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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Saudi Shia Arabs of Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Shia Arabs of Saudi Arabia, numbering approximately 2,830,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a people of Saudi Arabia. They are an Indigenous people, in the Arab, Arabian people cluster of the Arab Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Shia. They primarily speak Arabic, Gulf.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
Country: Saudi Arabia
People Cluster: Arab, Arabian
Primary Language(s): Arabic, Gulf (afb)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Shia
Population: 2,830,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011922

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Pray for the Saudi Shia Arabs of Saudi Arabia

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Shia
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Arabic, Gulf
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

%

Media Resources in Arabic, Gulf:

Films:

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Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Arabic, Gulf:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Arabic, Gulf bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Saudi Shia Arabs

The Saudi Shia Arabs are Unengaged and Unreached, 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.

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

Next steps for the Saudi Shia Arabs

The Saudi Shia Arabs 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.

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

Next steps for the Saudi Shia Arabs

The Saudi Shia Arabs 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.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Saudi Shia Arabs of Saudi Arabia

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
readRomans 8:1

Pray that God will reassure those who may be struggling with the cost of following Jesus that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
readLuke 7:50

Pray for the good news of Jesus Christ to reach many so that they can place their faith in Him and have lasting hope.

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
readRomans 6:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, God will lead those who might hesitate in getting baptized to trust Him as they obey His command, even when obedience is hard.

For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
readActs 13:47

Pray that as people come to faith, they will follow the Lord's leading to go to their neighbors and share the treasure they found in Christ.

Arab, Gulf Shia (ROP3 - 116092) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

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