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The Northern Sotho of South Africa

The Northern Sotho of South Africa, numbering approximately 4,305,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a Sotho-Tswana ethnolinguistic people indigenous to northeastern South Africa whose identity is rooted in Northern Sotho (Sepedi and related dialects), traditional chiefdoms, and a cultural heritage centered in Limpopo Province. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Pedi is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Northern Sotho

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: South Africa
People Cluster: Bantu, Sotho-Tswana
Primary Language(s): Pedi (nso)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 4,305,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG033365
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Pray for the Northern Sotho of South Africa

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

82%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Pedi
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Sotho, Northern Speakers

Media Resources in Pedi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Pedi:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Pedi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Northern Sotho 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.

Next steps for the Northern Sotho:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Northern Sotho of South Africa

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
readGenesis 3:15

Pray that those without Christ will hear the words of Genesis 1-3 in their own language, and desire to know their Creator and His provision of salvation.

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
read1 Timothy 2:1-2

Pray that leaders and those in authority will not thwart the spread of the gospel but put their faith in Christ, have hearts that are soft toward their people, and be freed from the temptations that power can bring.

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.
readTitus 3:4-5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and might struggle with temptation to trust in their own works, they will remember that it is only because of God's mercy that they have been saved.

Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!"
readIsaiah 40:9

Pray for God to send and sustain believers to go and herald the good news to the lost here.

Pedi Across Countries (ROP3 - 107413) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▼LanguageReligion
Northern SothoPG033365Northern SothoSouth Africa4,305,000No Longer UnreachedPediProtestantism
PediPG015670PediZimbabwe183,000Engaged yet UnreachedPediProtestantism

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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