People group profile · PG016341
The Saramaccan of French Guiana
The Saramaccan of French Guiana, numbering about 6,300 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Maroon people descended from Africans who escaped Dutch plantation slavery in Suriname in the 17th-18th centuries and won an 1762 freedom treaty a century before emancipation, roughly 30 percent now living as migrants in French Guiana.
They are an indigenous people in the Afro-American people cluster of the North American Peoples. Their primary religion is Ethnoreligion, and they primarily speak Saramaccan.

Fast facts
- Country
- French Guiana
- Population
- 6,300
- Affinity group
- American Peoples
- People cluster
- Afro-American
- Primary language
- Saramaccan (srm)
- Primary religion
- Ethnoreligion
- Strategic Progress Index ?
- No Longer Unreached
- Evangelical
- 2% or Greater but Less than 5%
- GSEC ?
- 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
- Lostness priority ?
- Marginally Reached People Group
- Region
- South America, Americas
Where they live
Gospel status
The Saramaccan are No Longer Unreached, which means 2% or more are evangelical Christians. In GSEC terms, this people group is greater than or equal to 2% evangelical.
- Congregations exist Yes
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Saramaccan
- 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
Primary language
Saramaccan · Indo-European family
100% speak Saramaccan
Gospel resources in Saramaccan
- Bible available
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Bibles
- 1998 Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. · audio, text
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Saramaccan
- Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
- Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
- John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
- Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
Saramaccan in other countries
The same people is also reported in 1 other country.
| People group | Country | Population | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saramaccan | Suriname | 36,000 | No Longer Unreached |
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