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The Pathan (Marwadi) of India

The Pathan (Marwadi) of India, numbering approximately 286,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a socioreligious community of Muslim warriors of Afghan origin, distributed across India, speaking Pushto and local languages, the name believed derived from the native word Pukhtana, traditionally employed as soldiers. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Marwari (India) is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Pathan (Marwadi)

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Persian-Median Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Pashtun
Primary Language(s): Marwari (India) (rwr)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 286,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG046349

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Pray for the Pathan (Marwadi) of India

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

—
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Marwari (India)
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Marwari (India) Speakers

Media Resources in Marwari (India):

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Marwari (India):

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Marwari (India) bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Pathan (Marwadi) 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 Pathan (Marwadi):
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 Pathan (Marwadi) of India

That they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.
readActs 17:27

Pray that those who don't yet know Christ will search diligently for God and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
readRomans 1:19-20

Pray that God will use His creation – the “things that have been made” – to spark a fresh and passionate curiosity among them to draw near to the Maker and that, as they seek Him, He will make a way for them to hear the gospel and receive it with joy.

I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me. I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
readPsalm 3:5-6

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and experience isolation or other persecution, God will sustain them and give them confidence and rest in Him.

Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!"
readIsaiah 40:9

Pray for God to send and sustain believers to go and herald the good news to the lost here.

Pathan (Marwari) Across Countries (ROP3 - 116804) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Pathan (Marwadi)PG046349Pathan (Marwadi)India286,000Engaged yet UnreachedMarwari (India)Sunni 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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