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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Southwest Tannese of Vanuatu

The Southwest Tannese of Vanuatu, numbering approximately 8,900 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Vanuatu. They are an Indigenous people, in the Vanuatu people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Roman Catholicism. They primarily speak Tanna, Southwest.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Vanuatu
People Cluster: Vanuatu
Primary Language(s): Tanna, Southwest (nwi)
Primary Religion(s): Roman Catholicism
Population: 8,900
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG018432
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Southwest Tannese of Vanuatu

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Roman Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tanna, Southwest
Language Family: Austronesian

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Media Resources in Tanna, Southwest:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Tanna, Southwest:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Tanna, Southwest bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Next steps for the Southwest Tannese

The Southwest Tannese 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 Southwest Tannese

The Southwest Tannese 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 Southwest Tannese

The Southwest Tannese 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 Southwest Tannese of Vanuatu

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
read1 John 1:9

Pray that God, who is faithful and just, will open the eyes of those who are lost and draw them to confess their sins and trust in Him to grant forgiveness.

Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, "the kingdom of God has come near to you."
readLuke 10:8-9

Pray that the lost will receive messengers of the gospel with joy, turn from their sins, and be healed.

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.
readRomans 10:12

Pray that as people from different backgrounds place their faith in Christ, they will be unified by their faith Him.

Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father sends me, even so I am sending you."
readJohn 20:21

Ask God to raise up and send out believers cross-culturally who will go out in His authority and be sustained by His peace as they share the gospel with the lost.

Tana, Southwest (ROP3 - 109801) 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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