The Uzbeks of Turkiye

The Uzbeks of Turkiye, numbering approximately 624,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Turkic ethnolinguistic people of Central Asia whose identity emerged through a long process of interaction and integration among Turkic, Iranian, and Mongol populations in the region. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Northern Uzbek is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Turkic Peoples
Country: Turkiye
People Cluster: Uzbek
Primary Language(s): Northern Uzbek (uzn)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 624,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024602
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Uzbeks 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

100%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Northern Uzbek
Language Family: Turkic

100%
%
Uzbek, Northern Speakers

Media Resources in Northern Uzbek:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Northern Uzbek:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Institute for Bible Translation, Sweden✓✓
Muqaddas Kitob, 2019✓✓✓

2 entries

Or check out the Northern Uzbek bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Uzbeks 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 Uzbeks:
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 Uzbeks of Turkiye

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
readEphesians 2:8-9

Pray that the lost among them will receive the gift of salvation by grace through faith, not by works, and be created for good works.

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.
readIsaiah 55:6

Pray that the lost will seek the Lord while He may be found and call upon Him while He is near, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.
readPsalm 75:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will give thanks to the Lord for His wondrous works and declare His goodness to all people.

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
readActs 1:8

Pray that God will raise up believers who are willing to cross cultures and boldly share the good news of Jesus with the lost in this people group and from every nation.

Uzbek, Southern (Afghan Uzbek) Across Countries (ROP3 - 110472) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 people groups

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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