People group profile · PG016857
The Warekena of Brazil
The Warekena of Brazil, numbering about 900 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Rio Negro people who once spoke their own Arawakan language before shifting to Nheengatu, a Tupi lingua franca spread by Carmelite missionaries, suffering debt-slavery after contact in the early 1700s before some migrated to Venezuela and adopted Baniwa.
They are an indigenous people in the South American Indigenous people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. Their primary religion is Animism, and they primarily speak Nhengatu.
Fast facts
- Country
- Brazil
- Population
- 900
- Affinity group
- American Peoples
- People cluster
- South American Indigenous
- Primary language
- Nhengatu (yrl)
- 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 America, Americas
Where they live
Gospel status
The Warekena 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 Warekena
- 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
80% adherents
Primary language
Nhengatu · Tupian family
100% speak Nhengatu
Gospel resources in Nhengatu
- Bible available, published 1973
- JESUS Film not available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Warekena
- 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.
- 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.
Warekena in other countries
The same people is also reported in 1 other country.
| People group | Country | Population | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guarequena | Venezuela | 450 | Engaged yet Unreached |
Know something we don't? Submit updates to IMB Global Research.