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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Chali of Bhutan

The Chali of Bhutan, numbering approximately 1,900 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Bhutan They are an Indigenous people, in the Bhutanese people cluster of the Tibetan Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Buddhism - Tibetan. They primarily speak Chalikha.

Chali in Bhutan photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Copyrighted ©️ 2025 Peoples of the Buddhist World, Asia Harvest Used with permission

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: Bhutan
People Cluster: Bhutanese
Primary Language(s): Chalikha (tgf)
Primary Religion(s): Buddhism - Tibetan
Population: 1,900
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG001241
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Chali of Bhutan

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Buddhism - Tibetan
Religious Affiliation: Buddhism

%
Buddhism - Tibetan Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Chalikha
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

%
Chalikha Speakers

Media Resources in Chalikha:

Films:

No entries found for: Chalikha(tgf). Help build some!

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Chalikha:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Chalikha bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Chali

The Chali are Unengaged and Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Next steps for the Chali

The Chali are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

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

Next steps for the Chali

The Chali are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Chali of Bhutan

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
readRomans 5:10

Pray that any who may be enemies of God will grasp the depth of God's love demonstrated through Christ's death for the ungodly, and be reconciled to Him.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
readMatthew 11:28-29

Please pray for them to lift their eyes to Jesus and find rest for their souls, lasting peace, and hope in Him.

Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
readColossians 4:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be wise in the way they walk with the lost and manage their time and other resources in a way that honors God.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
readPsalm 23:6

Ask God to raise up believers who will share the hope that, for those who trust in Christ, goodness and love will follow them all the days of their lives, and they will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Chali (ROP3 - 114869) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Definitions page.

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