The Sikkimese Bhotia of Bhutan

The Sikkimese Bhotia of Bhutan, numbering approximately 4,500 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group indigenous to the Transhimalayan region that separates India and Nepal from Tibet. They are an Diaspora people, in the Tibetan people cluster of the Tibetan / Himalayan Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Buddhism - Tibetan. They primarily speak Sikkimese.

Bhutia in India photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Kandell, Alice S. - Library of Congress Kandell, Alice S. - Library of Congress Licensed under CC0 1.0

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Peoples
Country: Bhutan
People Cluster: Tibetan
Primary Language(s): Sikkimese (sip)
Primary Religion(s): Buddhism - Tibetan
Population: 4,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG042386
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Sikkimese Bhotia of Bhutan

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Buddhism - Tibetan
Religious Affiliation: Buddhism

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Buddhism - Tibetan Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Sikkimese
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

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Sikkimese Speakers

Media Resources in Sikkimese:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Sikkimese:

Or check out the Sikkimese bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Sikkimese Bhotia

The Sikkimese Bhotia are Unengaged and Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Next steps for the Sikkimese Bhotia

The Sikkimese Bhotia are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Next steps for the Sikkimese Bhotia

The Sikkimese Bhotia are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Sikkimese Bhotia of Bhutan

And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you."
read1 Samuel 13:13a

Pray that those who are walking in disobedience will recognize their sin and to turn to God.

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
readPsalm 127:3

Pray that God will bless this generation of children, that they will come to know Jesus early in life and follow Him always.

This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
readEphesians 5:32-33

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will grasp the profound mystery of Christ's love for the Church, reflecting this love in their marriages.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
readEphesians 6:13

Pray that God will send believers to the lost of this people group and that, as they share the gospel, they will take up the whole armor of God so that they can stand firm when trials come.

Bhotia (ROP3 - 111608) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Definitions page.

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