Gurung Ghaleg in Nepal


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge
* Data can be from various sources including official census, agencies, and local research. Data from these sources can sometimes differ even by orders of magnitude. Joshua Project attempts to present a conservative, balanced estimate.

Introduction / History

The Western Gurung people live in the Kaski, Syangia and Parbat districts of the Gandaki Zone in central Nepal. According to the 1991 census, 72,000 people can still speak the Western Gurung language, just over 50 per cent of the population. The rest speak Nepali as their first language.
Over the past two hundred years the Gurung have migrated into surrounding nations. There is a community of Gurung living in the Samtsi District of south-west Bhutan, where they are commonly labelled as Nepalis. In India, Gurung communities can be found in the hilly terrain of the South, West and East districts of the state of Sikkim, throughout the Darjeeling District of West Bengal, and around the city of Dehra Dun and throughout the Pithoragarh District in Uttar Pradesh. In India, the Gurung have not been recognized as a Scheduled Tribe. Consequently population figures are not available for them, but they probably total a few thousand.
Gurung history is clouded with uncertainty because of their lack of a written script in the past. Legends were handed down orally from one generation to the next. We do know that, during the 15th century, a Gurung king named Ghale Raja was overthrown by a Nepali king. In the 16th century the Khasa armies took over large tracts of land in Nepal and the Gurung came under their control.


What Are Their Lives Like?

The Gurung were highly regarded as fighters and many of them were enlisted in the Khasa's armies. Later, after the British took control of India, many Gurung men were enlisted as Gurkha soldiers in the British army. Thousands have served in places from Hong Kong to Bosnia and the Falkland Islands.


What Are Their Beliefs?

Religion plays an important role in the everyday lives of most Gurung people. Their belief system is a mixture of Buddhism, Hinduism and shamanism. As one researcher wrote, 'Buddhism is followed by the Gurungs today although in ancient times they practiced the animistic and shamanistic form of religion like the pre-Buddhist Bon religion of the Himalayan regions. The northern areas of the kingdom are populated with people of mongoloid stock who are mostly followers of Tibetan Buddhism, and so these Gurungs can also be included within this category, though currently Hindu Gurungs have also emerged due to their contact with the Hindu lowlanders. '
The ceremonies and rituals that the Gurung perform also have mixed origins. One interesting custom, called tuno bandhane, takes place three days after the birth of a baby. 'This entails wrapping the newborn baby (after it has been washed in either cow's milk or cow's urine) in a long piece of cloth. '
Less than one out of every thousand Western Gurung people are Christians today.


What Are Their Needs?

The Western Gurung New Testament was first published in 1982, but it has fallen out of print since because of the small number of Western Gurung Christians and because there is no demand for it.


Prayer Points

Pray for a hunger for the word of God among the Western Gurung people.
Pray for the Lord to thrust out dedicated workers to them.
Pray for Western Gurung disciples to make more disciples.


Scripture Prayers for the Gurung Ghaleg in Nepal.


References

Peoples of the Buddhist World, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Gurung Ghaleg
People Name in Country Gurung Ghaleg
Alternate Names Birbangshi; Daduwa; Gurkhal; Gurum; Gurun; Kyi; Manang; Syangja; Tamu; Tamu Kyi; Western Gurung; गुरुंग
Population this Country 605,000
Population all Countries 747,000
Total Countries 4
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 2
Unreached No
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed
PeopleID3 15366
ROP3 Code 110781
Country Nepal
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Location in Country Approximately 180,000 Western Gurung people live in the Kaski, Syangia and Parbat districts of the Gandaki Zone in central Nepal....Over the last 200 years the Gurung have migrated into surrounding nations. There is a community of Gurung living in the Samtsi District of south-west Bhutan, where they are commonly labeled Nepalis. In India, Gurung communities can be found in the hilly terrain of the South, West and East districts of the state of Sikkim, throughout the Darjeeling District of West Bengal, around the city of Dehra Dun and throughout the Pithoragarh District of Uttar Pradesh.   Source:  Peoples of the Buddhist World, 2004
Total States on file 14
Largest States
Gandaki
294,000
Bagmati
92,000
Narayani
51,000
Lumbini
44,000
Kosi
36,000
Mechi
30,000
Bheri
17,000
Dhaulagiri
12,000
Rapti
7,700
Sagarmatha
7,000
Janakpur
6,500
Mahakali
3,100
Karnali
2,500
Seti
2,100
Country Nepal
Region Asia, South
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Location in Country Approximately 180,000 Western Gurung people live in the Kaski, Syangia and Parbat districts of the Gandaki Zone in central Nepal....Over the last 200 years the Gurung have migrated into surrounding nations. There is a community of Gurung living in the Samtsi District of south-west Bhutan, where they are commonly labeled Nepalis. In India, Gurung communities can be found in the hilly terrain of the South, West and East districts of the state of Sikkim, throughout the Darjeeling District of West Bengal, around the city of Dehra Dun and throughout the Pithoragarh District of Uttar Pradesh..   Source:  Peoples of the Buddhist World, 2004
Total States 14
  Gandaki 294,000
  Bagmati 92,000
  Narayani 51,000
  Lumbini 44,000
  Kosi 36,000
  Mechi 30,000
  Bheri 17,000
  Dhaulagiri 12,000
  Rapti 7,700
  Sagarmatha 7,000
  Janakpur 6,500
  Mahakali 3,100
  Karnali 2,500
  Seti 2,100
Website South Asia Peoples
Primary Religion: Buddhism
Major Religion Percent *
Buddhism
76.54 %
Christianity  (Evangelical Unknown)
5.01 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
13.76 %
Islam
0.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
4.59 %
Unknown
0.09 %
* From latest Nepal census data.
Current Christian values may substantially differ.
Primary Language Gurung (327,000 speakers)
Language Code gvr   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 27
Secondary Languages
(only 15 largest shown)
Nepali
180,000
Nyeshangte
3,700
Kham, Western Parbate
3,200
Lhowa
1,800
Tibetan, Central
1,500
Bantawa
1,300
Dotyali
1,100
Jumli
900
Bhujel
900
Hyolmo
500
Chamling
500
Lepcha
500
Sherpa
400
Musasa
300
Phangduwali
300
Primary Language Gurung (327,000 speakers)
Language Code gvr   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 27
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown)
  Nepali 180,000
  Nyeshangte 3,700
  Kham, Western Parbate 3,200
  Lhowa 1,800
  Tibetan, Central 1,500
  Bantawa 1,300
  Dotyali 1,100
  Jumli 900
  Bhujel 900
  Hyolmo 500
  Chamling 500
  Lepcha 500
  Sherpa 400
  Musasa 300
  Phangduwali 300
People Groups Speaking Gurung
Photo Source Timothy Two Project International 
Map Source People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project.  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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