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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Wayana of Suriname

The Wayana of Suriname, numbering approximately 650 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous community of Suriname. They are an Indigenous people in the South American Indigenous people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary language is Wayana and their primary religion is Protestantism.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Latin American and Caribbean Peoples
Country: Suriname
People Cluster: South American Indigenous
Primary Language(s): Wayana (way)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 650
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG016441
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Pray for the Wayana of Suriname

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

55%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Wayana
Language Family: Cariban

100%
%
Wayana Speakers

Media Resources in Wayana:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Wayana:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Wayana bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 2), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Significantly Reached People Group, (LPI: 6), > 20% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical (GSEC: 6), this people group is greater than or equal to 10% evangelical

Next steps for the Wayana:
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

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Wayana 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 Wayana:
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

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Wayana 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.

Next steps for the Wayana:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Wayana of Suriname

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
readLuke 1:46-47

Pray that those who are lost will recognize their need for a Savior and joyfully embrace the mercy that God offers.

And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.
readActs 17:26-27

Pray that the lost will seek God and find Him, for He is not far from each one of us. Pray that they will have opportunities to access the gospel, learn God's purpose for their lives, and believe in Him.

Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
readPsalm 105:3

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will glory in His holy name and that their hearts will rejoice.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
readJohn 3:16

Pray that God will send and sustain believers to cross cultures and share the gospel with the lost. Ask that He will give them His heart for the lost and that many will believe in Him and not perish but have eternal life.

Wayana Across Countries (ROP3 - 110731) 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.

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