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Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
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Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Mari of Papua New Guinea

The Mari of Papua New Guinea, numbering approximately 1,700 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea, Madang province: upper Ramu River. They are an Indigenous people, in the New Guinea people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Animism. They primarily speak Mari (PNG, Madang Province).

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Mari

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Papua New Guinea
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Mari (PNG, Madang Province) (hob)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 1,700
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG010185
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Pray for the Mari of Papua New Guinea

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Mari (PNG, Madang Province)
Language Family: Austronesian

%
Mari (PNG, Madang Province) Speakers

Media Resources in Mari (PNG, Madang Province):

Films:

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Bible Resources in Mari (PNG, Madang Province):

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Or check out the Mari (PNG, Madang Province) bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Mari

The Mari 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 Mari

The Mari 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 Mari

The Mari 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 Mari of Papua New Guinea

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
readMatthew 28:16-20

Pray that those who don't yet know Him will encounter the risen Savior and be transformed by the power of His resurrection, becoming disciples who make disciples.

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
readPsalm 16:11

Pray that God will make a way for His path of life to be revealed to many so that they may come into His presence and experience abundant joy and eternal pleasures at His right hand.

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.
readLuke 18:17

Pray that as people trust in Christ, they will have simple, childlike confidence that He will provide for their needs.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!
readPsalm 105:1

Pray that many among them will call on the name of Jesus, develop a heart for the nations, and go to places where the gospel has not yet been received.

Mari (ROP3 - 106329) 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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