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
View on Joshua Project

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.

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

Bible Resources in Turoyo:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Turoyo bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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

Pray that those who haven't heard yet will hear and believe that the wages of their sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.
readMatthew 4:16

Pray that those who dwell in darkness and live in the land of the shadow of death may be drawn out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
readColossians 3:2

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will set their minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, as they look to Christ for guidance and strength.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!
readPsalm 105:1

Pray that many among them will call on the name of Jesus, develop a heart for the nations, and go to places where the gospel has not yet been received.

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

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

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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