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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Tanga of Papua New Guinea

The Tanga of Papua New Guinea, numbering approximately 12,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an Austronesian-speaking island people of the Tanga and Feni Islands of Papua New Guinea whose identity is rooted in kinship networks, ceremonial traditions, seafaring heritage, and the cultural life of New Ireland Province. They mostly adhere to Roman Catholicism and Niwer Mil is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Pacific Islander Peoples
Country: Papua New Guinea
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Niwer Mil (hrc)
Primary Religion(s): Roman Catholicism
Population: 12,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG010503
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Pray for the Tanga of Papua New Guinea

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: Roman Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

80%
%
Roman Catholicism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Niwer Mil
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

100%
%
Niwer Mil Speakers

Media Resources in Niwer Mil:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Niwer Mil:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Niwer Mil bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Tanga 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 Tanga:
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 Tanga of Papua New Guinea

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.
readEphesians 5:8

Pray that those who are lost will turn from the darkness they are walking in and embrace the light, becoming children of light who bear fruit in every good work.

No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
readLuke 13:3

Pray that the lost will repent and believe the gospel, for without it, they will perish.

For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.
readPsalm 149:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be encouraged and feel immeasurably loved as they meditate on the fact that God takes pleasure in them.

Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father sends me, even so I am sending you."
readJohn 20:21

Ask God to raise up and send out believers cross-culturally who will go out in His authority and be sustained by His peace as they share the gospel with the lost.

Tanga Across Countries (ROP3 - 109812) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
TangaPG010503TangaPapua New Guinea12,000No Longer UnreachedNiwer MilRoman Catholicism

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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