The Levantine Arabs of Turkiye

The Levantine Arabs of Turkiye, numbering approximately 1,460,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Arab community of Syrian and Lebanese descent, often grouped together due to shared historical, linguistic, and cultural ties. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Levantine Arabic is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Arab, Levantine

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Turkiye
People Cluster: Arab, Levant
Primary Language(s): Levantine Arabic (apc)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 1,460,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024574

Pray for the Levantine Arabs of Turkiye

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: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

95%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Levantine Arabic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Arabic, Levantine Speakers

Media Resources in Levantine Arabic:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Levantine Arabic:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Sabeel Media✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Levantine Arabic bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Levantine Arabs 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 Levantine Arabs:
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 Levantine Arabs of Turkiye

But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.
readPsalm 130:4

Pray that God will bring those who have hard hearts to repentance and trust in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.

Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
readPsalm 47:6

Pray that believers will have a heart to invite others to trust in Christ alone so that they might sing praises to His name.

The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot... indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
readPsalm 16:5-6

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and face hardship, they will remember that God is their portion and cup and that He has a beautiful inheritance for them.

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 25:40

Ask God to raise up and send believers who will serve "the least of these" with compassion and energy because they know that in serving those in need, they are serving Christ.

Arab, Levantine Across Countries (ROP3 - 109667) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

16 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▼LanguageReligion
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsAustralia196,000No Longer UnreachedGulf ArabicRoman Catholicism
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsTurkiye1,460,000Engaged yet UnreachedLevantine ArabicFolk Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsCote d’Ivoire67,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsEgypt218,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsUnited Kingdom512,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsPortugal23,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Middle Eastern ArabsMiddle Eastern ArabsGermany104,000Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsEcuador3,200Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsCuracao325Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsHaiti5,700Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsDominica50Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsBritish Virgin Islands60Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsGuinea-Bissau11,000Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicFolk Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsGuinea1,300Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicFolk Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsTunisia251,000Unengaged and UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Levantine ArabsLevantine ArabsSweden406,000Unengaged and UnreachedLevantine ArabicSunni 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.

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