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People group profile · PG009199

The Balau of Malaysia

The Balau of Malaysia, numbering about 12,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a tribal subgroup of the Dayak people in Sarawak, Malaysia,.

They are an indigenous people in the Borneo-Kalimantan people cluster of the Malay Peoples. Their primary religion is Animism, and they primarily speak Iban.

Pray for the BalauPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Balau people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2025). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Balau

Fast facts

Country
Malaysia
Population
12,000
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Borneo-Kalimantan
Primary language
Iban (iba)
Primary religion
Animism
Strategic Progress Index
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
15% or Greater but Less than 20%
GSEC
10% or Greater Evangelical
Lostness priority
Moderately Reached People Group
Region
South-Eastern Asia, Asia
Location
Sabah: Tawau district; Sarawak: scattered

Where they live

Gospel status

The Balau 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 Balau

  • 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

Animism · Ethnoreligion

65% adherents

Primary language

Iban · Austronesian family

100% speak Iban

Gospel resources in Iban

  • Bible available, published 2011
  • JESUS Film available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources available
  • Bible stories not available

Films

Bibles

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

Pray for the Balau

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

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