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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Western Chams of Cambodia

The Western Chams of Cambodia, numbering approximately 300,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Austronesian ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Kampong Cham province in Cambodia and the An Giang province in southern Vietnam . They are an Indigenous people, in the Cham people cluster of the Southeast Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Cham, Western.

Western Chams in United States photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Copyrighted ©️ 2025 Cambodia Research Network Used with permission

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Peoples
Country: Cambodia
People Cluster: Cham
Primary Language(s): Cham, Western (cja)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 300,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG008199

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Pray for the Western Chams of Cambodia

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Sunni
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Sunni Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Cham, Western
Language Family: Austronesian

%
Cham, Western Speakers

Media Resources in Cham, Western:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Cham, Western:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

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Next steps for the Western Chams

The Western Chams 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 Western Chams

The Western Chams 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 Western Chams

The Western Chams 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 Western Chams of Cambodia

Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
readLuke 12:7

Pray that those who don't yet know how to trust in Jesus will not be consumed by worry and anxiety, but will trust in the Father's care and provision for their daily needs and for their eternal salvation

...I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
readPsalm 13:5

Ask God to bring many to trust in His unfailing love and cause their hearts to rejoice in His salvation.

And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
readLuke 9:17

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will meditate on the stories of Jesus' miracles, be in awe of Him, and trust Him for everything they need.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
readRomans 6:23

Pray that God will bring people to faith who are excited about the eternal life they have in Christ and will want to cross cultures to share this hope with others.

Cham, Western reported in the following countries (ROP3):

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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