Urdu in United States


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

Aryan tribes entered India about 1500 BC mixing with mongoloids, Greeks and Huns. Through the generations this caused the Indian features of the people to gradually become more Caucasian and their languages to become more diverse. In later centuries Muslim influence promoted the linguistic change out of which the Urdu language eventually developed. Hindi and Urdu are similar languages, but they are divided by religious affiliation; Hindi is spoken by the Hindu peoples while Urdu is spoken by Muslims. Urdu is heavily laden with Persian and Arabic words and is written in the Persian script. Today when one thinks of South Asian Muslim languages, Urdu is the first one that comes to mind. Urdu is seldom a heart language, but it is the trade language of Pakistan.
Urdu speakers come from all walks of life, but they usually originate in either Pakistan or northern India. The Urdu possess a sense of group identity based on cultural and historical factors: the Islamic religion, a Persian cultural tradition, the Urdu language, and the tradition of Muslim supremacy in northern India.
In recent years many Urdu-speaking Muslims have emigrated to Bahrain, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, searching for economic opportunities. Skilled laborers and highly educated professionals among them have also emigrated to Western Europe, North America, and British Commonwealth countries all over the world.


What Are Their Lives Like?

The first Urdu people who came to the US came to work in agriculture and logging. The Luce-Celler Act of 1946 allowed them to obtain US citizenship. The INS Act of 1965 allowed Pakistanis with professional skills to work in the US, and their numbers increased dramatically. There was an influx of well-educated Pakistanis coming to the US during that time. More recently, there have been others who have entered the US as refugees, and they tend to take low paying jobs in places like New York City. There are a higher number of Urdu speakers in New York, Texas and California than the other US states.
The Urdu community is usually prosperous since so many are from a well-educated background. They are noted for their generosity and philanthropy. It is common for those with a medical background to practice medicine in the US. Often a Pakistani family will own a small business and employ extended family members to join them in the work. All Pakistanis try their best to become homeowners both for symbolic and economic reasons. Pakistani Americans have a good percentage of people who have served in the US military.


The term Urdu does not adequately describe the Urdu people as such but is merely a language distinction.
What Are Their Beliefs?

Islam is a central part of Urdu identity. Those who attend Sunni mosques have regular contact with Muslims from other ethnic communities. Most Urdu in the US are Sunni Muslim, but there are also some Shia and Ahmadiyyas among them. The latter are likely to be people who were looking for a safer place since they are persecuted by other Muslim communities in Pakistan.


What Are Their Needs?

Though they are fairly large in number and economically prosperous, they remain in the Islamic religious system, and few Christians in America will tell them about the Savior who alone has the power to break the power of sin.


Prayer Points

Pray for a massive movement to Christ among Urdu speakers this decade leading to spiritual and physical blessings in Christ.
Pray for the Lord to thrust out workers to the Urdu speakers in the USA.
Pray for persons of peace among the Urdu people who will accept Christ's ambassadors.
Pray for resources like the JESUS Film and Urdu language broadcasts to become widely available.


Scripture Prayers for the Urdu in United States.


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Urdu
People Name in Country Urdu
Pronunciation OOR-doo
Alternate Names Hindi; Islami; Muhajirs; Undri
Population this Country 534,000
Population all Countries 2,146,000
Total Countries 24
Indigenous No
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 11
People ID 15727
ROP3 Code 110423
ROP25 Code 308484
ROP25 Name Urdu
Country United States
Region America, North and Caribbean
Continent North America
10/40 Window No
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Location in Country New York (Brooklyn), San Francisco (Diamond Heights), Washington D.C., Chicago (Skokie), Houston (Sugarland), Los Angeles, Dallas Fort Worth (Plano), Philadelphia (Delran), Atlanta (Roswell), Boston (Cambridge), Detroit (Canton), Seattle (Meridian), Sacramento (North Oak Park), Miami   Source:  Global Gates 2022
Country United States
Region America, North and Caribbean
Continent North America
10/40 Window No
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank Not ranked
Location in Country New York (Brooklyn), San Francisco (Diamond Heights), Washington D.C., Chicago (Skokie), Houston (Sugarland), Los Angeles, Dallas Fort Worth (Plano), Philadelphia (Delran), Atlanta (Roswell), Boston (Cambridge), Detroit (Canton), Seattle (Meridian), Sacramento (North Oak Park), Miami.   Source:  Global Gates 2022

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Primary Religion: Islam
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.00 %)
0.00 %
Ethnic Religions
0.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
100.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Urdu (534,000 speakers)
Language Code urd   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Urdu (534,000 speakers)
Language Code urd   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Urdu

Primary Language:  Urdu

Bible Translation Status  (Years)
Bible-Portions Yes  (1747-1894)
Bible-New Testament Yes  (1758-2000)
Bible-Complete Yes  (1843-2022)
FCBH NT (www.bible.is) Online
YouVersion NT (www.bible.com) Online
Possible Print Bibles
Amazon
World Bibles
Forum Bible Agencies
National Bible Societies
World Bible Finder
Virtual Storehouse
Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Audio Recordings Online Audio Scripture Talking Bibles
Audio Recordings Story of Jesus audio Jesus Film Project
Film / Video God's Love Story General / Other
Film / Video God's Story video God's Story
Film / Video Indigitube.tv Video / Animation Create International
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Urdu Jesus Film Project
Film / Video LUMO film of Gospels Bible Media Group/LUMO
Film / Video Magdalena video Jesus Film Project
Film / Video My Last Day video, anime Jesus Film Project
Film / Video Story of Jesus for Children Jesus Film Project
Film / Video The Hope Video Mars Hill Media
Film / Video World Christian Videos World Christian Videos
General Bible for Children Bible for Children
General Bible for Children Bible for Children
General Biblical answers to your questions Got Questions Ministry
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Faith Comes By Hearing - Bible in text or audio or video Faith Comes by Hearing
General Four Spiritual Laws Campus Crusade for Christ
General Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
Photo Source (Representative photo)
Muzaffar Somro - Pixabay 
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.



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