The Marathi of Zimbabwe

The Marathi of Zimbabwe, numbering approximately 6,700 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the state of Maharashtra in the western peninsular region of India. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Marathi is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: Zimbabwe
People Cluster: Marathi-Konkani
Primary Language(s): Marathi (mar)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 6,700
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG015664
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Marathi of Zimbabwe

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: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

83%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Marathi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Marathi Speakers

Media Resources in Marathi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Marathi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1993 Bible League International✓✓
Marathi New India Bible Version✓

2 entries

Or check out the Marathi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Marathi 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 Marathi:
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 Marathi of Zimbabwe

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.
readIsaiah 42:8

Pray that lost people will turn from worthless idols to worship the one true God, recognizing that He alone is worthy of all glory and praise.

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.
readActs 17:24-25

Pray that the good news will reach everyone in this people group and that many will come to know and serve the one true God who made the world and everything in it and lives today.

And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!"
readMark 7:9

Pray that as men, women, boys, and girls place their faith in Christ, they will let go of any traditions that do not honor Him.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
readPsalm 139:14

Praise God for His creativity and power, and pray that He will raise up men and women from among them who are in awe of all He has done and want to go share the hope of Christ with others.

Marathi Across Countries (ROP3 - 106317) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

5 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDName ▼CountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MarathiMarathiIsrael16,500Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiJudaism
MarathiMarathiZimbabwe6,700Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiHinduism
MarathiMarathiIndia136,000Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiEthnoreligion
MarathiMarathiUnited States83,500Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiHinduism
MarathiMarathiCanada9,200Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiHinduism

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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