The Maninka of Senegal

The Maninka of Senegal, numbering approximately 672,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Senegal. They are an Indigenous people, in the Malinke people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Folk Islam. They primarily speak Maninkakan, Western.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Senegal
People Cluster: Malinke
Primary Language(s): Maninkakan, Western (mlq)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 672,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG014251
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Pray for the Maninka of Senegal

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Maninkakan, Western
Language Family: Mande

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Media Resources in Maninkakan, Western:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Maninkakan, Western:

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Or check out the Maninkakan, Western bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Maninka

The Maninka 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 Maninka

The Maninka 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 Maninka

The Maninka 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 Maninka of Senegal

The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the LORD! May your hearts live forever!
readPsalm 22:26

Pray that the lost will feel a deep hunger for God, be drawn to Him in their affliction, and find lasting satisfaction and salvation in Him alone.

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
readJohn 3:14-15

Pray that the lost will look to Jesus lifted up on the cross and believe in Him, gaining eternal life with God.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
read1 Peter 2:24

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember every day that Jesus' death on the cross brings real healing and restoration to their souls and joyfully share this good news with others.

And thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, but as it is written, "Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand."
readRomans 15:20-21

Pray that God will send believers to cross cultures and proclaim the gospel where Christ has not been named, so that the nations might glorify God for His mercy.

Maninka, Western (ROP3 - 106266) 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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