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The Nyamwezi of Tanzania

The Nyamwezi of Tanzania, numbering approximately 2,560,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Tanzania. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Nyamwezi is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Tanzania
People Cluster: Bantu, Central-Tanzania
Primary Language(s): Nyamwezi (nym)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 2,560,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG015014
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Pray for the Nyamwezi of Tanzania

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

64%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Nyamwezi
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Nyamwezi Speakers

Media Resources in Nyamwezi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Nyamwezi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
United Bible Societies, 1951✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Nyamwezi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Nyamwezi 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 Nyamwezi:
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 Nyamwezi of Tanzania

And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you."
read1 Samuel 13:13a

Pray that those who are walking in disobedience will recognize their sin and to turn to God.

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
readPsalm 16:11

Pray that God will make a way for His path of life to be revealed to many so that they may come into His presence and experience abundant joy and eternal pleasures at His right hand.

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
readDeuteronomy 6:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, and might, as they strive to live lives that honor and glorify Him.

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
readEphesians 6:11

Pray that those God sends to cross cultures will put on the full armor of God so that they will be able to stand against the schemes of the enemy.

Nyamwezi Across Countries (ROP3 - 107537) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
NyamweziPG015014NyamweziTanzania2,560,000Engaged yet UnreachedNyamweziSunni 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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