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The Antankarana of Madagascar

The Antankarana of Madagascar, numbering approximately 579,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a northern Malagasy people of Madagascar whose identity is rooted in Antankarana traditions, kinship networks, cattle keeping, agriculture, and a cultural heritage shaped by royal and ancestral institutions. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Antankarana Malagasy is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Antankarana

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Madagascar
People Cluster: Malagasy
Primary Language(s): Antankarana Malagasy (xmv)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 579,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG015304
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Pray for the Antankarana of Madagascar

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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

90%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Antankarana Malagasy
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Malagasy, Antankarana Speakers

Media Resources in Antankarana Malagasy:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Antankarana Malagasy:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Antankarana Malagasy bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Antankarana 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 Antankarana:
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 Antankarana of Madagascar

For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.
readLuke 19:10

Pray that those who are lost will respond to the One who came to seek and save the lost, and experience the joy of being found.

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
readIsaiah 43:19

Pray that the lost will see the new thing God can do in their lives and trust in His plan and purpose for them.

But you said, "I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude."
readGenesis 32:12

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will experience God's presence and protection even in difficult circumstances, knowing that He will make them fruitful.

And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
readRomans 10:15

Pray that God will call many believers who will obediently go and share the gospel with those who desperately need it.

Antankarana Across Countries (ROP3 - 100378) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountry ▲PopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
AntankaranaPG015304AntankaranaMadagascar579,000Engaged yet UnreachedAntankarana MalagasyFolk 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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