The Akha of Vietnam

The Akha of Vietnam, numbering approximately 1,700 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Akha originated in China's Yunnan province, where they are closely related to the Hani and Yi peoples, but gradually migrated into Burma and Laos in the 18th-19th centuries and Thailand in the early 20th centuryAvkavzav They are an Diaspora people, in the Hani-Akha people cluster of the Himalayan Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Ethnoreligion - Animism. They primarily speak Akha.

Akha in Laos photo
Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Akha

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Vietnam
People Cluster: Hani-Akha
Primary Language(s): Akha (ahk)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion - Animism
Population: 1,700
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011106
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Akha of Vietnam

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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Ethnoreligion - Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

%
Ethnoreligion - Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Akha
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

%
Akha Speakers

Media Resources in Akha:

Films:

Bible Resources in Akha:

Or check out the Akha bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Akha

The Akha are Unengaged and Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Next steps for the Akha

The Akha 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.

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

Next steps for the Akha

The Akha are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Akha of Vietnam

You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it.
readPsalm 65:9

Give thanks for God's provision in nature, and pray that those who don't know Him will recognize His hand, desire to know their Creator, and hear the truth that Jesus is the solution to the world's greatest need.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth.
readPsalm 67:4

Pray that God will use ways from in-person witnesses to digital gospel resources to bring the joy of His salvation to everyone so that they can be glad in Him and sing for joy.

And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!"
readMark 7:9

Pray that as men, women, boys, and girls place their faith in Christ, they will let go of any traditions that do not honor Him.

So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy.
readRomans 9:16

Ask God to raise up people who will trust in His sovereignty as they share the gospel, knowing that it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy.

Akha (ROP3 - 100185) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

Scroll to Top