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The Shengzha Nosu of China

The Shengzha Nosu of China, numbering approximately 1,765,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Northern Yi people of the Daliangshan region whose identity is rooted in the Nosu cultural tradition, historic clan-based organization, and a legacy shaped by migration, interclan warfare, and social stratification. They mostly adhere to Chinese Folk Religion and Sichuan Yi is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Nosu, Shengzha

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Tibetan Peoples
Country: China
People Cluster: Nosu
Primary Language(s): Sichuan Yi (iii)
Primary Religion(s): Chinese Folk Religion
Population: 1,765,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG007336
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Pray for the Shengzha Nosu 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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Chinese Folk Religion
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

95%
%
Chinese Folk Religion Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Sichuan Yi
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

99%
%
Nuosu Speakers

Media Resources in Sichuan Yi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Sichuan Yi:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Sichuan Yi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Shengzha Nosu 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.

Next steps for the Shengzha Nosu:
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

Pray specifically for the Shengzha Nosu of China

These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self- made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
readColossians 2:23

Pray for those without Christ, that they will see the emptiness of human traditions and turn to the truth and grace found in Jesus.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
read2 Peter 3:9

Pray that the lost will not perish but come to repentance and that God's patience and long-suffering will lead them to salvation.

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
readRomans 10:15

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be eager to proclaim the good news of peace, knowing that the Lord has called them to this task.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
readPsalm 139:14

Praise God for His creativity and power, and pray that He will raise up men and women from among them who are in awe of all He has done and want to go share the hope of Christ with others.

Nosu, Shengzha Across Countries (ROP3 - 114262) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Shengzha NosuPG007336Shengzha NosuChina1,765,000Engaged yet UnreachedSichuan YiChinese Folk Religion

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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