Chinese, this people group or piece of furniture. Shamans are Christian Broadcasting: None refers to itself as Neisu or Nasu meaning summoned to call the spirit back into the 4 ROPAL code: None “black people.” Linguist Jamin Pelkey has body. stated that “when widely different cultures and languages are encountered among one Christianity: Although Catholic missionaries Status of Evangelization of these ‘Black People’ groups a clarifying from the Paris Foreign Missionary Society 92% title must be given to distinguish worked among the Sani and Axi people in dissimilarities.”5 the 1880s, experiencing much success, no record exists of outreach to the Da Hei Language: The language of the Da Hei Neisu people farther south of the French Neisu is mutually intelligible with the Xiao mission stations. Today, there are no known 8% 0% Hei Neisu. In the past, the ruling castes felt believers among the Da Hei Neisu. Few that it was important to distinguish have any awareness of the name of Jesus A B C themselves by using a different dialect from Christ. Much prayer is needed to break A = Have never heard the gospel B = Were evangelized but did not the slave class. Today, “only in larger down the powerful influence of the occult become Christians population pockets is the Da Hei Neisu among the Da Hei Neisu. There are C = Are adherents to any form of 6 Christianity language still spoken by young and old.” presently no Scriptures or evangelistic materials available in the Da Hei Neisu History: Like the Nosu of Sichuan, the Da language. Hei Neisu have come from a society in which they were the traditional landlords

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