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The Meithei of India

The Meithei of India, numbering approximately 1,895,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a tribal ethnic group indigenous to the state of Manipur in northeast India and the Sylhet District of northeastern Bangladesh. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Manipuri is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Meithei

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Himalayan Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Manipuri
Primary Language(s): Manipuri (mni)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 1,895,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041346
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Pray for the Meithei of India

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: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

85%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Manipuri
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

100%
%
Meitei Speakers

Media Resources in Manipuri:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Manipuri:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2019 Bibles International✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Manipuri bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Meithei 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 Meithei:
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 Meithei of India

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
read1 John 4:10

Pray for those without the hope of Christ to understand the depth of God's love and the sacrifice He made for them.

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns."
readIsaiah 52:7

Pray that those who don't know the good news of peace and salvation through Jesus Christ will have an opportunity to receive it. Pray that it will bring hope and healing to their souls.

"...I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
readMatthew 16:18b

Pray that God will build and grow His Church among this people.

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
readRomans 10:15

Pray that God will call many believers who will obediently go and share the gospel with those who desperately need it.

Meitei, Manipuri Hindu Across Countries (ROP3 - 106268) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MeitheiPG041346MeitheiIndia1,895,000Engaged yet UnreachedManipuriHinduism
ManipuriPG001188ManipuriBangladesh44,000No Longer UnreachedManipuriHinduism
ManipuriPG009478ManipuriMyanmar28,500Engaged yet UnreachedManipuriHinduism
MeitheiPG050387MeitheiUnited States150Unengaged and UnreachedManipuriFolk Hinduism

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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