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People group profile · PG022987

The Mawes of Indonesia

The Mawes of Indonesia, numbering about 950 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Indonesia.

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 Mawes.

Pray for the MawesPrint profile

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

Fast facts

Country
Indonesia
Population
950
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
New Guinea
Primary language
Mawes (mgk)
Primary religion
Protestantism
Strategic Progress Index ?
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
50% or Greater but Less than 75%
GSEC ?
10% or Greater Evangelical
Lostness priority ?
Significantly Reached People Group
Region
South-Eastern Asia, Asia
Location
Papua province: Sarmi regency, Bonggo sub-district, Mawes Dai, Mawes Mukti, and Mawes Wres villages on Buri river west bank inland

Where they live

Gospel status

The Mawes 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 Mawes

  • 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

64% adherents

Primary language

Mawes

76% speak Mawes

Gospel resources in Mawes

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

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

Pray for the Mawes

  1. Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
  2. Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
  3. Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
  4. John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.

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