The Goans of United Arab Emirates

The Goans of United Arab Emirates, numbering approximately 74,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community resulting from the assimilation of Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Indo-Portuguese, and Austro-Asiatic ethnic groups who trace their ancestry to the Indian state of Goa during the time when Goa was an overseas province of Portugal. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Goan Konkani is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Konkani, Goanese

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: United Arab Emirates
People Cluster: Marathi-Konkani
Primary Language(s): Goan Konkani (gom)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 74,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012241

Pray for the Goans 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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

99%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Goan Konkani
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Konkani, Goan Speakers

Media Resources in Goan Konkani:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Goan Konkani:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Goan Konkani bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Goans 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 Goans:
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 Goans of United Arab Emirates

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or?rulers?or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
readColossians 1:16

Pray for those who are lost among them, that they will come to know the One who created all things and holds all things together.

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
readPsalm 119:105

Pray that they will receive the Word of God as a lamp to their feet and commit their ways to Him.

This God - his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
readPsalm 18:30

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have access to His Word and the ability to understand it, so that they can grow in their faith and find refuge in Him.

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
readMatthew 6:9b-10

Pray that God will raise up Christians who are driven by a desire to see God's name worshiped, His kingdom come, and His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Ask Him to send them to the lost in this people group and sustain them.

Goan Across Countries (ROP3 - 104844) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

7 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.

Scroll to Top