The Black Tai of Vietnam

The Black Tai of Vietnam, numbering approximately 817,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Tai-Kadai-speaking ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the border area of southwest China, northwest Vietnam and northeastern Laos. They mostly adhere to Animism and Tai Dam is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Southeast Asian Peoples
Country: Vietnam
People Cluster: Tai
Primary Language(s): Tai Dam (blt)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 817,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011109
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Black Tai of Vietnam

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: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

98%
%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tai Dam
Language Family: Tai-Kadai

100%
%
Tai Dam Speakers

Media Resources in Tai Dam:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Tai Dam:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2013 EPI✓✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Tai Dam bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Black Tai 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 Black Tai:
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 Black Tai of Vietnam

But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
read1 Timothy 6:9

Pray for those, rich and poor, who have put their trust in worldly things, and ask that they will be honest with themselves, acknowledge their need for God and turn to Him.

...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 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 28:18-20

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have confidence because Jesus has all authority and is with them as they make disciples and teach others about Him.

But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.
read2 Corinthians 3:16

Give thanks to God for believers around the world who are willing to cross cultures to share the gospel with those who are perishing. Pray that He will work through their witness to draw many to turn to Him.

Tai Dam Across Countries (ROP3 - 109709) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

6 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▲Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Black TaiBlack TaiUnited States4,400Unengaged and UnreachedTai DamAnimism
Black TaiBlack TaiFrance5,000Unengaged and UnreachedTai DamRoman Catholicism
Black TaiBlack TaiThailand25,000No Longer UnreachedTai DamAnimism
Black ThaiBlack ThaiChina48,500Unengaged and UnreachedTai DamAnimism
Black ThaiBlack ThaiLaos65,000Engaged yet UnreachedTai DamAnimism
Black TaiBlack TaiVietnam817,000Engaged yet UnreachedTai DamAnimism

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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