Bunan February 15

diverse western Himalayan XINJIANG region. Bunan is related to Lahuli Tinan, also spoken in western . Bunan and TIBET •Rutog Lahuli Tinan share 37% •Gar lexical similarity. Bunan is •Zanda Scale also reported to have up to Burang 0 KM 160 • 34% lexical similarity with Population in China: varieties of 1,467 (1995) and 24% with .4 1,680 (2000) In northern India, Bunan is 2,160 (2010) Location: Tibet related to the Thebor, Religion: Tibetan Buddhism Kanam, Lippa, Sumtsu, and Christians: None Known Sungnam languages.

Overview of the History: Numerous small Bunan ethnolinguistic peoples live Countries: India, China along the Tibetan border with Pronunciation: “Boo-nun” India and in very Other Names: sparsely populated locations. Gahri, Lahuli of Bunan, Ghara China and India had several Population Source: armed border clashes in the 1,467 (1995 GEM); Also in India; 1950s and 1960s. China 2,000 in all countries has since claimed thousands (1972 E. Nida) of square miles of territory Paul Hattaway Location: W Tibet: Border with from India, including the area Jammu and Kashmir, India Location: The Global Evangelization inhabited by the Bunan. Status: Unidentified Movement listed a 1995 figure of 1,467 Language: Sino-Tibetan, 1 Tibeto-Burman, Bodic, Bodish, Bunan in China. The Ethnologue cites a Customs: Bunan culture has been heavily Himalayish, Kanauri 1972 source (Eugene Nida), stating that a influenced by their devotion to Tibetan Dialects: 0 total of 2,000 Bunan live in both India and Buddhism. Their lives are a long struggle Religion: Tibetan Buddhism China.2 The Bunan inhabit an extremely against harsh winters. Because very little Christians: None known remote and desolate area of western Tibet fruit or vegetables can grow in the Bunan Scripture: Portions 1911 along the China-India border. In India, the region, their diet is comprised almost Jesus film: None Bunan live in the lower Bhaga Valley in the entirely of meat, fat, and yak yogurt. Gospel Recordings: northern part of the Himalayan state of Lahouli: Bunan #02424 . Another source places Religion: Many Bunan make annual Christian Broadcasting: None the Bunan “on the border of western Tibet pilgrimages to Lake Manasarovar and Mt. ROPAL code: BFU00 and Punjab, India.”3 Western Tibet is Kailas — two holy Buddhist sites in separated from Xinjiang to the north by the western Tibet. The Bunan are trapped in an Status of Evangelization imposing Kunlun Mountains, and in the endless cycle of doing good works, a vain south Himalayan peaks rise over 7,000 bid to ensure a better reincarnation in the 99% meters (23,000 ft.) above sea level. next life.

Identity: The Bunan are a little-known Christianity: The Bunan’s isolated people group. They are not mentioned in homeland is so remote that few outsiders Chinese literature, so it is uncertain how have ever traveled there. The Indian 1% 0% they are officially classified. They may have government, who also claim the territory ABC been included in the Tibetan nationality inhabited by the Bunan, did not find out A = Have never heard the gospel because of linguistic and religious that the Chinese had built a road there until B = Were evangelized but did not 5 become Christians similarities. The area of China where they two years after it was completed. The C = Are adherents to any form of live is so remote that it is possible they Bunan in India had parts of the Bible Christianity were not counted at all in the Chinese translated into their language by census. missionaries in 1911, but these have been out of print since 1923. Currently the Language: The Bunan language is a part of Christians located closest to the Bunan are the Kanauri arm of the so-called Himalayish the small number of Moravian believers branch. It is one of a number of different found among the Ladakhi people of languages located in the linguistically northern India.

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