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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Ainu of Japan

The Ainu of Japan, numbering approximately 13,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are native to Japan, Kuril Islands (Tsishima), Hokkaido They are an Indigenous people, in the Ural-Siberian people cluster of the Turkic Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Ethnoreligion - Animism. They primarily speak Japanese.

Ainu in Japan photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Japanexperterna.se - Wikimedia Japanexperterna.se - Wikimedia Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Japan
People Cluster: Ural-Siberian
Primary Language(s): Japanese (jpn)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion - Animism
Population: 13,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG007550
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Ainu of Japan

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Ethnoreligion - Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

%
Ethnoreligion - Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Japanese
Language Family: Japonic

%
Japanese Speakers

Media Resources in Japanese:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Japanese:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Japanese bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Ainu

The Ainu 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 Ainu

The Ainu 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 Ainu

The Ainu 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 Ainu of Japan

Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
readRomans 11:22

Pray that God will transform those who persist in unbelief and, in His everlasting kindness, graft them into His family.†

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.

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
readPsalm 37:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will delight themselves in the Lord, trusting Him to give them the desires of their hearts.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
readJohn 1:5

Pray that when discouraging days come, those who cross cultures for the sake of the gospel will be comforted as they remember that the light of Christ is stronger than the darkness that surrounds them.

Ainu (ROP3 - 100158) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

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