The Northern Nuna of Burkina Faso

The Northern Nuna of Burkina Faso, numbering approximately 118,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Gurunsi people of southern Burkina Faso who migrated north from Ghana with the Winiama at the end of the 1400s ahead of Mossi cavalry, whose advance was blocked by tsetse-infested bush that killed the horses, known for vividly colored ceremonial masks. They mostly adhere to Animism and Northern Nuni is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Nuna, Northern

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Burkina Faso
People Cluster: Gur
Primary Language(s): Northern Nuni (nuv)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 118,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG012433
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Northern Nuna of Burkina Faso

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: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

62%
%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Northern Nuni
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Nuni, Northern Speakers

Media Resources in Northern Nuni:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Northern Nuni:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Northern Nuni bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Northern Nuna 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.

Next steps for the Northern Nuna:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Northern Nuna of Burkina Faso

These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self- made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
readColossians 2:23

Pray for those without Christ, that they will see the emptiness of human traditions and turn to the truth and grace found in Jesus.

Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!
readPsalm 96:3

Pray for people to hear and believe the good news of Jesus and joyfully share it with their family and friends.

Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
readPsalm 105:3

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will glory in His holy name and that their hearts will rejoice.

To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.
read1 Corinthians 9:22

Ask God to raise up believers from around the world to go and share the hope of Jesus with the lost so that they might trust in Him and have the hope of eternal life.

Nuna, Northern Across Countries (ROP3 - 107507) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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