The Djiboutian Arabs of Djibouti

The Djiboutian Arabs of Djibouti, numbering approximately 80,500 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Djibouti. Djiboutian Arabs are largely descendants of Yemeni migrants, especially from the Tihama and Taiz regions, who arrived during the French colonial period to work in construction, trade, and agriculture. They mostly adhere to Shia Islam and Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Arab, Djiboutian

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Djibouti
People Cluster: Arab, Yemeni
Primary Language(s): Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic (acq)
Primary Religion(s): Shia Islam
Population: 80,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011483
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Djiboutian Arabs of Djibouti

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Shia Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

97%
%
Shia Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Arabic, Ta’izzi-Adeni Speakers

Media Resources in Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Djiboutian Arabs:
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

Pray specifically for the Djiboutian Arabs of Djibouti

Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
readProverbs 30:5

Pray that those who don't yet know God will trust the flawless Word of God and seek refuge in Him, finding hope and salvation instead of remaining in spiritual darkness.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
readJohn 8:12

Pray that many will come to know Jesus, the light of the world, and have the light of life instead of walking in darkness.

For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
read2 Corinthians 12:10

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will embrace their weaknesses, hardships, and difficulties, having hope because Christ's power is made perfect in their weakness.

And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
readIsaiah 51:11

Pray that, as God sends people to cross cultures and share the good news of Jesus, many will turn to the Lord in repentance and faith and start a personal relationship with Him that will bring them everlasting joy.

Arab, Yemeni Across Countries (ROP3 - 109729) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

13 people groups

PhotoPeople Group ID ▲NameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Djiboutian ArabsDjiboutian ArabsDjibouti80,500Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicShia Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsEgypt1,080,000Engaged yet UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsOman25,500Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsSaudi Arabia259,000Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsUnited Arab Emirates214,000Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Southern Yemeni ArabsSouthern Yemeni ArabsYemen12,170,000Engaged yet UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsMadagascar63,500Engaged yet UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsEritrea71,000Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsEthiopia40,000Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsKuwait8,500Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsSudan35,000Unengaged and UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam
Yemeni ArabsYemeni ArabsUnited States55,000Engaged yet UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicShia Islam
Yemini ArabsYemini ArabsCanada7,100Engaged yet UnreachedTa'izzi-Adeni ArabicSunni Islam

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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