Unreached peoples of Namibia
An overview of the country's people groups, focusing on those who still have little or no access to the gospel in their own language and culture.
Namibia has 33 people groups, and only one of them, the Deaf community, with about 8 thousand people, is still considered unreached by the gospel. This result reflects the legacy of the first German and Finnish Lutheran missionaries, who evangelized the Ovambo, Herero and Nama as early as the 19th century. The current challenge is not so much reaching new peoples, but deepening discipleship and caring for historically marginalized communities, such as the San, as well as bringing the Scriptures and Christian teaching to the Deaf community in their own sign language.
- 0.3% Unreached (8K)
- 0.8% Minimally reached (24K)
- 1.2% Superficially reached (35K)
- 41.1% Partially reached (1.2M)
- 56.7% Significantly reached (1.7M)
- 3% Unreached (1)
- 15.2% Minimally reached (5)
- 6.1% Superficially reached (2)
- 48.5% Partially reached (16)
- 27.3% Significantly reached (9)
Source of people group data: Joshua Project (joshuaproject.net). Estimates, may vary.
Source: Joshua Project. Estimates, may vary.
| People | Population | Language | Evang. | Chr. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kung-Ekoka | 28K | Kung-Ekoka | 0.2% | 10% |
| Mbalanhu | 400 | Mbalanhu | 0.5% | 15% |
| Nyemba Ngangela | 1.2M | Nyemba | 0.2% | 85% |
| Deaf Frontier | 27.5M | Pakistan Sign Language | 1.8% | 3.7% |
| Fwe | 17K | Fwe | 2% | 90% |
| Yeyi | 68K | Yeyi | 2% | 20% |
| Vasekela Bushman Maligo | 23K | Northwestern Kung | 2% | 20% |
| Nusan Xoo | 4K | Taa | 2% | 14% |
| German | 66.7M | Standard German | 2.5% | 64.3% |
| Kwambi | 50K | Kwambi | 3% | 80% |
| Ngandyera | 21K | Ngandjera | 3% | 70% |
| Subia | 51K | Kuhane | 4.2% | 40.3% |
| Naro | 12K | Naro | 5% | 8% |
| Kung-Tsumkwe | 73K | Ju'hoan | 7.2% | 10.6% |
| Mbukushu | 129K | Mbukushu | 7.8% | 53.1% |
| Baster Rehobother | 69K | Afrikaans | 8% | 90% |
| Nama Khoekhoe | 436K | Khoekhoe | 8% | 87.9% |
| Herero | 384K | Herero | 9% | 95.9% |
| Heikum | 73K | Haiom | 10% | 10% |
| Bangologa Kgalagadi | 82K | Kgalagadi | 11.9% | 31.9% |
| Luyana Kwangali | 325K | Kwangali | 12% | 90% |
| Namibians | 36K | English | 12% | 91% |
| Kxoe Xun | 10K | Khwedam | 12.5% | 19.7% |
| Masi | 49K | Mashi (Zambia) | 13% | 40% |
| Tswana | 434K | Setswana | 15% | 83.6% |
| Gciriku | 104K | Gciriku | 15.5% | 60.2% |
| Kwanyama | 1.8M | Oshiwambo | 18.1% | 96.7% |
| Lozi | 1.7M | Lozi | 18.4% | 84.2% |
| Ambo Ndonga | 481K | Ndonga | 18.5% | 98.1% |
| Afrikaner | 5.1M | Afrikaans | 22.9% | 89.7% |
| Dhimba | 47K | Dhimba | 25% | 70% |
| Ovimbundu Umbundu | 9.2M | Umbundu | 26.9% | 96.6% |
| Chokwe | 4.3M | Chokwe | 33.7% | 87.5% |
Intercede for Namibia and its peoples
Every unreached people group is an entire culture still without full access to the gospel. Join in prayer with Christians around the world.
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