People group profile · PG020897
The Western Chams of Laos
The Western Chams of Laos, numbering about 250 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an Austronesian ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Kampong Cham province in Cambodia and the An Giang province in southern Vietnam. The Laotian Cham are related to Cambodian Cham.
They are a diaspora people in the Cham people cluster of the Southeast Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Sunni Islam, and they primarily speak Western Cham.
Fast facts
- Country
- Laos
- Population
- 250
- Affinity group
- Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
- People cluster
- Cham
- Primary language
- Western Cham (cja)
- Primary religion
- Sunni Islam
- Strategic Progress Index
- Unengaged and Unreached
- Evangelical
- No Known Evangelicals
- GSEC
- Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
- Lostness priority
- Frontier Unreached People Group
- Region
- South-Eastern Asia, Asia
- Location
- primarily in the capital city, Vientiane, and in the Champasak region in southern Laos
Where they live
Gospel status
The Western Chams are Unengaged and Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, and there has been no reported church planting activity in the past two years. 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 No
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Western Chams
- Pray that God would send workers to this people group
- Begin sowing the gospel and seek out people of peace
- Plant the first churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice
Primary religion
Sunni Islam · Islam
100% adherents
Primary language
Western Cham · Austronesian family
100% speak Western Cham
Gospel resources in Western Cham
- Bible available
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Films
- JESUS (Cham, Western)
Bibles
- Cham, Western New Testament · video, audio
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Western Chams
- John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
- Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
- Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
- Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
Cham, Western in other countries
The same people (ROP3 110776) is reported in 3 other countries.
| People group | Country | Population | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Chams | Cambodia | 303,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Western Chams | Vietnam | 150,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Western Chams | United States | 1,200 | Unengaged and Unreached |
Know something we don't? Submit updates to IMB Global Research.