The Riyah Bedouin of Libya

The Riyah Bedouin of Libya, numbering approximately 37,500 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a people of Libya . They are an Indigenous people, in the Bedouin, Saharan people cluster of the Arab World affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Arabic, Libyan.

Photo by Google. (2025). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Riyah Bedouin

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Northern African and Middle Eastern Peoples
Country: Libya
People Cluster: Bedouin, Saharan
Primary Language(s): Arabic, Libyan (ayl)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 37,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG042769

Pray for the Riyah Bedouin of Libya

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: Arabic, Libyan
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

%
Arabic, Libyan Speakers

Media Resources in Arabic, Libyan:

Films:

Bible Resources in Arabic, Libyan:

Next steps for the Riyah Bedouin

The Riyah Bedouin 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 Riyah Bedouin

The Riyah Bedouin 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 Riyah Bedouin

The Riyah Bedouin 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 Riyah Bedouin of Libya

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.
readIsaiah 48:11

Pray that those who have been living for their own glory will turn to the One who is worthy of all praise and find their true identity in Him.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
readMatthew 13: 45-46

Pray that they will recognize the treasure of knowing Christ Jesus and be willing to give up everything else to gain Him.

For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.
readActs 17:23

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have a deep desire to know God more fully and to make Him known in creative ways to others who are still searching for truth.

Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity.”
readPsalm 96:10

Pray for God to put in the hearts of believers to go to the lost and testify about the Lord who reigns.

Bedouin, Riyah reported in the following countries (ROP3):

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 Definitions page.

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