The Chaldeans of Iraq

The Chaldeans of Iraq, numbering approximately 68,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an Aramaic-speaking ethnoreligious people indigenous to northern Mesopotamia, especially present-day Iraq, whose identity is rooted in East Syriac Christian traditions, a shared historical heritage, and membership primarily in the Chaldean Catholic Church. They are an Indigenous people in the Assyrian people cluster of the Arab Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary language is Chaldean Neo-Aramaic and their primary religion is Chaldean Catholicism.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Iraq
People Cluster: Assyrian
Primary Language(s): Chaldean Neo-Aramaic (cld)
Primary Religion(s): Chaldean Catholicism
Population: 68,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011707
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Pray for the Chaldeans of Iraq

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: Chaldean Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

96%
%

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Chaldean Neo-Aramaic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

60%
%

Media Resources in Chaldean Neo-Aramaic:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Chaldean Neo-Aramaic:

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Or check out the Chaldean Neo-Aramaic 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 Chaldeans:
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

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Chaldeans 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 Chaldeans:
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

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Chaldeans 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 Chaldeans:
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 Chaldeans of Iraq

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.
readTitus 3:3

Pray for those who seek worldly pleasures instead of God to flee from sin and choose God’s goodness and lovingkindness by placing their faith in Jesus.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth.
readPsalm 67:4

Pray that God will use ways from in-person witnesses to digital gospel resources to bring the joy of His salvation to everyone so that they can be glad in Him and sing for joy.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
readRevelation 21:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and walk through challenges, they will find comfort in God's promise of a beautiful future when there is no pain or suffering for those who belong to Christ.

Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity.”
readPsalm 96:10

Pray for God to put in the hearts of believers to go to the lost and testify about the Lord who reigns.

Chaldean Across Countries (ROP3 - 101983) reported in the following countries:

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

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