Afghanistan people groups, languages and religions

People Groups Unreached

58 (100.0%)

People Groups Unreached Frontier

51 (87.9%)

Population
Total

44,894,000

Population in Unreached

44,894,000 (100.0%)

Population in Unreached Frontier

43,525,000 (97.0%)

Click column headings for sorting ▲▼
People Group	Population this Ctry	Population Global	Count Ctrys	Indigenous	Primary Language	Primary Religion	Progress Scale	% Evangelical Range	% Christian Adh Range	Workers Needed *
Afghan, Tajik	12,754,000	13,176,000	2	●	Dari	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	255
Afshari	17,000	436,000	2		Azerbaijani, South	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Aimaq	1,845,000	2,432,000	4	●	Aimaq	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	37
Arab, Tajiki	5,200	6,800	2		Arabic, Tajiki	Islam	1	0.1-2% ●	0.1-2% ●	1
Azerbaijani	15,000	10,436,000	13		Azerbaijani, North	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Baloch, Western	409,000	1,393,000	4	●	Balochi, Western	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	8
Bania (Muslim traditions)	7,500	7,500	1		Urdu	Islam	1	0.1-2% ●	0.1-2% ●	1
Brahui	373,000	2,925,000	3	●	Brahui	Islam	1	0-0.1% ●	0.1-2% ●	7
Changgar	3,500	350,000	3		Urdu	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Darwazi, Badakhshani	19,000	19,000	1	●	Dari	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Deaf	195,000	27,763,000	164	●	Afghan Sign Language	Unknown	0	-1 Unknown	0-0.1% ●	4
Garwi, Kohistani	2,200	2,200	1	●	Gawri	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Gujar (Muslim traditions)	21,000	5,204,000	3	●	Gujari	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Hazara	3,872,000	4,822,000	11	●	Hazaragi	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	77
Ishkashimi	3,600	5,500	2	●	Ishkashimi	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Kalash (Chitrali)	12,000	37,000	2		Khowar	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Karakalpak	3,700	1,010,000	6		Karakalpak	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Khatri (Sikh traditions)	3,200	324,000	2		Punjabi, Eastern	Sikhism	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Khik (Wakhi)	24,000	121,000	4	●	Wakhi	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Munji	8,000	8,000	1	●	Munji	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Narisati, Arandui	45,000	45,000	1	●	Gawar-Bati	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Nuristani, Ashkuni	55,000	55,000	1	●	Ashkun	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Nuristani, Grangali	12,000	12,000	1	●	Grangali	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Nuristani, Kamviri	31,000	31,000	1	●	Komviri	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Nuristani, Malakhel	3,700	3,700	1	●	Dari	Islam	0	0-0.1% ●	0-0.1% ●	1
Totals: 58	44,894,000						58 ◼︎ (51 ✸︎)	0.02 %	0.02 %	925
Unclassified / Other Individuals	153,000
UN Country Population (2026)	45,047,000

Very small groups reported, but outside the Joshua Project Small Group Policy. Some may not be viable and/or have incorrect Progress Scale values, population, language and religion information. The groups listed below are not included in overall Joshua Project people group counts. If you have information about these groups, please contact us.

Click column headings for sorting ▲▼
People Group ▲	Progress Scale	Population	Primary Language	Primary Religion
Americans, U.S.	5	600	English	Christianity
Ansari	1	2,700	Urdu	Islam
Arora (Hindu traditions)	1	1,700	Saraiki	Hinduism
Bengali Muslim Moghal	1	2,600	Dari	Islam
Brahmin	1	4,200	Urdu	Hinduism
Kazakh	1	3,600	Kazakh	Islam
Kurd, Sorani	1	4,500	Kurdish, Central	Islam
Kyrgyz	1	1,400	Kyrgyz	Islam
Mongolian	1	300	Mongolian, Peripheral	Buddhism
Mussali	1	3,600	Punjabi, Eastern	Islam
Romani, Domari	1	2,100	Domari	Islam
Russian	2	1,000	Russian	Non-Religious
Tatar	1	500	Tatar	Islam
Uyghur	1	3,800	Uyghur	Islam
Totals: 14

For more information see the Joshua Project Small Group Policy

* An estimate of the number of pioneer workers needed for initial church planting among unreached people groups by country. Estimates are calculated only for unreached people groups and are based on ratio of 1 worker-unit (single person or married couple) per 50,000 living in an unreached people group by country, or for example one team of four worker-units per 200,000 people. Some workers may already be onsite. Many more workers are needed beyond this initial estimate.

Download Sources Definitions

Prayer Cards

Click column headings for sorting ▲▼
Province ▲	Estimated Population
Badakhshan	1,455,000
Badghis	760,000
Baghlan	1,397,000
Balkh	2,064,000
Bamyan	684,000
Daykundi	714,000
Farah	777,000
Faryab	1,530,000
Ghazni	1,881,000
Ghor	1,056,000
Hilmand	1,997,000
Hirat	2,934,000
Jawzjan	830,000
Kabul	6,953,000
Kandahar	1,912,000
Kapisa	675,000
Khost	880,000
Kunar	689,000
Kunduz	1,561,000
Laghman	682,000
Logar	599,000
Nangarhar	2,340,000
Nimroz	253,000
Nuristan	226,000
Paktika	1,071,000
Paktya	790,000
Panjshir	235,000
Parwan	1,018,000
Samangan	594,000
Sari Pul	857,000
Takhar	1,184,000
Uruzgan	553,000
Wardak	913,000
Zabul	531,000
Provinces: 34	42,595,000
UN Country Population	45,047,000

Click column headings for sorting ▲▼
Language ▲	Code	# Peoples w/ this Primary Language	# Unreached w/ this Primary Language	Scripture Status	YouVersion Bible Resources	Faith Comes By Hearing Bible Resources	Jesus Film Online	Global Recordings Resources	God's Story Resources	Gospel Tract Online
Afghan Sign Language	afg	1	1	1 Translation Needed	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1
Aimaq	aiq	1	1	0 Unspecified	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1
Arabic, Tajiki	abh	1	1	0 Unspecified	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Ashkun	ask	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Azerbaijani, North	azj	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Azerbaijani, South	azb	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	-1	1	1	1	1
Balochi, Western	bgn	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	1	1	-1	-1
Brahui	brh	1	1	4 New Testament	-1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Dari	prs	8	8	5 Complete Bible	1	-1	1	1	1	-1
Gawar-Bati	gwt	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Gawri	gwc	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	1	-1	-1	-1
Grangali	nli	1	1	1 Translation Needed	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Gujari	gju	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Hazaragi	haz	1	1	4 New Testament	1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Ishkashimi	isk	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Karakalpak	kaa	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	-1	1	1	-1	-1
Kateviri	bsh	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Khowar	khw	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	1	1	-1	-1
Kohistani, Indus	mvy	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	1	-1	-1	-1
Komviri	xvi	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Munji	mnj	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Parachi	prc	1	1	1 Translation Needed	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Parya	paq	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1
Pashai, Northeast	aee	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Pashai, Northwest	glh	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Pashai, Southeast	psi	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Pashai, Southwest	psh	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Pashto, Northern	pbu	2	2	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	-1	1
Pashto, Southern	pbt	4	4	3 Bible Portions	-1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Persian, Iranian	pes	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	1	1
Prasuni	prn	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Punjabi, Eastern	pan	2	2	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	1	-1
Punjabi, Western	pnb	1	1	4 New Testament	1	1	1	1	-1	1
Sanglechi	sgy	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Savi	sdg	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Shughni	sgh	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Shumashti	sts	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Sindhi	snd	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Tregami	trm	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1	-1
Turkish	tur	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	1	1
Turkmen	tuk	1	1	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	-1	-1
Urdu	urd	2	2	5 Complete Bible	1	1	1	1	1	1
Uzbek, Southern	uzs	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	1	1	-1	-1
Waigali	wbk	1	1	2 Translation Started	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Wakhi	wbl	1	1	3 Bible Portions	-1	-1	-1	1	-1	-1
Totals:	45	58	58		13	16	21	39	6	6

Networking Possibilities

MissionNext - connect with mission agencies or schools worldwide
The Mission App - connecting you to mission agencies that match your calling
Linking Global Voices - networks and global collaboration for followers of Christ
visionSynergy - developing high impact missional networks
GetInvolved - frontier people group (FPGs) prayer communities

Search the Web
There are many agencies and churches looking for additional staff to help them in their mission and calling in Afghanistan. Internet searches may be a possible way to find these organizations. The following are some example search topics you might try:

Church planting agencies in Afghanistan
Christian ministry in Afghanistan
Business as mission
Christian literature distribution
Evangelism agencies
Christian discipleship
Short term Christian missions

Long term Christian missions
Urban ministries
Christian media opportunities
Bible translation opportunities
Relief and development agencies
Clean water projects
Christian medical outreaches

Afghanistan Statistics
People Groups	58
Unreached People Groups	58 (100.0%)
Population	44,894,000
Population Annual Growth Rate	2.4%
Population in Unreached	44,894,000 (100.0%)
Primary Religion	Islam
Percent Christian Adherent	0.0%
Percent Evangelical	0.0%
Pioneer Workers Needed *	925
Country Progress Level
Continent	Asia
Region	Asia, Central
10/40 Window	Yes
Country Code	AF
Official Language(s)	Pashto, Southern \| Dari
Bible Restrictions Rank	2 (1=Highest) Bible Access
Bible Shortage Rank	71 (1=Highest) Bible Access
Literacy Rate	43%
Estimated Illiterate Population	25,590,000
Persecution Ranking	11 (1=Highest) Open Doors

Afghanistan Maps
Political Map (UN)
Language Map (Ethnologue)
Ethnolinguistic Map (Univ of Texas)
East Afghanistan Tribal Map (Source: NPS)
South Afghanistan Tribal Map (Source: NPS)
Perry-Castaneda Map Collection

Afghanistan Prayer Cards
All Unreached

Afghanistan Prayer Guide
English

Afghanistan Links
Operation World
Stratus Earth Index
Bible Access List
Open Doors Persecution Ranking
Voice of the Martyrs
Religious Freedom Report
Pray 10/40 Profile
DataReportal Digital Analysis
Prosperity Index
Social Progress Index
UN Human Development Report
Ethnologue Language Listing

Afghanistan Videos
Afghanistan Prayercast Video

Level	Description	Criteria
1a	Unreached (Frontier) - Less than 1 in 1,000 (0.1%) identify as Christians in any way. ✸︎	Evangelicals <=0.1% Professing Christians <=0.1%
1b	Unreached (non-Frontier) - Few evangelicals and little, if any, history of Christianity. ◼︎	Evangelicals >0.1% and <=2% Professing Christians >0.1% and <=5%
1	Unreached (All) - Few evangelicals and few who identify as Christians. Little, if any, history of Christianity. ✸︎+◼︎	Evangelicals <= 2% Professing Christians <= 5%
2	Minimally reached - Few evangelicals, but significant number who identify as Christians.	Evangelicals <= 2% Professing Christians > 5% and <= 50%
3	Superficially reached - Few evangelicals, but many who identify as Christians. In great need of spiritual renewal and commitment to biblical faith.	Evangelicals <= 2% Professing Christians > 50%
4	Partially reached - Evangelicals have a modest to moderate presence.	Evangelicals > 2% and <= 10%
5	Significantly reached - Evangelicals have a significant presence.	Evangelicals > 10%

Country:

People Groups
Total

People Groups Unreached

People Groups Unreached Frontier

Population
Total

Population in Unreached

Population in Unreached Frontier

% Christian Adherent

% Evangelical

Progress Scale

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