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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Gulf Arabs of United Arab Emirates

The Gulf Arabs of United Arab Emirates, numbering approximately 1,480,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are the native Arab citizens of the UAE, characterized by Arab tribal ancestry, Arabic language, Islamic faith, Bedouin-rooted traditions and hospitality, and a modern lifestyle shaped by oil wealth and globalization. They are an Indigenous people, in the Arab, Arabian people cluster of the Arab Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Arabic, Gulf.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
Country: United Arab Emirates
People Cluster: Arab, Arabian
Primary Language(s): Arabic, Gulf (afb)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 1,480,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012238
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Gulf Arabs of United Arab Emirates

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 - Sunni
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 Gulf Arabs

The Gulf 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 Gulf Arabs

The Gulf 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 Gulf Arabs

The Gulf 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 Gulf Arabs of United Arab Emirates

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.
readMark 10:15

Pray for those who might be trapped in pride, that God will humble them and give them a childlike faith and complete dependence on Him through faith in Christ.

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.
readIsaiah 55:6

Pray that the lost will seek the Lord while He may be found and call upon Him while He is near, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.
readActs 16:15

Pray that God will bring entire families and households to faith in Him and raise up servant-leaders from among them.

Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!
readPsalm 105:2

Pray for God to saturate this place with the gospel and raise up believing men and women from among them to share the good news of Christ with those who have yet to encounter it.

Arab, Gulf Sunni (ROP3 - 100427) 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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