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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Ndebele of Zimbabwe

The Ndebele of Zimbabwe, numbering approximately 2,170,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are described as a Nguni ethnic group indigenous to Southern Africa They are an Indigenous people, with Ndebele as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Bantu, Nguni people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and North Ndebele is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Zimbabwe
People Cluster: Bantu, Nguni
Primary Language(s): North Ndebele (nde)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 2,170,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG015667
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Pray for the Ndebele of Zimbabwe

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: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

75%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: North Ndebele
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Ndebele (Zimbabwe) Speakers

Media Resources in North Ndebele:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in North Ndebele:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1978 Bible Society of Zimbabwe✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the North Ndebele bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Ndebele 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 Ndebele:
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 Ndebele of Zimbabwe

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.
readIsaiah 42:8

Pray that lost people will turn from worthless idols to worship the one true God, recognizing that He alone is worthy of all glory and praise.

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.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
readEphesians 6:10-11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will grow strong in His power, putting on the full armor of God, which will enable them to stand against the devil’s lies.

Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
read2 Thessalonians 3:1-3

Pray that the Word of God will spread throughout this people group and be honored. Ask God to establish His people and guard them from the evil one, testifying to this whole people group of His great faithfulness.

Ndebele Across Countries (ROP3 - 107154) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▲Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
NdebelePG015614NdebeleZambia17,000Engaged yet UnreachedNorth NdebeleEthnoreligion
NdebelePG015667NdebeleZimbabwe2,170,000No Longer UnreachedNorth NdebeleProtestantism

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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