The Tatars of Turkiye

The Tatars of Turkiye, numbering approximately 31,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Turkic ethnic group indigenous to the Tatarstan region of Russia and Ukraine. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Tatar is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Turkic Peoples
Country: Turkiye
People Cluster: Ural-Siberian
Primary Language(s): Tatar (tat)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 31,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024590
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Tatars 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: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

99%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tatar
Language Family: Turkic

100%
%
Tatar Speakers

Media Resources in Tatar:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Tatar:

2 entries

Or check out the Tatar bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Tatars 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 Tatars:
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 Tatars of Turkiye

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
readIsaiah 53:6

Pray that those who have wandered far from God will be drawn back to Him, recognizing their need for a Savior and finding forgiveness and new life in Christ.

Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.
readPsalm 96:2

Pray that gospel resources will reach this generation so that they will receive the good news and sing to the LORD, bless His name, and tell of His salvation each day.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
read1 Peter 2:9

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will embrace their identity as God's chosen people, royal priests, and holy nation, living out their faith with purity and devotion.

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
read2 Corinthians 5:21

Pray that Christians will cross cultures and share the hope of Christ, and that many will trust the One who took their sins and offers them His righteousness.

Tatar Across Countries (ROP3 - 109874) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

11 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDName ▼CountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
TatarsTatarsBulgaria6,100Engaged yet UnreachedCrimean TatarEthnoreligion
TatarsTatarsAzerbaijan15,500Unengaged and UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsKazakhstan259,000Engaged yet UnreachedRussianSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsUzbekistan867,000Engaged yet UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsKyrgyzstan7,900Engaged yet UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsRussian Federation7,085,000Engaged yet UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsTajikistan7,200Engaged yet UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsTurkiye31,500Engaged yet UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsTurkmenistan73,000Unengaged and UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsUnited States7,000Unengaged and UnreachedTatarSunni Islam
TatarsTatarsCanada5,300Unengaged and UnreachedTatarSunni 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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