The Ishelhayn Imazighen of Morocco

The Ishelhayn Imazighen of Morocco, numbering approximately 5,055,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Amazigh people indigenous to the Souss Valley, Anti-Atlas, and western High Atlas of southern Morocco, whose Tachelhit heritage includes longstanding traditions of oral poetry and song. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Tachelhit is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Amazigh, Ishelhayn

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Morocco
People Cluster: Amazigh-Shilha
Primary Language(s): Tachelhit (shi)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 5,055,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011858
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Pray for the Ishelhayn Imazighen of Morocco

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

99%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tachelhit
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Tachelhit Speakers

Media Resources in Tachelhit:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

3 films

Bible Resources in Tachelhit:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
UBS Version✓✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Tachelhit bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Ishelhayn Imazighen 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 Ishelhayn Imazighen:
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 Ishelhayn Imazighen of Morocco

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
readRomans 6:23

Pray that those who do know about God's free gift will hear and believe that the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord and that they will joyfully accept this gift.

The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
readPsalm 146:9

Pray for God to watch over people, wherever they are, and cause them to meet believers who will share the gospel with them clearly and lovingly.

Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!
readPsalm 34:9

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be grounded in the Word, always trusting in the Lord's provision for their needs.

And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
readLuke 18:29-30

Pray that God will raise up people to go and share the gospel and help them trust His promise that anyone who has left those they treasure for the sake of the kingdom of God will receive many times more in this life and in the life to come.

Amazigh, Tachelhit Across Countries (ROP3 - 108945) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▲LanguageReligion
Ishilhayn ImazighenIshilhayn ImazighenFrance147,000Engaged yet UnreachedTachelhitSunni Islam
Ishelhayn ImazighenIshelhayn ImazighenMorocco5,055,000Engaged yet UnreachedTachelhitSunni 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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