The Zartoshi Zoroastrians of Iran

The Zartoshi Zoroastrians of Iran, numbering approximately 8,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethno-religious community of Iran They are an Indigenous people, in the Parsee people cluster of the Persian-Median Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Other - Zoroastrianism. They primarily speak Persian, Iranian.

Zartoshi Zoroastrians in Iran photo
Photo by Google. (2025). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Zartoshi Zoroastrian

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Central Asian Peoples
Country: Iran
People Cluster: Parsee
Primary Language(s): Persian, Iranian (pes)
Primary Religion(s): Other - Zoroastrianism
Population: 8,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024152
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Zartoshi Zoroastrians of Iran

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: Other - Zoroastrianism
Religious Affiliation: Other

%
Other - Zoroastrianism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Persian, Iranian
Language Family: Indo-European

%
Persian, Iranian Speakers

Bible Resources in Persian, Iranian:

Or check out the Persian, Iranian bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Zartoshi Zoroastrians

The Zartoshi Zoroastrians 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 Zartoshi Zoroastrians

The Zartoshi Zoroastrians 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 Zartoshi Zoroastrians

The Zartoshi Zoroastrians 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 Zartoshi Zoroastrians of Iran

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or?rulers?or authoritiesóall things were created through him and for him.
readColossians 1:16

Pray for those who are lost among them, that they will come to know the One who created all things and holds all things together.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
readJohn 8:12

Pray that many will come to know Jesus, the light of the world, and have the light of life instead of walking in darkness.

So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
readRomans 6:11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will lay down all evil desires, dying to sin and living for Him alone.

You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.
read2 Corinthians 1:11

Pray that many people will join in praying for the spread of the gospel here, and that God will answer these prayers by drawing more people to Himself.

Zoroastrian Dari (ROP3 - 114944) 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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