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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Seluwasan of Indonesia

The Seluwasan of Indonesia, numbering approximately 5,300 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are described as an Indigenous Austronesian ethnolinguistic group native to the Tanimbar Islands in Maluku Province, eastern Indonesia and can also be known as Selvasa, Seluwasan, Selwasa. They are an Indigenous people, with Selvasa (Saluwasan) as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Maluku-Southern people cluster of the Malay Peoples. Their primary religion is Protestantism. They primarily speak Seluwasan.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Indonesia
People Cluster: Maluku-Southern
Primary Language(s): Seluwasan (sws)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 5,300
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG022707
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Pray for the Seluwasan of Indonesia

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

55%
%

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Seluwasan
Language Family: Austronesian

76%
%

Media Resources in Seluwasan:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Seluwasan:

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Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Seluwasan bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 2), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Significantly Reached People Group, (LPI: 6), > 20% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical (GSEC: 6), this people group is greater than or equal to 10% evangelical

Next steps for the Seluwasan:
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

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Seluwasan 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 Seluwasan:
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

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Seluwasan 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 Seluwasan:
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 Seluwasan of Indonesia

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
readRomans 8:1

Pray that God will reassure those who may be struggling with the cost of following Jesus that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

...I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
readPsalm 13:5

Ask God to bring many to trust in His unfailing love and cause their hearts to rejoice in His salvation.

For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.
read2 Thessalonians 3:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will persevere according to God's command, walk in faith, and be strong so that they can resist the evil one’s deception.

Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
read3 John 1:2

Ask God to grant protection and good health — both physical and spiritual — to those He sends cross-culturally to share the gospel.

Seluwasan Across Countries (ROP3 - 108816) 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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