PAOKING, APOSTOLIC PREFECTURE OF. — In the south-western part of the civil province of Hunan, in central China.
It was erected as an apostolic prefecture on 9 February 1938, comprising nine civil sub-prefectures detached from the Yungchow mission and entrusted to the Friars Minor, who sent Hungarian fathers from the regular province of St John Capistran.
It covers an area of 60,000 sq km. As of 30 June 1948, with a total population of about 4,000,000, there were 1,581 Catholics and 676 catechumens. The mission was served by 6 Hungarian Franciscan fathers and 3 lay brothers. Auxiliary personnel included 3 Hungarian sisters, 7 catechists, 1 teacher, 2 doctors and 15 nurses. There were 3 primary mission stations and 21 secondary ones. The works comprised 3 hospitals, 3 dispensaries and 2 orphanages. There were only 2 elementary schools.
The beginnings of evangelisation are recent: from 1928 some Franciscan fathers of the province of the Holy Name in the United States of America worked there, and in 1930 they handed the territory over to their Hungarian confreres. When the latter arrived, there were only two Christian communities: one at P. with over 200 faithful and another at Sinwha with just over 100.