People group profile · PG049491
The Swahili Arabs of Oman
The Swahili Arabs of Oman, numbering about 52,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Bantu ethnic group indigenous to the Bajuni Islands of Somalia and coastal areas between the port city of Kismayo and the city of Momasa in Kenya.
They are a diaspora people in the Bantu, Swahili people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Islam, and they primarily speak Swahili (individual language).
Fast facts
- Country
- Oman
- Population
- 52,000
- Affinity group
- Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
- People cluster
- Bantu, Swahili
- Primary language
- Swahili (individual language) (swh)
- Primary religion
- Folk 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
- Western Asia, Asia
Where they live
Gospel status
The Swahili Arabs 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 No
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Swahili Arabs
- 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
Folk Islam · Islam
Primary language
Swahili (individual language) · Atlantic-Congo family
100% speak Swahili (individual language)
Gospel resources in Swahili (individual language)
- Bible available
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Films
- Magdalena (Swahili, Tanzania)
- The Savior (Swahili, Kenya)
Bibles
- Habari Njema (Interconfessional) · video, audio
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Swahili Arabs
- 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.
- 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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