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The Kanum of Indonesia

The Kanum of Indonesia, numbering approximately 750 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Marind subgroup of Merauke Regency near the PNG border, with their own Yam-family language closer to Yei than to Marind, organized into named clans including Mbanggu, Ndimar, and Sanggra across the swamp-and-savanna territory of Wasur National Park. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Ngkâlmpw Kanum is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Pacific Islander Peoples
Country: Indonesia
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Ngkâlmpw Kanum (kcd)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 750
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG022938
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Pray for the Kanum of Indonesia

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

50%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Ngkâlmpw Kanum
Language Family: Yam

76%
%
Kanum, Ngkâlmpw Speakers

Media Resources in Ngkâlmpw Kanum:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Ngkâlmpw Kanum:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Ngkâlmpw Kanum bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Kanum 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 Kanum:
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 Kanum of Indonesia

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.

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst."
readJohn 6:35

Pray that the lost will come to Jesus and believe in Him, never to hunger or thirst again.

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
readPsalm 121:1-2

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and experience hardship, God will remind them that their help comes from the One who made heaven and earth and that He is powerful to meet their needs.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
readMatthew 28:19-20

Ask God to bring people among this group to faith in Jesus who will be obedient to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey all that Christ has commanded.

Kanum Across Countries (ROP3 - 104601) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group ID ▼NameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
KanumPG022938KanumIndonesia750No Longer UnreachedNgkâlmpw KanumProtestantism
KanumPG010028KanumPapua New Guinea550No Longer UnreachedNgkâlmpw KanumAnimism

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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