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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Hemshin of Turkiye

The Hemshin of Turkiye, numbering approximately 14,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as a Turkish speaking Muslim community with historic roots in the Hemşin district in the province of Rize, Turkey They are an Indigenous people, with Hemshinli as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Armenian people cluster of the Eurasian Peoples. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Western Armenian is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Eurasian Peoples
Country: Turkiye
People Cluster: Armenian
Primary Language(s): Western Armenian (hyw)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 14,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG048629
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Pray for the Hemshin of Turkiye

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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

85%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Western Armenian
Language Family: Indo-European

40%
%
Armenian, Western Speakers

Media Resources in Western Armenian:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Western Armenian:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Արեւմտահայերէն Նոր Կտակարան - Western Armenian N.T. 1853 (with 2017 adaptations)✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Western Armenian bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Hemshin 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 Hemshin:
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 Hemshin of Turkiye

I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other.
readIsaiah 45:5-6

Pray that the lost among them will be delivered from the confusion of false beliefs and come to know the one true God who alone brings light and purpose to their lives.

Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.
readPsalm 96:2

Pray that gospel resources will reach this generation so that they will receive the good news and sing to the LORD, bless His name, and tell of His salvation each day.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
readPsalm 42:2

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will thirst for God and be satisfied when they abide in Him.

He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
readPsalm 23:3

Pray for believers to go and share the gospel with others here. Ask that God will restore their souls and lead them in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.

Hemshinli Across Countries (ROP3 - 115399) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▼LanguageReligion
HemshinPG048629HemshinTurkiye14,000Engaged yet UnreachedWestern ArmenianSunni Islam

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.

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