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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Central Sama of Philippines

The Central Sama of Philippines, numbering approximately 142,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of the Philippines. They are an Indigenous people, in the Filipino, Muslim people cluster of the Malay Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Folk. They primarily speak Sama, Central.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Philippines
People Cluster: Filipino, Muslim
Primary Language(s): Sama, Central (sml)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Folk
Population: 142,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG007657

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Pray for the Central Sama of Philippines

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Folk
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Sama, Central
Language Family: Austronesian

%

Media Resources in Sama, Central:

Films:

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Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Sama, Central:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Sama, Central bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Central Sama

The Central Sama 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 Central Sama

The Central Sama 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 Central Sama

The Central Sama 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 Central Sama of Philippines

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."
readLuke 1:46-47

Pray that those who are lost will recognize their need for a Savior and joyfully embrace the mercy that God offers.

And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
readIsaiah 30:21

As the lost in this people group seek to know the truth of who God is, pray that the Spirit of God will draw them to Himself and guide them in the way they should go.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
readJames 1:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will ask God for wisdom when they lack it, trusting that He will generously give it to them.

Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!"
readIsaiah 40:9

Pray for God to send and sustain believers to go and herald the good news to the lost here.

Sama, Central (ROP3 - 101933) 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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