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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Rumelian Turks of Greece

The Rumelian Turks of Greece, numbering approximately 161,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Turkish Muslim community that traces its roots to Rumelia, the Ottoman Empire name for its European territories, largely corresponding to today’s Balkans. Rumelian Turks are the main ethnically Turkish community in Greece today. Balkan Turks They are an Diaspora people, in the Turkic people cluster of the Turkic Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Sunni. They primarily speak Turkish.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3 Flash: Rumelian Turk

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Central Asian Peoples
Country: Greece
People Cluster: Turkic
Primary Language(s): Turkish (tur)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Sunni
Population: 161,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG046763
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Pray for the Rumelian Turks of Greece

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Sunni
Religious Affiliation: Islam

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Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Turkish
Language Family: Turkic

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Media Resources in Turkish:

Films:

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Bible Resources in Turkish:

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Or check out the Turkish bible resources at Bible.com

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Next steps for the Rumelian Turks

The Rumelian Turks 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 Rumelian Turks

The Rumelian Turks 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 Rumelian Turks

The Rumelian Turks 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 Rumelian Turks of Greece

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
readMatthew 9:36

Pray that those who have no hope and are in need of a Savior will be comforted by the Good Shepherd, who seeks to gather the lost and weary into His care.

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
read1 John 1:5

As mobile phones, radio, and satellite television, and other technologies become more available worldwide, pray for people who are developing digital gospel resources so that others can easily access the gospel.

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
readIsaiah 53:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will find comfort and spiritual healing as they remember the wounds of Christ, who understands their suffering because He also walked through suffering on their behalf.

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
readRomans 12:4-5

Ask God to send believers to people in other cultures and to help them use their gifts in harmony with others so that the body of Christ may be built up.

Turk (ROP3 - 113818) reported in the following countries:

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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