Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portugese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Espanol | Tagalong / Filipino
Be sure to use the data import function in your favorite app for working with data.
If you'd like to help improve these translations, Contact Us.

PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Tigrai/Tigrinya of Ethiopia

The Tigrai/Tigrinya of Ethiopia, numbering approximately 8,010,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a culturally rich and historically significant Semitic-speaking group in northern Ethiopia and Eritrea, known for their Tigrinya language, Orthodox Christian traditions, and influential role in the region's history and culture They are an Indigenous people, in the Ethio-Semitic people cluster of the Horn of Africa Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Christianity - Orthodox. They primarily speak Tigrigna.

Tigrai/Tigrinya in Ethiopia photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Rod Waddington - Flickr Rod Waddington - Flickr Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
Country: Ethiopia
People Cluster: Ethio-Semitic
Primary Language(s): Tigrigna (tir)
Primary Religion(s): Christianity - Orthodox
Population: 8,010,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011649
View on Joshua Project

Prayer Card
Submit Updates

Pray for the Tigrai/Tigrinya of Ethiopia

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!
Download Prayer Guide

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Christianity - Orthodox
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

%
Christianity - Orthodox Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tigrigna
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

%
Tigrigna Speakers

Media Resources in Tigrigna:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Tigrigna:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Tigrigna bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Next steps for the Tigrai/Tigrinya

The Tigrai/Tigrinya 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 Tigrai/Tigrinya

The Tigrai/Tigrinya 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 Tigrai/Tigrinya

The Tigrai/Tigrinya 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 Tigrai/Tigrinya of Ethiopia

But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
readIsaiah 59:2

Pray that those who are separated from God will turn to Him in humility and repentance, seeking His forgiveness and the restoration of a right relationship with their Heavenly Father.

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst."
readJohn 6:35

Pray that the lost will come to Jesus and believe in Him, never to hunger or thirst again.

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
readMatthew 28:18-20

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have confidence because Jesus has all authority and is with them as they make disciples and teach others about Him.

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
readJohn 1:12

Pray that believers will have the opportunity to clearly share the good news with the lost here, so that all people can be invited to trust in Jesus and become children of God.

Tigrayan (ROP3 - 110050) 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.

Scroll to Top