Unreached people group Frontier
Toba
UnreachedThe Toba of Pakistan are a small and little-known people who live in the province of Punjab. They should not be confused with the Toba of South America, whose language and history are completely different: here we speak of a South Asian community, Muslim in faith and Saraiki in language.
Their everyday language is Saraiki, spoken by many people across the region, which places them in a wider cultural world than that of their own community. Marwari appears as a second language among some of them, a sign of contact with neighboring communities.
Because they are few, the Toba rarely appear in studies or records, and much of what sets them apart remains undocumented. Even so, every community, however small, is known and loved by God. Learning their name and their reality is a first step toward someone remembering them before the Lord.
| Country | Share of the people | Population |
|---|---|---|
Pakistan Unreached
|
100%
|
1.400 |
The Toba are Muslims. In the region where they live, Islam shapes the calendar, the celebrations, the rites of passage and the way people understand right and wrong. Faith is not only a personal choice: it is part of what it means to belong to the family, the village and the people.
For this reason, changing religion is often seen as turning away from one’s own community, and not merely as changing one’s mind. Many, however, carry sincere questions about God, about forgiveness and about life after death, as all human beings do. There is very little Christian witness among them, and few have had the opportunity to hear about Jesus clearly, in their own language and from someone they trust.
The New Testament already exists in Saraiki, available even in digital format, and there are also audio and video materials about the life of Jesus. The complete Bible, however, has not yet been finished in this language. For a rural community in which not everyone reads easily, recordings may be the most natural path: the Word heard at home, in the language of the heart, without depending on anyone nearby.
A people only truly understands the gospel when they hear it in the language of their heart. See how far the translation has come.
- Translation started Done
- Portions Done
- New Testament Current stage
- 4 Whole Bible Still ahead
Translation data: Joshua Project.
In a community where being Toba and being Muslim go together, following Christ looks to many like a betrayal of the family. Added to this are the small size of the people, life in rural areas and the absence of a known Christian community among them. Almost no one has a neighbor who believes in Jesus and can explain the gospel with words and with his or her own life.
As a small and predominantly rural people, the Toba need access to education, health care and economic opportunities that sustain families with dignity, as well as basic infrastructure such as roads, clean water and electricity. Because they are few, it is easy for their needs to go unnoticed, and for that reason they deserve to be remembered.
In the spiritual realm, the greatest lack is witness: people who carry the message of Jesus with respect, in the Saraiki language, and who help those who believe to find protection, friendship and discipleship.
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