Yugur, Enger December 24 ➤ Location: The small Yugur (not to be Yugurs to flee mistaken for the Uygur) minority live in their Mongolian the Gansu corridor. They are one of homeland.”3 They the most unique people groups in moved to Gansu China, speaking two completely where they came unrelated languages. The Enger under the control (Eastern) Yugur live in the eastern of the Tibetans. part of the Sunan Yugur Autonomous The Yugur region County in northern Gansu Province.1 A was largely 1987 study listed 4,000 speakers of unknown and cut Enger Yugur, representing about a off from the world third of all Yugur. for centuries until the completion of Identity: The Enger Yugur, who speak the Lanzhou- a Mongolian language, have been Urumqi railway combined with the Turkic-speaking line in 1963 which Saragh Yugur to form the official Yugur passes through minority in China. the Yugur area. Language: Enger Yugur is a Mongolian Customs: The language. Only a handful of people, Yugur practice bird living in the Dahe District of Sunan burials, similar to Yugur County, can speak both Yugur the Tibetans. languages. Enger Yugur is closely Dead corpses are related to Bonan, Tu, Dongxiang, and cut up into pieces Mongolian. “Its phonology is closer to and taken to a Chang Tallis the first three languages, whereas in mountaintop where ravens and other Christianity: Although few Enger Yugur vocabulary and grammar it is birds of prey come and devour the today have ever heard the name of somewhat more akin to Mongolian.”2 flesh. Historically the Yugur were Jesus Christ, the region had many A significant number of Yugur, living in divided into nine separate clans. Each Christians in the past. The Ongkuts Jiuquan, Huangnibao, and parts of clan controlled its own herding area. developed a widespread Christian Sunan County, can now speak only culture, witnessed to by the many Chinese. In addition, some Yugur are Religion: When the Yugur first arrived Christian crosses found by bilingual in the Tibetan language. in the area in the ninth century, they archaeologists.4 The Yugur are believed in Manichaeanism. They were thought to be the descendants of this History: Most scholars believe the soon converted to Buddhism by the tribe. When Marco Polo visited Yugur are descended from a nomadic Tibetans. Today most Yugur remain Dunhuang, near the Yugur’s tribe known as the Huiqu. The Huiqu followers of Tibetan Buddhism. In homeland, he reported, “It is true were first recorded during the Tang recent years there has been a revival there are some Turks who hold to the Dynasty (AD 618–907). In the mid- of the ancient shamanistic religion religion of the Nestorian Christians.”5 800s, “heavy snowfall, combined with and the cult of the “Emperor of In 1992 the first Enger Yugur people an attack from the forest-dwelling Heaven,” Han Tengri. believed in Christ. Today there are Kirgiz from the north, forced the approximately 50 Christians. Status: Overview of the Status of Evangelization MONGOLIA Enger Yugur Officially included under Yugur Language: Altaic, Mongolian, 93% INNER MONGOLIA Countries: China Eastern Mongolian, Mongour XINJIANG •Dunhuang Zhangye Pronunciation: “Eng-gur-Yoo-gur” Literacy: 59% • GANSU Other Names: East Yugur, Enger, Dialects: 0 Mongolian Yugur, Shira Yugur, QINGHAI Religion: Tibetan Buddhism, •Lanzhou Shera Yugur, Eastern Yogor, Scale Yugar, Yugu, Yogur Shamanism, Christianity 6% 0 KM 400 1% Population Source: Christians: 50 Population in China: 4,000 (1987 LAC); Scripture: None A B C 4,000 (1987) Out of a total Yugur population of Jesus film: None A = Have never heard the gospel 4,810 (2000) 12,297 (1990 census) B = Were evangelized but did not 5,800 (2010) Gospel Recordings: become Christians Location: NW Gansu: Sunan Yugur, East #04864 Location: Gansu Yugur County: Kangle, C = Are adherents to any form of Religion: Tibetan Buddhism Hongshiwo, and Qinglong Christian Broadcasting: None Christianity Christians: 50 townships of Kangle District, and ROPAL code: YUY00 Dongtan and Beitan townships of Huangcheng District YUGUR, ENGER 565.