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People group profile · PG007333

The Naxi of China

The Naxi of China, numbering about 343,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a people of Lijiang in China's Yunnan province descended from Qiang pastoralists who migrated south from the Tibetan Plateau between the 1st and 10th centuries, preserving the Dongba pictographic script for ancestor-worship ritual texts.

They are an indigenous people in the Other Tibeto-Burmese people cluster of the Tibetan Peoples. Their primary religion is Ancestor Worship, and they primarily speak Naxi.

Pray for the NaxiPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Naxi people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Naxi

Fast facts

Country
China
Population
343,000
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Other Tibeto-Burmese
Primary language
Naxi (nxq)
Primary religion
Ancestor Worship
Strategic Progress Index ?
Engaged yet Unreached
Evangelical
Less than 2%
GSEC ?
Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
Lostness priority ?
Expanding Unreached People Group
Region
Eastern Asia, Asia

Where they live

Gospel status

The Naxi are Engaged yet Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, but there are sustained efforts to establish self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. In GSEC terms, 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.

  • Congregations exist Yes
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Naxi

  • 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

Primary religion

Ancestor Worship · Ethnoreligion

80% adherents

Primary language

Naxi · Sino-Tibetan family

90% speak Naxi

Gospel resources in Naxi

  • Bible available, published -
  • JESUS Film available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources available
  • Bible stories not available

Films

Bibles

Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.

Pray for the Naxi

  1. Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
  2. Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
  3. John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
  4. Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.

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