Khakas May 27

Location: The 1990 Chinese census listed youngest speaker was 60 years old. The 1,197 members of the Khakas have been bilingual in Olot, group before they were combined into the Mongolian, or Chinese for several •Hailar official Kirgiz nationality. In contrast to the generations. Now all Khakas youth speak 5 •Qiqihar Kirgiz who live in northwest , the only Mandarin. For the time being the • Khakas live in Fuyu County in Heilongjiang Khakas is the easternmost Turkic-speaking INNER MONGOLIA Scale JILIN Province in China’s northeast. The largest group in the world. In Russia, where there 0 KM 400 Khakas community in China is Qujiazi is a Khakas script, the language is not Population in China: Village. In 1979 it contained 219 Khakas, under immediate threat. 1,197 (1990) 1,540 (2000) History: During the Ming 1,990 (2010) Dynasty (1368–1644) the Location: Heilongjiang Religion: Tibetan Buddhism Kirgiz fought with the Oirats. Christians: None Known When the latter were defeated by the Eastern , most Overview of the Kirgiz tribes moved to the Khakas Tianshan Range in Xinjiang Countries: Russia, China where they still live today. A Pronunciation: “Khar-kuss” few Kirgiz remained in their Other Names: Khakhas, homeland on the upper Yenisei Khakhass, Abakan Tatar, Yenisei River in today’s Russia. Others Tatar, Heilongjiang Kirgiz, Fuyu lived just south of there, in the Kirgiz, Fuyu Keerkezi, Xakas, Khakassian Altai Mountain range, as late Population Source: as the eighteenth century. 1,197 (1990 census); “When the Qing forces 875 (1982 census); defeated the Jungars in the Out of a total Kirgiz population of 141,549 (1990 census); 1750s, they removed these 64,800 in Russia Kirgiz [Khakas] to China’s (1993 United Bible Societies) northeast. The first group Location: Heilongjiang: Fuyu moved there in 1758 and a County, north of Qiqihar second group followed them in Status: Officially included under Kirgiz 1761 from the Altai and Language: Kang’ai mountain ranges. Altaic, Turkic, Northern Turkic These two groups form the Dialects: 0 core of today’s Kirgiz [Khakas] Religion: Tibetan Buddhism, in Heilongjiang.”6

Animism, , Dwayne Graybill No Religion Christians: None known 327 Han Chinese, 84 Mongols, 21 Daur, Customs: Most Khakas no longer practise and 2 Manchus.1 The Khakas live along the their own customs. They have adapted to Scripture: None eastern bank of the Nonni River. Another Chinese culture and before long will Jesus film: None group of Khakas used to live in the Imim probably cease to be a distinct people. Gospel Recordings: None region of Inner Mongolia, but they were Christian Broadcasting: None ethnically assimilated by other nationalities Religion: Unlike the Kirgiz, there are no ROPAL code: KJH00 during the early part of the twentieth Muslims among the Khakas. They were Status of Evangelization century. The vast majority of Khakas today converted to Tibetan Buddhism by their 92% (about 65,000) live in the Altai region of Mongol neighbors. “Until the 1950s you Russia. could still find shamans, called Gam in the Khakas villages.”7 Today the Khakas are Identity: Although the Chinese officially rapidly becoming a secularized group. Few consider the Khakas to be a part of the of the present generation of Khakas youth 8% 0% Kirgiz nationality, their languages and have any interest in religion. culture “differ considerably.”2 In Russia the A B C Khakas are a collection of the five nomadic Christianity: There has never been a single A = Have never heard the gospel Turkic-speaking tribes of Kacha, Kyzyl, known believer among the Khakas in China. B = Were evangelized but did not 3 become Christians Sagai, Beltir, and Koibal. Their relatives in Russia are also an C = Are adherents to any form of unreached people who follow animistic Christianity Language: The in China is practices. Although they have a written nearly extinct. In 1982 there were only ten script, the Scriptures have never been fluent speakers of Khakas remaining.4 The translated into Khakas.

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