The Divehi of India

The Divehi of India, numbering approximately 74,500 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a people of the Maldives and can also be known as Laccadive, Maldivians, Kudiatis, Melacheri, Manikfans, Jhakrus, Revaries, Malmi, Tanakampran, Koya. They are an Indigenous people, in the Sinhala people cluster of the South Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Maldivian.

Divehi in India photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Easa Shamih - Flickr Easa Shamih - Flickr Licensed under CC BY 2.0

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Sinhala
Primary Language(s): Maldivian (div)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 74,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041847
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Divehi 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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Sunni
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Sunni Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Maldivian
Language Family: Indo-European

%
Maldivian Speakers

Media Resources in Maldivian:

Films:

Bible Resources in Maldivian:

Or check out the Maldivian bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Next steps for the Divehi

The Divehi 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 Divehi

The Divehi 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 Divehi

The Divehi 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 Divehi of India

And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
readMatthew 24:14

Pray that the message of hope will reach those who are wandering in darkness, offering them a path to eternal life.

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise).
readEphesians 6:1-2

Pray that God will bring young men and women to faith in Jesus and that the fruit of their faith will be a powerful testimony as they honor their parents. 

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
readJames 1:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will ask God for wisdom when they lack it, trusting that He will generously give it to them.

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.
readLuke 10:1

Ask God to raise up, send out, and sustain Christians who can go together to share the good news of Jesus with those who need it.

Divehi (ROP3 - 112829) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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