People group profile · PG022052
The Rohingya of Myanmar
The Rohingya of Myanmar, numbering about 636,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Muslim ethnic group indigenous to the Rakhine State of Myanmar that has been denied citizenship there since 1982 and has suffered severe persecution and mass displacement.
They are an indigenous people in the Bengali people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Sunni Islam, and they primarily speak Bengali.

Fast facts
- Country
- Myanmar
- Population
- 636,000
- Affinity group
- South Asian Peoples
- People cluster
- Bengali
- Primary language
- Bengali (ben)
- Primary religion
- Sunni Islam
- Strategic Progress Index
- Engaged yet Unreached
- Evangelical
- Less than 2%
- GSEC
- Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
- Lostness priority
- Pioneer Unreached People Group
- Region
- South-Eastern Asia, Asia
Where they live
Gospel status
The Rohingya are Engaged yet Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, but there are sustained efforts to establish self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. In GSEC terms, this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years.
- Congregations exist Yes
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Rohingya
- Continue prayer and fasting for this group
- Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
- Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people
Primary religion
Sunni Islam · Islam
100% adherents
Primary language
Bengali · Indo-European family
100% speak Bengali
Gospel resources in Bengali
- Bible available
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories available
Films
- JESUS (Bangla)
- JESUS (Bangla Muslim)
- JESUS (Bengali (Indian))
- JESUS (Bangla)
- JESUS (Bangla Muslim)
- JESUS (Bengali (Indian))
- Magdalena (Bengali (Indian))
- Magdalena (Bangla Muslim)
- The Savior (Bengali (Indian))
Bibles
- Common Language Version · video, audio, text
- Mussolmani · video, audio
- Re-edit Bangla Version · audio, text
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Rohingya
- Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.
- 2 Timothy 2:2. Pray for faithful local leaders who will teach others, so that the church multiplies.
- Ephesians 5:8. Pray that those walking in darkness will turn to the light and live as children of light.
- Romans 10:14–15. Ask God to send messengers, so that people can hear, believe and call on the name of the Lord.
Rohingya in other countries
The same people (ROP3 102170) is reported in 4 other countries.
| People group | Country | Population | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rohingya | Bangladesh | 908,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Rohingya | Saudi Arabia | 438,000 | Unengaged and Unreached |
| Rohingya | Malaysia | 48,500 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Rohingya | United States | 13,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
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