The Syrian Arabs of Turkiye

The Syrian Arabs of Turkiye, numbering approximately 3,905,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Levantine Arab diaspora from Syria, formed chiefly by forced migration into neighboring Türkiye after the Syrian conflict began in 2011 and largely governed under temporary protection. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Levantine Arabic is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Arab, Syrian

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Turkiye
People Cluster: Arab, Levant
Primary Language(s): Levantine Arabic (apc)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 3,905,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG049340
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Syrian Arabs of Turkiye

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: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

84%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Levantine Arabic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Arabic, Levantine Speakers

Media Resources in Levantine Arabic:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Levantine Arabic:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Sabeel Media✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Levantine Arabic bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Syrian Arabs 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 Syrian Arabs:
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 Syrian Arabs of Turkiye

Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life"
readJohn 4:13-14

Pray that those who don't know Jesus will drink of the living water that only Christ can provide and never thirst again.

I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
readDaniel 7:13-14

Pray that the gospel will advance so that all peoples will come to know the Son of Man, who has been given dominion and glory and a kingdom, and that they will bow before Him and serve Him forever.

This God - his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
readPsalm 18:30

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have access to His Word and the ability to understand it, so that they can grow in their faith and find refuge in Him.

O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.
readPsalm 8:1

Pray that God will raise up people who love Him and are able and willing to go to and share the hope of the gospel with those who don't know it. Pray that everyone will see His name as majestic in all the earth!

Arab, Syrian Across Countries (ROP3 - 109662) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

19 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Syrian Sunni ArabsSyrian Sunni ArabsSyria15,670,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsTurkiye3,905,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsJordan1,320,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsSaudi Arabia818,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsGermany584,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsLebanon489,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsUnited Arab Emirates303,000Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsIraq293,000Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsQatar266,000Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsSweden211,000Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsUnited States196,000No Longer UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsKuwait161,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsSudan131,000Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsNetherlands94,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsGreece75,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsCanada68,500Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsFrance18,500Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsGuadeloupe900Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Syrian ArabsSyrian ArabsMartinique550Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni 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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