Prototype rebuild by the IMB Innovation Team. The official site is peoplegroups.org.

People group profile · PG014849

The Ribe Mijikenda of Kenya

The Ribe Mijikenda of Kenya, numbering about 12,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a tribal subgroup of the Mijikenda, a large Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the coastal region of Kenya.

They are an indigenous people in the Bantu, East-Coastal people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples. Their primary religion is Sunni Islam, and they primarily speak Giryama.

Pray for the Ribe MijikendaPrint profile

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

Fast facts

Country
Kenya
Population
12,000
Affinity group
Sub-Saharan African Peoples
People cluster
Bantu, East-Coastal
Primary language
Giryama (nyf)
Primary religion
Sunni Islam
Strategic Progress Index
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
10% or Greater but Less than 15%
GSEC
10% or Greater Evangelical
Lostness priority
Moderately Reached People Group
Region
Eastern Africa, Africa

Where they live

Gospel status

The Ribe Mijikenda 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 Ribe Mijikenda

  • 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

Sunni Islam · Islam

50% adherents

Primary language

Giryama · Atlantic-Congo family

100% speak Giryama

Gospel resources in Giryama

  • Bible available, published 2018
  • 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 Ribe Mijikenda

  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.

Download a prayer guide

Know something we don't? Submit updates to IMB Global Research.