The Uaripi of Papua New Guinea

The Uaripi of Papua New Guinea, numbering approximately 11,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Tairuma is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Pacific Islander Peoples
Country: Papua New Guinea
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Tairuma (uar)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 11,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG010547
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Uaripi of Papua New Guinea

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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

48%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tairuma
Language Family: Eleman

100%
%
Tairuma Speakers

Media Resources in Tairuma:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Tairuma:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Tairuma bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Uaripi 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 Uaripi:
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 Uaripi of Papua New Guinea

"...And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold." As he said these things, he called out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
readLuke 8:8

Pray that the seeds of truth will take root in the hearts of those who are far from Jesus and that He will lead them from darkness to light.

"You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet."
readMatthew 5:13

Pray that the lost will have the opportunity to hear a Christian witness of how the gospel can bring hope and that they will put their faith in Christ.

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
readRomans 10:15

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be eager to proclaim the good news of peace, knowing that the Lord has called them to this task.

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.
readLuke 10:1

Ask God to raise up, send out, and sustain Christians who can go together to share the good news of Jesus with those who need it.

Uaripi Across Countries (ROP3 - 110347) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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