The Ilocano of Canada

The Ilocano of Canada, numbering approximately 16,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an Austronesian ethnolinguistic people originating in the Ilocos region of northwestern Luzon whose communities in Canada reflect a long history of migration and strong family networks. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Iloko is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Canada
People Cluster: Filipino, Central
Primary Language(s): Iloko (ilo)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 16,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG047423
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Ilocano of Canada

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: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

—
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Iloko
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Ilocano Speakers

Media Resources in Iloko:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Iloko:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Revised Ilokano Popular Version✓✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Iloko bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Ilocano 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.

Next steps for the Ilocano:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Ilocano of Canada

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
readEphesians 2:8-9

Pray that the lost among them will receive the gift of salvation by grace through faith, not by works, and be created for good works.

Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!
readPsalm 150:2

Pray for the gospel to advance among those who are living in darkness. Pray that they will come to know Jesus and praise Him for all that He has done.

But you said, "I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude."
readGenesis 32:12

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will experience God's presence and protection even in difficult circumstances, knowing that He will make them fruitful.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
read2 Peter 3:9

Pray that those God sends to cross cultures will patiently endure hardships as they share the gospel, knowing that the Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise.

Ilocano Across Countries (ROP3 - 103997) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 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