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Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
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The Pana of Laos

The Pana of Laos, numbering approximately 600 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a small Akha-related people who migrated into Laos from China roughly eight generations ago under a leader named Lateu Kouang, still divided into three clans and distinguished from Akha neighbors by rituals that omit the wider Akhazang system. They mostly adhere to Animism and Phana' is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Pana

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Himalayan Peoples
Country: Laos
People Cluster: Hani-Akha
Primary Language(s): Phana' (phq)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 600
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG033455
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Pray for the Pana of Laos

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

95%
%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Phana'
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

68%
%
Phana’ Speakers

Media Resources in Phana':

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Phana':

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Phana' bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Pana:
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

Pray specifically for the Pana of Laos

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
readPsalm 19:1

Pray that those who are lost will look to the heavens and see the glory of God displayed, leading them to seek Him and know Him as their Creator and Savior.

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 if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
readJohn 14:3

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have hope in trials because they know that Jesus will one day take them to be with Him forever.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
readEphesians 6:12

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures the discernment they need to recognize the spiritual battle they are fighting. Pray God will protect their faith as they abide in Him.

Pana Across Countries (ROP3 - 114840) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
PanaPG022101PanaChina5,500Unengaged and UnreachedPhana'Animism
PanaPG033455PanaLaos600Unengaged and UnreachedPhana'Animism

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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