People group profile · PG024390
The Northern Pashtuns of Pakistan
The Northern Pashtuns of Pakistan, numbering about 19,220,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Eastern Iranian ethnolinguistic group indigenous to southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan.
They are an indigenous people in the Pashtun people cluster of the Persian-Median Peoples. Their primary religion is Sunni Islam, and they primarily speak Northern Pashto.
Fast facts
- Country
- Pakistan
- Population
- 19,220,000
- Affinity group
- Central Asian Peoples
- People cluster
- Pashtun
- Primary language
- Northern Pashto (pbu)
- 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
- Frontier Unreached People Group
- Region
- Southern Asia, Asia
- Location
- Khyber Pakhtunkwa province: Peshawar district and Yusufzai area; Punjab province: Mianwali district; all along Afghanistan border
Where they live
Gospel status
The Northern Pashtuns 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 Northern Pashtuns
- 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
98% adherents
Primary language
Northern Pashto · Indo-European family
78% speak Northern Pashto
Gospel resources in Northern Pashto
- Bible available, published 2020
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Films
- JESUS (Pashto, Yusufzai)
- JESUS (Pashto, Eastern Afghan)
- Magdalena (Pashto, Eastern Afghan)
- Magdalena (Pashto, Yusufzai)
- The Savior (Pashto, Eastern Afghan)
Bibles
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Northern Pashtuns
- 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.
- Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.
Pashtun, Northern in other countries
The same people (ROP3 107909) is reported in 5 other countries.
| People group | Country | Population | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Pashtuns | Afghanistan | 2,810,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Northern Pashtuns | United Arab Emirates | 662,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Northern Pashtuns | Canada | 33,500 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Northern Pashtuns | United States | 25,000 | Engaged yet Unreached |
| Northern Pashtuns | Turkiye | 6,700 | Engaged yet Unreached |
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