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Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Northern Yemeni Arabs of Yemen

The Northern Yemeni Arabs of Yemen, numbering approximately 13,710,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are the largest Arab ethnolinguistic population in Yemen, native to the northern highlands, northeastern deserts, and the area around Ṣanʿāʾ, the capital. They are commonly referred to as Sanaani Arabs Sanaani Arabs They are an Indigenous people, in the Arab, Yemeni people cluster of the Arab Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Shia. They primarily speak Arabic, Sanaani.

Northern Yemeni Arabs in United States photo
Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Northern Yemeni Arab

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
Country: Yemen
People Cluster: Arab, Yemeni
Primary Language(s): Arabic, Sanaani (ayn)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Shia
Population: 13,710,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012284
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Pray for the Northern Yemeni Arabs of Yemen

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: Islam - Shia
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Shia Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Arabic, Sanaani
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

%
Arabic, Sanaani Speakers

Media Resources in Arabic, Sanaani:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Arabic, Sanaani:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Arabic, Sanaani bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Next steps for the Northern Yemeni Arabs

The Northern Yemeni Arabs 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 Northern Yemeni Arabs

The Northern Yemeni Arabs 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 Northern Yemeni Arabs

The Northern Yemeni Arabs 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 Northern Yemeni Arabs of Yemen

Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
readLuke 15:7

Pray that God will convict the lost of their sin, give them an urgency to run to Him for forgiveness, and feel His welcoming arms around them when they turn to Him.

Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!
readPsalm 150:2

Pray for the gospel to advance among those who are living in darkness. Pray that they will come to know Jesus and praise Him for all that He has done.

And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven."
readMatthew 16:17

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will abide in Him and have assurance that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations.
readPsalm 67:1-2

Pray that as God blesses believers from among this people group or from nearby cultures, He will raise them up to share His saving power among the nations.

Arab, Northern Yemeni (ROP3 - 108627) reported in the following countries:

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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