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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Maxakali of Brazil

The Maxakali of Brazil, numbering approximately 1,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are described as an Indigenous people of Brazil, residing primarily in northwestern Minas Gerais near the border with Bahia, especially in the Vale do Mucuri regio Tikmũ’ũn, Monacóbm They are an Indigenous people, with Maxakali as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the South American Indigenous people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Catholicism. They primarily speak Maxakalí.

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

Fast Facts*:

Affinity Group: Latin American and Caribbean Peoples
Country: Brazil
People Cluster: South American Indigenous
Primary Language(s): Maxakalí (mbl)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Catholicism
Population: 1,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG017014
[jp_people_link]

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Pray for the Maxakali of Brazil

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

%
Folk Catholicism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Maxakalí
Language Family: Nuclear-Macro-Je

%
Maxakalí Speakers

Media Resources in Maxakalí:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Maxakalí:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Maxakalí bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Maxakali 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 Maxakali:
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 Maxakali of Brazil

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.

Moses said, "Please show me your glory." And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy."
readExodus 33:18-19

Pray that many will come to know the glory of God, which is revealed in Jesus Christ, and that they will rejoice in the mercy He offers them.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.
readEphesians 2:4-5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember God's mercy and grace and experience joy as they walk in new life with Christ.

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.

Maxakali Across Countries (ROP3 - 106435) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MaxakaliPG017014MaxakaliBrazil1,500No Longer UnreachedMaxakalíFolk Catholicism

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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