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
Be sure to use the data import function in your favorite app for working with data.
If you'd like to help improve these translations, Contact Us.

PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Japanese of Japan

The Japanese of Japan, numbering approximately 119,740,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an East Asian people whose culture reflects the interaction of indigenous traditions, East Asian influences, island geography, and long historical continuity. Their Japanese language serves as one of the strongest markers of national identity. They are an Indigenous people in the Japanese people cluster of the East Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary language is Japanese and their primary religion is Shinbutsu-Shugo.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3 Flash: Japanese

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: East Asian Peoples
Country: Japan
People Cluster: Japanese
Primary Language(s): Japanese (jpn)
Primary Religion(s): Shinbutsu-Shugo
Population: 119,740,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG007559
View on Joshua Project

Print Profile
Submit Updates

Pray for the Japanese of Japan

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!
Download Prayer Guide

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Shinbutsu-Shugo
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

46%
%
Shinbutsu-Shugo Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Japanese
Language Family: Japonic

100%
%
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 at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 1), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Expanding Unreached People Group, (LPI: 2), 0.5% to 2% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Japanese:
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

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Japanese 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 Japanese:
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

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Japanese 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 Japanese:
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 Japanese of Japan

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
read1 John 1:9

Pray that God, who is faithful and just, will open the eyes of those who are lost and draw them to confess their sins and trust in Him to grant forgiveness.

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
readMatthew 6:10

Pray that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven, and that people will seek His kingdom and righteousness above all else, trusting in His provision.

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
readPsalm 121:1-2

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and experience hardship, God will remind them that their help comes from the One who made heaven and earth and that He is powerful to meet their needs.

"For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you."
readActs 17:23

Pray that believers God sends to cross cultures will be sensitive to the spiritual needs of the people they serve, and will proclaim the truth of Christ to them in creative ways that they will understand.

Japanese Across Countries (ROP3 - 104189) 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.

Scroll to Top