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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Dendi of Nigeria

The Dendi of Nigeria, numbering approximately 4,100 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnic group with roots in the Sahel Songhai Empire of the 15th and 16th centuries, indigenous to Benin and Nigeria. They are an Indigenous people, in the Songhai people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Folk. They primarily speak Dendi (Benin).

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Nigeria
People Cluster: Songhai
Primary Language(s): Dendi (Benin) (ddn)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Folk
Population: 4,100
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG013734
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Pray for the Dendi of Nigeria

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Folk
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Dendi (Benin)
Language Family: Songhay

%

Media Resources in Dendi (Benin):

Films:

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Bible Resources in Dendi (Benin):

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Dendi (Benin) bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Dendi

The Dendi 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 Dendi

The Dendi 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 Dendi

The Dendi 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 Dendi of Nigeria

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.
readEphesians 2:4-5

Pray that those who have not yet received new life will be made alive together with Christ, saved by grace and raised up with Him to newness of life.

For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
readPsalm 57:10

Pray that God will work, even in the hearts of hard-to-reach people, and that they will rejoice in His steadfast love and faithfulness.

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
readRomans 10:13

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and sometimes have doubts, God will help them remember and trust the power of Jesus to save them from their sins.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
readEphesians 6:13

Pray that God will send believers to the lost of this people group and that, as they share the gospel, they will take up the whole armor of God so that they can stand firm when trials come.

Dendi (ROP3 - 102513) 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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