The Jahanka of Senegal

The Jahanka of Senegal, numbering approximately 56,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Manding-speaking ethnic group indigenous to the Senegambia region. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Jahanka is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Senegal
People Cluster: Malinke
Primary Language(s): Jahanka (jad)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 56,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG014231
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Jahanka of Senegal

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: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

100%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Jahanka
Language Family: Mande

100%
%
Jahanka Speakers

Media Resources in Jahanka:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Jahanka:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Jahanka bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Jahanka 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 Jahanka:
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 Jahanka of Senegal

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
readJohn 3:17

Pray for those who are living under the burdens of man-made religion to learn about the freedom Jesus offers them and turn to Him in faith.

For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God!
readDeuteronomy 32:3

Pray that believers will proclaim the Lord’s name and declare the greatness of our God so that others might believe in Him.

And God is able to make all grace about to you, so that having sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.
read2 Corinthians 9:8

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will see that God provides for their needs and be content in His provision so that they may excel in every good work.

Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, who stand by night in the house of the LORD!
readPsalm 134:1

Pray that God will raise up believers among them who are in awe of Him and that, in service to Him, they will share the gospel with others so that they too may bless the Lord!

Jahanka Across Countries (ROP3 - 104152) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

5 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▲Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
JahankaJahankaMali2,400Engaged yet UnreachedJahankaSunni Islam
JahankaJahankaGambia5,600Unengaged and UnreachedJahankaFolk Islam
JahankeJahankeGuinea-Bissau12,000Unengaged and UnreachedJahankaFolk Islam
JahankeJahankeGuinea52,000Engaged yet UnreachedJahankaSunni Islam
JahankaJahankaSenegal56,500Engaged yet UnreachedJahankaFolk Islam

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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