The Rashaida of Egypt

The Rashaida of Egypt, numbering approximately 46,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a nomadic Bedouin Arab ethnic group inhabiting the coastal plain of the Red Sea, stretching from the Sudanese city of Port Sudan to the Eritrean city of Massawa. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Algerian Arabic is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Egypt
People Cluster: Arab, Sudan
Primary Language(s): Algerian Arabic (arq)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 46,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG042700

Pray for the Rashaida of Egypt

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

99%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Algerian Arabic
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Arabic, Algerian Speakers

Media Resources in Algerian Arabic:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Algerian Arabic:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
United Bible Societies✓

1 entry

Or check out the Algerian Arabic bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Rashaida 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 Rashaida:
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 Rashaida of Egypt

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.
readPsalm 9:9-10

Pray that God will help those who are oppressed and without hope to hear the good news of Jesus and trust in Him, for He has never forsaken those who seek Him.

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.
readActs 17:24-25

Pray that the good news will reach everyone in this people group and that many will come to know and serve the one true God who made the world and everything in it and lives today.

Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
readRomans 5:2

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will rejoice in the hope of glory and be in awe of God's mercy that gives them access to Him through faith.

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ...that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
readColossians 4:3-4

Ask God to open doors for believers to share the gospel and help them communicate it clearly so that more people will understand the mystery of Christ and turn to follow Him.

Rashaida Across Countries (ROP3 - 108307) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

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