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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Shona of Zimbabwe

The Shona of Zimbabwe, numbering approximately 8,735,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Africa, primarily living in Zimbabwe where they form the majority of the population. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Shona is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Zimbabwe
People Cluster: Bantu, Shona
Primary Language(s): Shona (sna)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 8,735,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG015673
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Pray for the Shona 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

80%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Shona
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Shona Speakers

Media Resources in Shona:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

3 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Shona:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Union Shona✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Shona bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Shona 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 Shona:
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 Shona of Zimbabwe

You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it.
readPsalm 65:9

Give thanks for God's provision in nature, and pray that those who don't know Him will recognize His hand, desire to know their Creator, and hear the truth that Jesus is the solution to the world's greatest need.

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
read1 John 1:5

As mobile phones, radio, and satellite television, and other technologies become more available worldwide, pray for people who are developing digital gospel resources so that others can easily access the gospel.

Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
readHebrews 10:25

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will not neglect meeting together but encourage one another as they see the Day approaching.

But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.
readJeremiah 29:7

Pray that God will lead the lost among them to followers of Jesus who will share the gospel with them so that they may believe and take the message of hope to their families and friends.

Shona Across Countries (ROP3 - 108959) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

5 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguage ▲Religion
ShonaPG015234ShonaBotswana61,000Engaged yet UnreachedShonaAfrican Traditional Religion
ShonaPG015532ShonaSouth Africa436,000No Longer UnreachedShonaProtestantism
ShonaPG015630ShonaZambia35,000No Longer UnreachedShonaAfrican Traditional Religion
ShonaPG015673ShonaZimbabwe8,735,000No Longer UnreachedShonaProtestantism
ShonaPG047448ShonaCanada3,000No Longer UnreachedShonaAfrican Traditional Religion

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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