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People group profile · PG009212

The Bintulu of Malaysia

The Bintulu of Malaysia, numbering about 10,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a tribal subgroup of the Dayak, indigenous to Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo.

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

Pray for the BintuluPrint profile

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

Fast facts

Country
Malaysia
Population
10,000
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Borneo-Kalimantan
Primary language
Bintulu (bny)
Primary religion
Animism
Strategic Progress Index ?
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
5% or Greater but Less than 10%
GSEC ?
5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
Lostness priority ?
Moderately Reached People Group
Region
South-Eastern Asia, Asia
Location
Sarawak: Bintulu area, and 2 enclaves west; Sibuti area on northeast coast

Where they live

Gospel status

The Bintulu are No Longer Unreached, which means 2% or more are evangelical Christians. In GSEC terms, this people group is greater than or equal to 5% evangelical.

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

Next steps for the Bintulu

  • 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

90% adherents

Primary language

Bintulu · Austronesian family

70% speak Bintulu

Gospel resources in Bintulu

  • Bible not available
  • JESUS Film not available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings not 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 Bintulu

  1. Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.
  2. 2 Timothy 2:2. Pray for faithful local leaders who will teach others, so that the church multiplies.
  3. Ephesians 5:8. Pray that those walking in darkness will turn to the light and live as children of light.
  4. Romans 10:14–15. Ask God to send messengers, so that people can hear, believe and call on the name of the Lord.

Download a prayer guide

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