South Africa (ZAF)

South Africa is a country in Africa with a population of 60,842,925. South Africa's history is profoundly shaped by its incredibly diverse indigenous populations, and the subsequent arrival of Dutch and British settlers, leading to a complex blending of people groups and cultures. The discovery of diamonds and gold significantly transformed its economy, attracting further immigration. This rich history has created a vibrant tapestry of languages, cultural expressions, and spiritual beliefs, with Christianity being the predominant faith for many, but also strong traditions of African Traditional Religions, Islam, and Hinduism, reflecting a truly multicultural society.

People Groups of South Africa:

South Africa Fast Facts:

39 People Groups · 60,843K People

EngagementGroupsPopulation
Unengaged and Unreached2638K
Engaged yet Unreached1716,379K
No Longer Unreached2043,826K

South Africa Realities:

Weighted GSEC
4
Dying Daily
1,532
Dying Daily Without Christ
(93.7%) 1,436
Birth Rate per 1,000
18.9
Death Rate per 1,000
9.4

People Groups of South Africa

Strategic Progress Index
All

39 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguage ▼Religion
ZuluZuluSouth Africa14,420,000No Longer UnreachedZuluProtestantism
XhosaXhosaSouth Africa9,975,000Engaged yet UnreachedXhosaEthnoreligion
TembuTembuSouth Africa935,000No Longer UnreachedXhosaEthnoreligion
PondoPondoSouth Africa1,030,000No Longer UnreachedXhosaEthnoreligion
Vlax RomaniVlax RomaniSouth Africa18,500Engaged yet UnreachedVlax RomaniEthnoreligion
VendaVendaSouth Africa1,255,000No Longer UnreachedVendaProtestantism
TswanaTswanaSouth Africa4,240,000Engaged yet UnreachedTswanaIndependent Christianity
TswaTswaSouth Africa31,000Engaged yet UnreachedTswaEthnoreligion
Tsonga-ShangaanTsonga-ShangaanSouth Africa2,630,000No Longer UnreachedTsongaProtestantism
SwaziSwaziSouth Africa1,495,000No Longer UnreachedSwatiProtestantism
ZanzibariZanzibariSouth Africa1,900No Longer UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Ethnoreligion
ArabsArabsSouth Africa16,000No Longer UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Southern SothoSouthern SothoSouth Africa5,435,000No Longer UnreachedSouthern SothoProtestantism
Southern NdebeleSouthern NdebeleSouth Africa879,000No Longer UnreachedSouth NdebeleProtestantism
Deaf South AfricansDeaf South AfricansSouth Africa596,000Engaged yet UnreachedSouth African Sign LanguageProtestantism
ShonaShonaSouth Africa436,000No Longer UnreachedShonaProtestantism
RongaRongaSouth Africa1,100Engaged yet UnreachedRongaEthnoreligion
PortuguesePortugueseSouth Africa1,090,000Engaged yet UnreachedPortugueseRoman Catholicism
Northern SothoNorthern SothoSouth Africa4,300,000No Longer UnreachedPediProtestantism
Indo-MauritiansIndo-MauritiansSouth Africa62,500Engaged yet UnreachedMorisyenHinduism
Han ChineseHan ChineseSouth Africa374,000No Longer UnreachedMandarin ChineseConfucianism
NamaNamaSouth Africa100,000Engaged yet UnreachedKhoekhoeEthnoreligion
KoranaKoranaSouth Africa18,500Engaged yet UnreachedKhoekhoeEthnoreligion
NghukiNghukiSouth Africa800Engaged yet UnreachedKhoekhoeEthnoreligion
GriquaGriquaSouth Africa125Engaged yet UnreachedKhoekhoeEthnoreligion
Gimsbok NamaGimsbok NamaSouth Africa6,200Engaged yet UnreachedKhoekhoeEthnoreligion
Indian HindusIndian HindusSouth Africa1,375,000No Longer UnreachedHindiHinduism
GermansGermansSouth Africa580,000No Longer UnreachedGermanUnaffiliated
JewsJewsSouth Africa71,500Engaged yet UnreachedEnglishJudaism
Indian MuslimsIndian MuslimsSouth Africa167,000Engaged yet UnreachedEnglishSunni Islam
South African MuslimsSouth African MuslimsSouth Africa389,000Unengaged and UnreachedEnglishSunni Islam
Indian ChristiansIndian ChristiansSouth Africa312,000No Longer UnreachedEnglishProtestantism
BritishBritishSouth Africa2,215,000No Longer UnreachedEnglishUnaffiliated
DutchDutchSouth Africa312,000No Longer UnreachedDutchUnaffiliated
Cape MalaysCape MalaysSouth Africa249,000Unengaged and UnreachedAfrikaansSunni Islam
ColouredsColouredsSouth Africa3,115,000No Longer UnreachedAfrikaansProtestantism
XegwiXegwiSouth Africa300Engaged yet UnreachedAfrikaansEthnoreligion
AfrikanersAfrikanersSouth Africa2,710,000No Longer UnreachedAfrikaansNeo-Pentecostalism
NusanNusanSouth Africa500Engaged yet Unreached!XóõAnimism

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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