Region

Asia

The continent where most of the world's unreached peoples live, and where many Christians follow Jesus under government restrictions or family pressure.

48 countries 5.255 peoples 4.1% evangelicals

What to pray for

The 48 flags of the region. Tap one to open the country.

Gospel reach among the 5.255 peoples

4.099Unreached · 78% of peoples

1.156reached peoples

4.1%evangelicals (weighted average)

73.2% Unreached (4K)
4.8% Minimally reached (251)
3.8% Superficially reached (200)
12.8% Partially reached (673)
5.4% Significantly reached (283)

Largest unreached peoples: Muslim Bengali 133.3M Japanese 118M Shaikh 103.7M

The Bible in the languages of the region

3.117languages spoken

1.002With complete Bible

2.115Without complete Bible

203With no translation at all

32.1% With complete Bible (1.002)
61.3% Only portions of the Bible (1.912)
6.5% With no translation at all (203)

Source: Joshua Project and Progress.Bible. Estimates, may vary. Compiled from the data of each country in this region.

What it is

Asia is the world’s largest continent, and also its most diverse. It comprises 48 countries stretching from the Arabian desert to the jungles of Southeast Asia, from the steppes of Central Asia to the Pacific islands, including population giants such as China and India and small island nations such as the Maldives and Timor-Leste. It is also the birthplace of all the world’s major religions: Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity itself originated on Asian soil.

Within this continent, regional blocs with very distinct identities coexist: the Middle East, shaped by Islam and longstanding conflicts; Central Asia, heir to the ancient Silk Roads; East Asia, with its economic powers and closed regimes; and South and Southeast Asia, where Hinduism and Buddhism have shaped the lives of billions of people for centuries.

It is also the continent with the world’s greatest concentration of groups unreached with the gospel. Of the 5,255 ethnic groups living in Asia, 4,099 still have no established church among them, and the average proportion of evangelicals in the population is just 3.2%. Yet this same continent is home to some of the world’s largest growing church movements, such as those in South Korea and parts of China.

Praying for Asia means praying for the continent where most of humanity lives and where the gospel still needs to reach the vast majority of peoples.

Context and characteristics

The world's largest continent

Asia is home to most of the world's population, spread across 48 countries of very different sizes and cultures.

Birthplace of the major religions

Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity originated in Asia, making the continent central to the history of faith.

Distinct regional blocs

The Middle East, Central Asia, East Asia, and South and Southeast Asia form very different cultural and spiritual realities within the same continent.