Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portuguese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Español | Tagalog / Filipino
Be sure to use the data import function in your favorite app for working with data.
If you'd like to help improve these translations, Contact Us.

The Meithei of India

The Meithei of India, numbering approximately 1,895,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a tribal ethnic group indigenous to the state of Manipur in northeast India and the Sylhet District of northeastern Bangladesh. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Manipuri is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Himalayan Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Manipuri
Primary Language(s): Manipuri (mni)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 1,895,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041346
View on Joshua Project

Print Profile
Submit Updates

Pray for the Meithei of India

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.

Pray Now!
Download Prayer Guide

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

85%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Manipuri
Language Family: Sino-Tibetan

100%
%
Meitei Speakers

Media Resources in Manipuri:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Manipuri:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2019 Bibles International✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Manipuri bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Meithei 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 Meithei:
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 Meithei of India

But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
read1 Timothy 6:9

Pray for those, rich and poor, who have put their trust in worldly things, and ask that they will be honest with themselves, acknowledge their need for God and turn to Him.

And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.
readActs 17:26-27

Pray that the lost will seek God and find Him, for He is not far from each one of us. Pray that they will have opportunities to access the gospel, learn God's purpose for their lives, and believe in Him.

And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness.
readActs 4:29

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and face rejection by unbelievers in their communities, God will give them discernment, boldness, and encouragement to speak His Word.

I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessing.
read1 Corinthians 9:23

Ask God to give believers a deep desire to share the gospel with those who don't know the truth about God's redemption plan, and to provide them with opportunities to do so cross-culturally.

Meitei, Manipuri Hindu Across Countries (ROP3 - 106268) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion ▼
ManipuriPG001188ManipuriBangladesh44,000No Longer UnreachedManipuriHinduism
ManipuriPG009478ManipuriMyanmar28,500Engaged yet UnreachedManipuriHinduism
MeitheiPG041346MeitheiIndia1,895,000Engaged yet UnreachedManipuriHinduism
MeitheiPG050387MeitheiUnited States150Unengaged and UnreachedManipuriFolk Hinduism

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.

Scroll to Top