Eastern Cham in United States


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge
More extensive map at peoplegroups.info

Introduction / History

The Eastern Cham people are a Malayo-Polynesian ethnic group, one of two branches of the Cham minority group in Vietnam and Cambodia. As one of the most ancient ethnic groups in Southeast Asia, the Eastern Cham people have a very deep and interesting history.

They are now overrun with poverty and persecution, but at one time the Eastern Cham people had a powerful kingdom in Southeast Asia. The ancient Eastern Cham people were famous for their seafaring, agricultural and building skills for temples.

Both Cham groups have had serious difficulties with being persecuted by nation states, so they try to remain unknown. Most likely they are blending in with other ethnic groups like the Vietnamese, the Cambodians or the Indians. There is no information about where the Eastern Cham live in the US.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Because the Eastern and the Western Cham peoples have different religions, they are unlikely to have much social contact. Since they are Hindu, the Eastern Cham are likely to relate to South Asians in the US.

They have been in the US for decades, so they are mostly acculturated by now. However, they have retained their ancient Hindu religious beliefs.


What Are Their Beliefs?

Most of the Eastern Cham are Hindu. Hinduism was brought to them hundreds of years ago when a Hindu kingdom controlled much of SE Asia. Many follow Brahmanism, a sect of Hinduism. Brahmanism is practiced in the home, in temples, and at sacred festivals. The Eastern Cham are also highly influenced by traditional ancestor worship and animism. For example, they are known to dedicate their babies to the spirits at the local Hindu temples.

Their religious beliefs contribute to their history and identity as a people group. This makes it difficult for Cham individuals to embrace Christianity, as doing so would result in expulsion from the community.


What Are Their Needs?

The Cham people have been in the US for decades, so the window of opportunity to reach them when they are unsettled and spiritually open is over. Yet believers needs to befriend them and introduce them to Jesus Christ.


Prayer Points

Pray for the Eastern Cham to be open to hearing the gospel and let go of their traditions that hold them to idol worship, animism and other religions.
Pray for Vietnamese Christ followers to see their opportunity to evangelize to the Eastern Cham people in the US.
Pray for God to raise up Cham believers who will begin a disciple making movement in the US.


Scripture Prayers for the Cham, Eastern in United States.


References

https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/11688/VM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chams
http://escholarship.org/uc/item/7p87z4wh
https://iexaminer.org/getting-to-know-the-regions-cham-community/


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Cham, Eastern
People Name in Country Cham, Eastern
Natural Name Eastern Cham
Pronunciation CHA-am
Alternate Names Chăm (Chàm); Eastern Cham
Population this Country 900
Population all Countries 136,000
Total Countries 2
Indigenous No
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group No
Pioneer Workers Needed 1
PeopleID3 11688
ROP3 Code 102836
Country United States
Region America, North and Caribbean
Continent North America
10/40 Window No
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Country United States
Region America, North and Caribbean
Continent North America
10/40 Window No
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked

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Primary Religion: Hinduism
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 1.50 %)
5.00 %
Ethnic Religions
30.00 %
Hinduism
55.00 %
Islam
10.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Cham, Eastern (900 speakers)
Language Code cjm   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Cham, Eastern (900 speakers)
Language Code cjm   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Cham, Eastern

Primary Language:  Cham, Eastern

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (1968-1998)
Bible-New Testament Yes  (2024)
Bible-Complete No
Possible Print Bibles
Amazon
World Bibles
Forum Bible Agencies
National Bible Societies
World Bible Finder
Virtual Storehouse
Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Cham, Eastern Jesus Film Project
Film / Video World Christian Videos World Christian Videos
General Scripture Earth Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
Photo Source Anonymous 
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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