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People group profile · PG010136

The Lihir of Papua New Guinea

The Lihir of Papua New Guinea, numbering about 27,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea.

They are an indigenous people in the New Guinea people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples. Their primary religion is Protestantism, and they primarily speak Lihir.

Pray for the LihirPrint profile

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

Fast facts

Country
Papua New Guinea
Population
27,500
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
New Guinea
Primary language
Lihir (lih)
Primary religion
Protestantism
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
Melanesia, Oceania

Where they live

Gospel status

The Lihir 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 Lihir

  • 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

Protestantism · Christianity

35% adherents

Primary language

Lihir · Austronesian family

100% speak Lihir

Gospel resources in Lihir

  • Bible available, published 1927
  • JESUS Film available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources not available
  • Bible stories not available

Films

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

Pray for the Lihir

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

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