Cathay large Christian population, while the Jesuits in China had not found any Christians there. In retrospect, the Central Asian Muslim informants' idea of the Ming China being a heavily Christian country may be explained by numerous similarities between Christian and Buddhist ecclesiastical rituals – from having sumptuous statuary and ecclesiastical robes to Gregorian chant – which would make the two religions appear externally similar to a Muslim merchant. This may also have been the genesis of the Prester John myth. To resolve the China-Cathay controversy, the India Jesuits sent a Portuguese lay brother, Bento de Góis on an overland expedition
Cathay, North Dakota Cathay, North Dakota Cathay is a city in Wells County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 43 at the 2010 census. Cathay was founded in 1893. Cathay had its start by the building of the railroad through that territory. Cathay is located at (47.553931, -99.411403). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land. As of the census of 2010, there were 43 people, 19 households, and 12 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 29 housing units at an average density of .