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The Buginese of Singapore

The Buginese of Singapore, numbering approximately 12,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a diaspora community descended from Bugis migrants from South Sulawesi, including maritime traders who settled in Singapore after its establishment as a British trading port in 1819. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Buginese is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Buginese

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Singapore
People Cluster: Bugi-Makassar of Sulawesi
Primary Language(s): Buginese (bug)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 12,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG010691
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Pray for the Buginese of Singapore

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

95%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Buginese
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Bugis Speakers

Media Resources in Buginese:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Buginese:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Buginese bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Buginese are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Buginese:
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

Pray specifically for the Buginese of Singapore

The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the LORD! May your hearts live forever!
readPsalm 22:26

Pray that the lost will feel a deep hunger for God, be drawn to Him in their affliction, and find lasting satisfaction and salvation in Him alone.

Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, "the kingdom of God has come near to you."
readLuke 10:8-9

Pray that the lost will receive messengers of the gospel with joy, turn from their sins, and be healed.

And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
readActs 2:46-47

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be devoted to the teaching of God's Word, to fellowship with one another, and to prayer.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!
readPsalm 105:1

Pray that many among them will call on the name of Jesus, develop a heart for the nations, and go to places where the gospel has not yet been received.

Bugis Across Countries (ROP3 - 101703) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
BugisPG022796BugisIndonesia7,810,000Engaged yet UnreachedBugineseSunni Islam
BugisPG048662BugisMalaysia500,000Engaged yet UnreachedBugineseSunni Islam
BuginesePG010691BugineseSingapore12,000Engaged yet UnreachedBugineseSunni Islam

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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