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Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
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The Syrian Aramaic of Syria

The Syrian Aramaic of Syria, numbering approximately 28,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Central Neo-Aramaic-speaking ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Tur Abdin region in southeastern Turkey and northern Syria. They mostly adhere to Syriac Orthodox Christianity and Turoyo is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Syria
People Cluster: Assyrian
Primary Language(s): Turoyo (tru)
Primary Religion(s): Syriac Orthodox Christianity
Population: 28,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012199
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Pray for the Syrian Aramaic of Syria

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: Syriac Orthodox Christianity
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

99%
%
Syriac Orthodox Christian… Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Turoyo
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

90%
%
Turoyo Speakers

Media Resources in Turoyo:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Turoyo:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Turoyo bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Syrian Aramaic 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 Syrian Aramaic:
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 Syrian Aramaic of Syria

For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.
readPsalm 97:9

Pray that those who don't yet know Him will recognize the Lord as the Most High and turn from spiritual darkness to worship Him above all else.

For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God!
readDeuteronomy 32:3

Pray that believers will proclaim the Lord’s name and declare the greatness of our God so that others might believe in Him.

And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
readActs 2:46-47

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be devoted to the teaching of God's Word, to fellowship with one another, and to prayer.

The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way.
readPsalm 37:23

Pray that believers from near and far will serve here and trust in the Lord's timing as He establishes their steps.

Turoyo Across Countries (ROP3 - 110313) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
AssyriansPG000440AssyriansNetherlands33,000Unengaged and UnreachedTuroyoSyriac Orthodox Christianity
Syrian AramaicPG012199Syrian AramaicSyria28,500Engaged yet UnreachedTuroyoSyriac Orthodox Christianity
Syrian AramaicPG024589Syrian AramaicTurkiye17,500Unengaged and UnreachedTuroyoSyriac Orthodox Christianity

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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