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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Ahiska Turks of Ukraine

The Ahiska Turks of Ukraine, numbering approximately 8,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are ethnic Turks whose identity is rooted in the Ahiska (Meskheti) region of Georgia prior to their forced deportation by the Soviet government in 1944 and can also be known as Meskhetian Turk, Turkish Meskhetian, Ahiska Turk, Turkish Ahiskan. They are an Diaspora people, in the Turkic people cluster of the Turkic Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Turkish.

Ahiska Turks in Russian Federation photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Cem Ahiska - Wikimedia Cem Ahiska - Wikimedia Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Central Asian Peoples
Country: Ukraine
People Cluster: Turkic
Primary Language(s): Turkish (tur)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 8,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG048856

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Sunni
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Sunni Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Turkish
Language Family: Turkic

%
Turkish Speakers

Media Resources in Turkish:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Turkish:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Turkish bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Ahiska Turks

The Ahiska Turks 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 Ahiska Turks

The Ahiska Turks 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 Ahiska Turks

The Ahiska Turks 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 Ahiska Turks of Ukraine

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.
readProverbs 8:17

As many search for hope, pray they will discover materials that will lead them to Jesus and explain the gospel in a way they will resonate with.

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.

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.
readPsalm 75:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will give thanks to the Lord for His wondrous works and declare His goodness to all people.

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.
read1 Corinthians 15:10–11

Pray that God's people will preach the message of Jesus' death and resurrection and that it will spread among the lost through the selfless witness of believers.

Ahiska (Meskheti) Turk reported in the following countries (ROP3):

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.

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