The Deaf Dutch of Netherlands

The Deaf Dutch of Netherlands, numbering approximately 176,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a community of individuals who are culturally Deaf and actively participate in Deaf culture, often using sign language as their primary means of communication They are an Indigenous people, in the Deaf people cluster of the Deaf Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Unaffiliated. They primarily speak Sign Language of the Netherlands.

Photo by Generative AI: "Photo portrait with a blurred background of a Deaf Dutch person signing the word 'love' with their hands, visible in the portrait" prompt, Gemini 2.0 Flash, July 2025

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Deaf Peoples
Country: Netherlands
People Cluster: Deaf
Primary Language(s): Sign Language of the Netherlands (dse)
Primary Religion(s): Unaffiliated
Population: 176,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG000404
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Deaf Dutch of Netherlands

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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Unaffiliated
Religious Affiliation: Unaffiliated

%
Unaffiliated Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Sign Language of the Netherlands
Language Family: Sign Language

%
Sign Language of the Netherlands Speakers

Media Resources in Sign Language of the Netherlands:

Films:

No entries found for: Sign Language of the Netherlands(dse). Help build some!

Bible Resources in Sign Language of the Netherlands:

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Deaf Dutch

The Deaf Dutch 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 Deaf Dutch

The Deaf Dutch 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 Deaf Dutch

The Deaf Dutch 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 Deaf Dutch of Netherlands

You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it.
readPsalm 65:9

Give thanks for God's provision in nature, and pray that those who don't know Him will recognize His hand, desire to know their Creator, and hear the truth that Jesus is the solution to the world's greatest need.

Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia."
readRomans 16:5

Pray for houses to be meeting places for Christians and that God will advance the gospel and grow His Church through natural familial and community relationships.

And many nations shall join themselves to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people. And I will dwell in your midst, and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
readZechariah 2:11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have a heart that longs to see all people from all parts of the world worshiping Jesus as He deserves.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
read2 Corinthians 5:20

Pray that those God sends to cross cultures will be His ambassadors, faithfully imploring people on Christ's behalf to be reconciled to God through Jesus.

Deaf Dutch (ROP3 - 116552) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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