The Kyrgyz of Uzbekistan

The Kyrgyz of Uzbekistan, numbering approximately 315,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Turkic ethnic group indigenous to the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan and can also be known as Kirghiz, Kirgiz, Kyrgyz. They are an Diaspora people, in the Kyrgyz people cluster of the Turkic Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Kyrgyz.

Kyrgyz in Uzbekistan photo
Photo by Google. (2025). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Kyrgyz

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Central Asian Peoples
Country: Uzbekistan
People Cluster: Kyrgyz
Primary Language(s): Kyrgyz (kir)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 315,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG024682
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kyrgyz of Uzbekistan

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: Islam - Sunni
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Sunni Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kyrgyz
Language Family: Turkic

%
Kyrgyz Speakers

Bible Resources in Kyrgyz:

Or check out the Kyrgyz bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Kyrgyz

The Kyrgyz are Unengaged and Unreached, 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.

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

Next steps for the Kyrgyz

The Kyrgyz 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.

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

Next steps for the Kyrgyz

The Kyrgyz are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Kyrgyz of Uzbekistan

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
readPsalm 46:10

Pray that those who do not yet worship Jesus will be still and know that He is God, that He will be exalted among them and in all the earth.

Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!
readPsalm 67:5

While there are many who do not yet praise God, pray that He will work in their lives, advance the gospel among them, and bring many to saving faith in Christ.

In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?
readPsalm 56:10-11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will trust in the Lord's promises, knowing that He will uphold them with His righteous right hand.

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
readRomans 12:4-5

Ask God to send believers to people in other cultures and to help them use their gifts in harmony with others so that the body of Christ may be built up.

Kyrgyz (ROP3 - 105550) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

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