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The Kyrgyz of China

The Kyrgyz of China, numbering approximately 197,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a Turkic-speaking ethnic group native to Central Asia, primarily associated with Kyrgyzstan, but also found in neighboring countries. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Kirghiz is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Kyrgyz

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Turkic Peoples
Country: China
People Cluster: Kyrgyz
Primary Language(s): Kirghiz (kir)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 197,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG001248
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Pray for the Kyrgyz of China

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

95%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kirghiz
Language Family: Turkic

100%
%
Kyrgyz Speakers

Media Resources in Kirghiz:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Kirghiz:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2005 Bible Society in Kazakhstan✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Kirghiz bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Kyrgyz:
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

Pray specifically for the Kyrgyz of China

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.
readIsaiah 42:8

Pray that lost people will turn from worthless idols to worship the one true God, recognizing that He alone is worthy of all glory and praise.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
readJohn 8:12

Pray that many will come to know Jesus, the light of the world, and have the light of life instead of walking in darkness.

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?
readJames 4:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will turn from worldly passions and live in unity with one another.

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
readIsaiah 58:7

As believers cross cultures to share the good news of Christ, pray that God will sustain them and grow their faith as He gives them the compassion necessary to minister well to those in need.

Kyrgyz Across Countries (ROP3 - 105550) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

10 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
KyrgyzPG024357KyrgyzKyrgyzstan6,095,000Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG024682KyrgyzUzbekistan322,000Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG001248KyrgyzChina197,000Unengaged and UnreachedKirghizFolk Islam
KyrgyzPG024509KyrgyzTajikistan136,000Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG047261KyrgyzUnited States30,000Unengaged and UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG024279KyrgyzKazakhstan14,500Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizFolk Islam
KyrgyzPG050666KyrgyzGermany14,000Unengaged and UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG024565KyrgyzTurkiye1,800Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG023963KyrgyzAfghanistan1,300Engaged yet UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam
KyrgyzPG047417KyrgyzCanada1,100Unengaged and UnreachedKirghizSunni Islam

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 Data Standards section.

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