Zhuang, Minz in China

People Name:	Zhuang, Minz
Country:	China
10/40 Window:	Yes
Population:	182,000
World Population:	182,000
Primary Language:	Zhuang, Minz
Primary Religion:	Ethnic Religions
Christian Adherents:	0.50 %
Evangelicals:	0.20 %
Scripture:	Portions
Ministry Resources:	No
Jesus Film:	Yes
Audio Recordings:	No
People Cluster:	Zhuang
Affinity Bloc:	Southeast Asian Peoples
Progress Level:

Introduction / History

During the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC), half a million Han convicts were exiled by Emperor Qin Shihuang to the Lingnan region in southern China (now Guangxi and Guangdong). There they intermingled with the various branches of the Bai Yue nationality. The Zhuang today are thought to be the descendants of the Bai Yue. Historically, the Zhuang were called Tuliao or Sharen.
The Zhuang (Yongnan, Dai, Nong, Yang, Zuojiang) are a collection of related Central Tai language groups which have been combined with the Northern Zhuang - a collection of Northern Tai language groups - to form China's official Zhuang nationality. There are many tribes, clans, and self-designations among the Zhuang including the Minz. Zhuang subgroups usually live in Guangxi Province, but most of the Minz Zhuang live to the west of that province in Yunnan.

What Are Their Lives Like?

Minz Zhuang homes are usually built on stilts. A newly married woman stays with her parents until after the birth of the first child. Only then does she go to live with her husband in his village.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The first Protestant missionary to the Zhuang was R. H. Graves, a Southern Baptist, who arrived in Guangxi in 1862. In 1895 the Christian & Missionary Alliance commenced work in Guangxi. They established 65 churches over a 50- year period. Most of these churches were attended by Han Chinese, but small numbers of Zhuang also attended. The Zhuang have great linguistic diversity. Little has changed since this 1922 report describing Guangxi, the homeland of most Zhuang people: "There are 58 cities, 700 market towns, and over 17,000 villages, all teeming with human lives for whom no [gospel] effort whatever is being put forth."

What Are Their Needs?

The Minz Zhuang people are careful not to offend the spirit world that surrounds them. They believe in the spirits of the water, forest, mountain, village, etc. One wonders how many of them have looked upon the beauty around them and thought that there must be an all-powerful creator. They need this creator!

Prayer Points

Thank God for faithful intercessors who are praying for the Zhuang peoples!
Pray for the Minz Zhuang people to have a powerful spiritual thirst that will compel them to seek and find the creator of all the beauty they see in their homeland.
Pray for a Disciple Making movement to flourish among the Minz and other Zhuang peoples.