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People group profile · PG008009

The Murinbata of Australia

The Murinbata of Australia, numbering about 4,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Wadeye region of the Northern Territory whose traditional country lies between the Moyle and Fitzmaurice river systems and who absorbed the neighboring Muringura into their society.

They are an indigenous people in the Aboriginal Australians people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples. Their primary religion is Roman Catholicism, and they primarily speak Murrinh-Patha.

Pray for the MurinbataPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Murinbata people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Murinbata

Fast facts

Country
Australia
Population
4,500
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Aboriginal Australians
Primary language
Murrinh-Patha (mwf)
Primary religion
Roman Catholicism
Strategic Progress Index
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
20% or Greater but Less than 30%
GSEC
10% or Greater Evangelical
Lostness priority
Significantly Reached People Group
Region
Australia and New Zealand, Oceania
Location
Northern Territory: Port Keats area, Wadeye

Where they live

Gospel status

The Murinbata are No Longer Unreached, which means 2% or more are evangelical Christians. In GSEC terms, this people group is greater than or equal to 10% evangelical.

  • Congregations exist Yes
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Murinbata

  • Pray for the churches among this group to grow in faithfulness and maturity
  • Equip believers to reach the unreached peoples around them
  • Send out laborers from this people to the nations

Primary religion

Roman Catholicism · Christianity

45% adherents

Primary language

Murrinh-Patha · Southern Daly family

45% speak Murrinh-Patha

Gospel resources in Murrinh-Patha

  • Bible available, published 1990
  • JESUS Film not available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources not available
  • Bible stories not available

Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.

Pray for the Murinbata

  1. John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
  2. Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
  3. Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
  4. Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.

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