The Punjabis of Afghanistan

The Punjabis of Afghanistan, numbering approximately 8,900 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic group characterized by their rich cultural heritage, agricultural prowess, and vibrant traditions, originating from the Punjab region of South Asia, currently divided between Pakistan and India. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Panjabi is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Punjabi

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: Afghanistan
People Cluster: Punjabi
Primary Language(s): Panjabi (pan)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 8,900
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024006
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Punjabis of Afghanistan

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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

50%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Panjabi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Punjabi, Eastern Speakers

Media Resources in Panjabi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

3 films

Bible Resources in Panjabi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2000 Bible League International✓
Indian Revised Version✓✓

2 entries

Or check out the Panjabi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), 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): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Punjabis:
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

Pray specifically for the Punjabis of Afghanistan

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
readRomans 3:23

Pray that those who live in fear, guilt and discontentment because of sin will see their need for change, hear, and receive the good news of freedom from sin through Christ.

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.

"And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you"...And the King will answer them, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me."
readMatthew 25:38-40

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and serve others in faithfulness to Him, they will know that by serving others, they are serving Jesus, who is present with them.

Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre!
readPsalm 149:3

Pray that God will send His people across cultures to share the gospel so that those who don't yet know the truth about Him might praise His name and share the hope of Christ with others.

Punjabi, Eastern Across Countries (ROP3 - 108182) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

18 people groups

PhotoPeople Group ID ▲NameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
PunjabisPunjabisDenmark10,000Unengaged and UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
Eastern PunjabisEastern PunjabisUnited Kingdom815,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
Punjabi SikhsPunjabi SikhsBangladesh80Unengaged and UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
PunjabisPunjabisNepal16,500Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiFolk Hinduism
PunjabisPunjabisSri Lanka13,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
PunjabisPunjabisFiji9,600Unengaged and UnreachedPanjabiFolk Hinduism
Eastern PunjabisEastern PunjabisMyanmar78,000Unengaged and UnreachedPanjabiFolk Hinduism
PunjabisPunjabisSingapore15,000No Longer UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
SikhsSikhsThailand11,500Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
PunjabisPunjabisKuwait21,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSunni Islam
PunjabisPunjabisOman134,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSunni Islam
PunjabisPunjabisUnited Arab Emirates333,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSunni Islam
PunjabisPunjabisTanzania71,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiHinduism
PunjabisPunjabisMalaysia172,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
PunjabisPunjabisAfghanistan8,900Unengaged and UnreachedPanjabiSunni Islam
PunjabisPunjabisUnited States606,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
SikhsSikhsFrance16,000Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism
SikhsSikhsKenya42,500Engaged yet UnreachedPanjabiSikhism

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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