The Baram Kayan of Malaysia

The Baram Kayan of Malaysia, numbering approximately 10,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a subgroup of the Kayan people, an indigenous Dayak group native to Borneo, primarily in Sarawak, Malaysia, and parts of East Kalimantan, Indonesia. They mostly adhere to Roman Catholicism and Baram Kayan is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Malaysia
People Cluster: Borneo-Kalimantan
Primary Language(s): Baram Kayan (kys)
Primary Religion(s): Roman Catholicism
Population: 10,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG009203
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Pray for the Baram Kayan of Malaysia

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: Roman Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

41%
%
Roman Catholicism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Baram Kayan
Language Family: Austronesian

70%
%
Kayan, Baram Speakers

Media Resources in Baram Kayan:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Baram Kayan:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Baram Kayan bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Baram Kayan 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.

Next steps for the Baram Kayan:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Baram Kayan of Malaysia

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
readLuke 1:46-47

Pray that those who are lost will recognize their need for a Savior and joyfully embrace the mercy that God offers.

As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.
readMatthew 13:23

Pray that their hearts will have good soil that receives the Word, understands it, and bears fruit for God's kingdom.

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.

For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.
read2 Corinthians 1:8-9

Pray that as people hear and believe the gospel, they will be faithful as they walk through trials and will have an opportunity to be a witness to others in this people group of the goodness of God.

Baram Kayan Across Countries (ROP3 - 101040) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

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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