Khoton

Tradition holds that the ancestors of the Khoton were people from the cities of Central Asia, Turkic-speaking and, it is believed, Muslim in faith. According to one account, when the Oirats came to dominate those lands centuries ago, they took entire communities with them to the east, and the Khoton thus arrived in western Mongolia between the 17th and 18th centuries.

Far from their origins and surrounded by Mongolic-speaking neighbors, they gradually exchanged their old language for that of their new mountain companions. The language changed, but the memory of their own ancestry remained, and with it a sense of identity that still sets them apart from the surrounding peoples today.

Khoton life revolves around herding. They raise horses, yaks, cows, sheep and goats, and live in yurts, the round, portable tents that travel with them as they move between seasons. Their diet relies mostly on animal products, and their favorite drink is fermented mare’s milk, served with pride to anyone who arrives. Many families have resisted attempts to settle them in villages and towns, preferring the rhythm of the pastures and a life on the move alongside their herds.

Marriages take place within the people itself, arranged by the families with the consent of the young, and the bride goes to live with her husband’s family. Sons inherit their father’s property and herds. The community is closed, and kinship ties sustain mutual help, so that each family knows whom to turn to in hard times.

The faith of the Khoton is a blend inherited from different layers. Some identify with Tibetan Buddhism, the most widespread among the Mongols, and others see themselves as Muslim, in continuity with the memory of their ancestors. Many practice both side by side, and everyday religious practice rarely separates one tradition from the other with clarity.

Beneath these layers runs the folk religiosity of the mountains. The local shaman conducts rituals to appease spirits considered harmful, tends to bodily ailments and bridges the spiritual world. For most, being Khoton and following the family’s practices go together, so that changing faith can sound like turning away from one’s own people.

The Khoton speak a variety of Oirat, also called Kalmyk-Oirat, a language that has a written form. The New Testament and portions of Scripture already exist in it, along with the film about the life of Jesus, and the New Testament can also be read in digital format. The complete Bible is not yet available. Because nomadic life makes schooling and reading difficult, audio and video resources are especially valuable for bringing the message to the families of the mountains.

Among the Khoton, faith is intertwined with identity and family, and abandoning what has been inherited can be understood as betrayal of one’s own people. The tendency to keep their distance from other Mongols and to marry only within the community reduces trusted contacts with Christians. The isolation of the mountains, constant movement with the herds and low literacy make access to the Scriptures difficult. The church movement that is growing in other parts of Mongolia has not yet reached them.

The Khoton need education adapted to life on the move, since school is difficult for families who change location several times a year and illiteracy remains a major challenge. They also lack modern medical care in remote regions and veterinary care for the herds, on which the livelihood of every household depends.

In the spiritual realm, they need to hear the message of Jesus in a language and format they understand, presented by people who earn the trust of the community. There is only a small group of believers, and they need discipleship and fellowship so that faith may flourish among their own people.