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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
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Ilocano of Philippines

The Ilocano of Philippines, numbering approximately 10,690,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an Austronesian people of northwestern Luzon whose homeland centers on the Ilocos region and whose history is marked by migration, trade, and settlement across much of the northern Philippines while maintaining a distinct Ilocano identity. They mostly adhere to Roman Catholicism and Iloko is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Philippines
People Cluster: Filipino, Central
Primary Language(s): Iloko (ilo)
Primary Religion(s): Roman Catholicism
Population: 10,690,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG007684
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Pray for the Ilocano of Philippines

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!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Roman Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

60%
%
Roman Catholicism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Iloko
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Ilocano Speakers

Media Resources in Iloko:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Iloko:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Revised Ilokano Popular Version✓✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Iloko bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Ilocano 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 Ilocano:
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 Ilocano of Philippines

The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the LORD! May your hearts live forever!
readPsalm 22:26

Pray that the lost will feel a deep hunger for God, be drawn to Him in their affliction, and find lasting satisfaction and salvation in Him alone.

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.
readIsaiah 55:6

Pray that the lost will seek the Lord while He may be found and call upon Him while He is near, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations.
readDeuteronomy 7:9

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will know God's faithful love and keep His commandments, experiencing His steadfast care.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
readEphesians 6:10

Ask God to strengthen believers with His mighty power so that as they cross cultures to share the gospel, they will stand firm against the schemes of the enemy.

Ilocano Across Countries (ROP3 - 103997) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion ▼
IlocanoPG007684IlocanoPhilippines10,690,000No Longer UnreachedIlokoRoman Catholicism
IlocanoPG043275IlocanoUnited States88,500No Longer UnreachedIlokoRoman Catholicism
IlocanosPG050298IlocanosGuam23,000No Longer UnreachedIlokoRoman Catholicism
IlocanoPG047423IlocanoCanada16,500No Longer UnreachedIlokoProtestantism

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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