Prototype rebuild by the IMB Innovation Team. The official site is peoplegroups.org.

People group profile · PG046926

The Kok Nur Oirat of China

The Kok Nur Oirat of China, numbering about 105,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Khoshut Mongol people descended from Western Mongol conquerors who seized central Tibet in the seventeenth century and installed the Fifth Dalai Lama as ruler, later losing their autonomy after an unsuccessful 1724 revolt against the Qing dynasty.

They are an indigenous people in the Mongolian people cluster of the East Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Mahayana Buddhism, and they primarily speak Kalmyk.

Pray for the Kok Nur OiratPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Kok Nur Oirat people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Oirat, Kok Nur

Fast facts

Country
China
Population
105,000
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Mongolian
Primary language
Kalmyk (xal)
Primary religion
Mahayana Buddhism
Strategic Progress Index
Engaged yet Unreached
Evangelical
Less than 2%
GSEC
Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
Lostness priority
Frontier Unreached People Group
Region
Eastern Asia, Asia

Where they live

Gospel status

The Kok Nur Oirat 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 No
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Kok Nur Oirat

  • 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

Mahayana Buddhism · Buddhism

99% adherents

Primary language

Kalmyk · Mongolic-Khitan family

100% speak Kalmyk

Gospel resources in Kalmyk

  • Bible available
  • 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 Kok Nur Oirat

  1. 2 Timothy 2:2. Pray for faithful local leaders who will teach others, so that the church multiplies.
  2. Ephesians 5:8. Pray that those walking in darkness will turn to the light and live as children of light.
  3. Romans 10:14–15. Ask God to send messengers, so that people can hear, believe and call on the name of the Lord.
  4. Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.

Download a prayer guide

Oirat, Western Mongul in other countries

The same people (ROP3 107607) is reported in 5 other countries.

People groupCountryPopulationStatus
Kalmyk-OiratsMongolia191,000Unengaged and Unreached
Kalmyk-OiratsRussian Federation183,000Engaged yet Unreached
Kalmyk-OiratsKyrgyzstan8,200Unengaged and Unreached
OiratUnited States1,900Engaged yet Unreached
Kalmyk-OiratsUzbekistan1,000Unengaged and Unreached

Know something we don't? Submit updates to IMB Global Research.