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The Kalinge Rai of Nepal

The Kalinge Rai of Nepal, numbering approximately 12,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Indigenous Rai community of eastern Nepal, particularly Solukhumbu, whose name Kalinge corresponds to Khaling/Khalinge Rai and whose heritage language is Khaling. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Khaling is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Kalinge Rai

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Himalayan Peoples
Country: Nepal
People Cluster: South Himalayan
Primary Language(s): Khaling (klr)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 12,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG006228
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Pray for the Kalinge Rai of Nepal

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: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

95%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Khaling
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

71%
%
Khaling Speakers

Media Resources in Khaling:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Khaling:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Khaling bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kalinge Rai 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.

Next steps for the Kalinge Rai:
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

Pray specifically for the Kalinge Rai of Nepal

"For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?" But he said "What is impossible with man is possible with God."
readLuke 18:25-27

Pray that the lost who think they have everything they need will recognize their spiritual poverty apart from Jesus and turn to Him in faith.

Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.
readMatthew 13:8-9

Pray that they will have open hearts and minds to the Word of God, and that it will take root in their lives and bear fruit for His glory.

I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
readPsalm 89:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will declare and record His faithfulness and love to be passed on from generation to generation.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
readEphesians 6:12

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures the discernment they need to recognize the spiritual battle they are fighting. Pray God will protect their faith as they abide in Him.

Rai, Kalinge Across Countries (ROP3 - 104476) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Kalinge RaiPG006228Kalinge RaiNepal12,500Engaged yet UnreachedKhalingHinduism

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 Data Standards section.

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