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People group profile · PG039061

The Tabasco Chontal of Mexico

The Tabasco Chontal of Mexico, numbering about 86,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Maya people of the Tabasco wetlands who identify as Yokot'an, descend from the Chontal Maya of the Grijalva and Usumacinta river basins, and have long maintained a culture shaped by trade, navigation, and life in a riverine environment.

They are an indigenous people in the Maya people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Catholicism, and they primarily speak Spanish.

Pray for the Tabasco ChontalPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Tabasco Chontal people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Chontal, Tabasco

Fast facts

Country
Mexico
Population
86,500
Affinity group
American Peoples
People cluster
Maya
Primary language
Spanish (spa)
Primary religion
Folk Catholicism
Strategic Progress Index
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
10% or Greater but Less than 15%
GSEC
10% or Greater Evangelical
Lostness priority
Moderately Reached People Group
Region
Central America, Americas
Location
Tabasco: 21 towns north-central and south

Where they live

Gospel status

The Tabasco Chontal 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 Tabasco Chontal

  • 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

Folk Catholicism · Christianity

72% adherents

Primary language

Spanish · Indo-European family

100% speak Spanish

Gospel resources in Spanish

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

Films

Bibles

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

Pray for the Tabasco Chontal

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

Download a prayer guide

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