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The Thai of Thailand

The Thai of Thailand, numbering approximately 22,850,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Tai people historically known as the Siamese whose homeland is the Chao Phraya basin of central Thailand and whose language and culture became dominant in the Thai nation-state. They mostly adhere to Theravada Buddhism and Thai is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Southeast Asian Peoples
Country: Thailand
People Cluster: Thai
Primary Language(s): Thai (tha)
Primary Religion(s): Theravada Buddhism
Population: 22,850,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG010835
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Pray for the Thai of Thailand

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: Theravada Buddhism
Religious Affiliation: Buddhism

98%
%
Theravada Buddhism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Thai
Language Family: Tai-Kadai

100%
%
Thai Speakers

Media Resources in Thai:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

3 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Thai:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
King James Version✓
Standard Version✓
Standard Version Revision✓
Thai Standard Version✓✓

4 entries

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Thai bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Thai 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.

Next steps for the Thai:
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

Pray specifically for the Thai of Thailand

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
readPsalm 1:6

As many look for hope in worldly pleasures, pray they will hear and accept salvation through Christ, turn from destruction, and experience joy in the way of righteousness.

Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, "the kingdom of God has come near to you."
readLuke 10:8-9

Pray that the lost will receive messengers of the gospel with joy, turn from their sins, and be healed.

For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.
readHebrews 10:34

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have compassion for those in prison, sympathize with those who are mistreated, and continue to do good and share the gospel with others.

There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.
readMark 7:15

Pray for Christians to take any opportunity to share the hope of Jesus with lost people here, praying they will be wise like Jesus as they share the truth about what can defile people and what can make them clean.

Thai Across Countries (ROP3 - 101940) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

11 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▼LanguageReligion
ThaiPG043650ThaiUnited States195,000Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG043487ThaiCanada9,200Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG042413ThaiGermany20,500Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG010835ThaiThailand22,850,000Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG010719ThaiSingapore64,500Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG008070ThaiAustralia30,000Engaged yet UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG050599ThaiHong Kong13,000Unengaged and UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG048524ThaiFrance10,500Unengaged and UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG022375ThaiCambodia47,000Unengaged and UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG022044ThaiMyanmar45,500Unengaged and UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism
ThaiPG018276ThaiMalaysia34,500Unengaged and UnreachedThaiTheravada Buddhism

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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