Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portugese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Espanol | Tagalong / Filipino
Be sure to use the data import function in your favorite app for working with data.
If you'd like to help improve these translations, Contact Us.

PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Karachay of Russian Federation

The Karachay of Russian Federation, numbering approximately 218,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Turkic ethnic group indigenous to the North Caucasus, primarily residing in the Karachay–Cherkess Republic of southwestern Russia. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Karachay-Balkar is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Eurasian Peoples
Country: Russian Federation
People Cluster: Caucasus
Primary Language(s): Karachay-Balkar (krc)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 218,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024447
View on Joshua Project

Print Profile
Submit Updates

Pray for the Karachay of Russian Federation

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!
Download Prayer Guide

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

100%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Karachay-Balkar
Language Family: Turkic

97%
%
Karachay-Balkar Speakers

Media Resources in Karachay-Balkar:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Karachay-Balkar:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
IBT Version✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Karachay-Balkar bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Karachay 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 Karachay:
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

Pray specifically for the Karachay of Russian Federation

"I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."
readJohn 16:33

Pray that those who don't have peace with God will find peace in Christ, even amid the troubles of this world.

More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
readRomans 5:11

Pray for the gospel to advance and for more people to be brought into God's family through the reconciliation Jesus offers them.

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.

The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way.
readPsalm 37:23

Pray that believers from near and far will serve here and trust in the Lord's timing as He establishes their steps.

Karachay Across Countries (ROP3 - 104628) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguage ▼Religion
KarachayPG024353KarachayKyrgyzstan800Unengaged and UnreachedKarachay-BalkarSunni Islam
KarachayPG024447KarachayRussian Federation218,000Engaged yet UnreachedKarachay-BalkarSunni Islam
KarachayPG047199KarachayUnited States475Unengaged and UnreachedKarachay-BalkarSunni Islam

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.

Scroll to Top