The Egyptian Arabs of Italy

The Egyptian Arabs of Italy, numbering approximately 132,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are the majority population of Egypt, a people whose culture reflects the interaction of ancient Egyptian heritage, Arab language and identity, Islamic traditions, Mediterranean influences, and centuries of life along the Nile Valley. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Egyptian Arabic is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Italy
People Cluster: Arab, Egyptian
Primary Language(s): Egyptian Arabic (arz)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 132,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG033520
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Egyptian Arabs of Italy

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

80%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Egyptian Arabic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

60%
%
Arabic, Egyptian Speakers

Media Resources in Egyptian Arabic:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Egyptian Arabic:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Egyptian Arabic bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Egyptian 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 Egyptian 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 Egyptian Arabs of Italy

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
read1 John 1:9

Pray that God, who is faithful and just, will open the eyes of those who are lost and draw them to confess their sins and trust in Him to grant forgiveness.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
readRomans 3:23

Pray that the gospel will advance and many will acknowledge that all have sinned, fall short of God's glory, and need a Savior to reconcile them to God.

Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.
readPsalm 127:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will build their homes in the Lord and raise their children to know and honor Him.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
read2 Corinthians 5:20

Pray that those God sends to cross cultures will be His ambassadors, faithfully imploring people on Christ's behalf to be reconciled to God through Jesus.

Arab, Egyptian Across Countries (ROP3 - 102879) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

22 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDName ▲CountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsSudan818,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsOman98,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsCanada106,000Engaged yet UnreachedStandard ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsUnited States296,000Engaged yet UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsGermany25,500No Longer UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsSpain4,600Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsItaly132,000Engaged yet UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsUnited Kingdom45,500Engaged yet UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsAustralia85,500No Longer UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsYemen12,500Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsUnited Arab Emirates499,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsBelgium5,300No Longer UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsSaudi Arabia666,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsQatar56,500Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsLibya37,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsKuwait509,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsJordan774,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsIsrael22,500Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsIraq548,000Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsFrance31,500Engaged yet UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsEgypt68,910,000Engaged yet UnreachedEgyptian ArabicSunni Islam
Egyptian ArabsEgyptian ArabsAlgeria21,500Unengaged and UnreachedEgyptian 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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