Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portugese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Espanol | Tagalong / Filipino
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Minangkabau of Indonesia

The Minangkabau of Indonesia, numbering approximately 8,135,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a matrilineal Austronesian people of the Minangkabau Highlands of West Sumatra whose identity was shaped by the Pagaruyung kingdom, widespread migration traditions, and a distinctive synthesis of Malay heritage and Islamic custom. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Minangkabau is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Indonesia
People Cluster: Minangkabau-Rejang of Sumatra
Primary Language(s): Minangkabau (min)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 8,135,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG022519
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Pray for the Minangkabau of Indonesia

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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

99%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Minangkabau
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Minangkabau Speakers

Media Resources in Minangkabau:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Minangkabau:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Today's Minang Version, 2010✓✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Minangkabau bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Minangkabau 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.

Next steps for the Minangkabau:
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

Pray specifically for the Minangkabau of Indonesia

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.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
readMatthew 13: 45-46

Pray that they will recognize the treasure of knowing Christ Jesus and be willing to give up everything else to gain Him.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
readPsalm 27:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, God will strengthen them when they face persecution of any kind for Jesus' name’s sake.

For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
readActs 13:47

Pray that as people come to faith, they will follow the Lord's leading to go to their neighbors and share the treasure they found in Christ.

Minangkabau Across Countries (ROP3 - 106640) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MinangkabauPG022519MinangkabauIndonesia8,135,000Engaged yet UnreachedMinangkabauSunni Islam

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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