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 Otavalo Highland Quichua of Ecuador

The Otavalo Highland Quichua of Ecuador, numbering approximately 726,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as an ethnolinguistic community of Ecuador They are an Indigenous people, with Quechua / Quichua as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Quechua people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Catholicism. They primarily speak Imbabura Highland Quichua.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Quichua, Imbabura Highland

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Latin American and Caribbean Peoples
Country: Ecuador
People Cluster: Quechua
Primary Language(s): Imbabura Highland Quichua (qvi)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Catholicism
Population: 726,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG017472
View on Joshua Project

Print Profile
Submit Updates

Pray for the Otavalo Highland Quichua of Ecuador

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: Folk Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

94%
%
Folk Catholicism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Imbabura Highland Quichua
Language Family: Quechuan

100%
%
Quichua, Imbabura Highland Speakers

Media Resources in Imbabura Highland Quichua:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Imbabura Highland Quichua:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Imbabura Highland Quichua bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Otavalo Highland Quichua 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 Otavalo Highland Quichua:
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 Otavalo Highland Quichua of Ecuador

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
readJohn 3:17

Pray for those who are living under the burdens of man-made religion to learn about the freedom Jesus offers them and turn to Him in faith.

And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region.
readActs 13:48-49

Pray that the gospel will spread throughout this whole region and that many will believe and embrace the gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
readPsalm 23:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will trust in the Lord's presence, even in the darkest valleys.

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
readIsaiah 43:19

Praise the God who is able to make a way forward, even when it seems impossible. Ask Him to do a new thing among this people group specifically and among the nations, raising up believers to go and share the gospel with individuals and places where it has not flourished before.

Quichua, Imbabura Highland Across Countries (ROP3 - 107703) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountry ▼PopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Otavalo Highland QuichuaPG017472Otavalo Highland QuichuaEcuador726,000Engaged yet UnreachedImbabura Highland QuichuaFolk 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.

Scroll to Top