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Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Mel of Cambodia

The Mel of Cambodia, numbering approximately 3,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a people of Cambodia They are an Indigenous people, in the Mon-Khmer people cluster of the Southeast Asian Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Buddhism - Folk. They primarily speak Mel-Khaonh.

Mel in Cambodia photo
Photo by Google. (2025). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Mel

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
Country: Cambodia
People Cluster: Mon-Khmer
Primary Language(s): Mel-Khaonh (hkn)
Primary Religion(s): Buddhism - Folk
Population: 3,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG047855
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Pray for the Mel of Cambodia

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Buddhism - Folk
Religious Affiliation: Buddhism

%
Buddhism - Folk Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Mel-Khaonh
Language Family: Austroasiatic

%
Mel-Khaonh Speakers

Media Resources in Mel-Khaonh:

Films:

No entries found for: Mel-Khaonh(hkn). Help build some!

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Bible Resources in Mel-Khaonh:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Mel-Khaonh bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Next steps for the Mel

The Mel 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 Mel

The Mel 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 Mel

The Mel 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 Mel of Cambodia

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.
readProverbs 8:17

As many search for hope, pray they will discover materials that will lead them to Jesus and explain the gospel in a way they will resonate with.

If I ascend to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
readPsalm 139:8

Pray that the lost will recognize God's presence with them wherever they go, put their faith in Christ, and seek to live in a way that honors and glorifies Him.

Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
readPsalm 51:9

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have confidence that God has turned His face from their sins and forgiven their iniquities.

And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
readLuke 18:29-30

Pray that God will raise up people to go and share the gospel and help them trust His promise that anyone who has left those they treasure for the sake of the kingdom of God will receive many times more in this life and in the life to come.

Mel (ROP3 - 115223) 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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