Ilwana in Kenya people group profile

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The Ilwana have only been reported in Kenya

Photo Source: Jeff Nelson

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Prayer Cards

Population

23,000

Main Language

Kiwilwana

Largest Religion

Islam (99.98%)

Christian

0.02%

Evangelical

0.02%

Progress

The Joshua Project Progress Scale is an estimate of the progress of church planting among a people group, people cluster, country or language. The Progress Scale is derived from people group values for percent Evangelical and percent Christian Adherent.

Level	Description	Criteria
1	Unreached - 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 presence.	Evangelicals > 2% and <= 10%
5	Significantly reached - Evangelicals have a significant presence.	Evangelicals > 10%

☀ Frontier

Map symbols:

City Symbol	City Population ▲	City Type
	1 Less than 10,000
	1 Less than 10,000	Province capital
	2 10,000 to 75,000
	2 10,000 to 75,000	Province capital
	3 75,000 to 200,000
	3 75,000 to 200,000	Province capital
	4 200,000 to 750,000
	4 200,000 to 750,000	Province capital
	5 750,000 to 2 million
	5 750,000 to 2 million	Province capital
	6 Greater than 2 million
	6 Greater than 2 million	Province capital
	7 Less than 200,000	National capital (3 sizes)
	8 Greater than 200,000	National capital (3 sizes)

Cities are selected for reference. Many populated places do not appear for the sake of clarity. Maps feature larger, potential "gateway" cities related to each people group.

Lines	Description
Blue	Rivers
Gray solid	Country borders
White solid	State / Province borders
Gray dashed	District borders

Sources: People Group location: Anonymous. Map geography: ESRI / GMI. Map design: Joshua Project.

Profile

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Introduction / History

The name Malakote (meaning slave) was given to this people group by the Somalis. The Somalis introduced them to Islam and made them slaves. The people today prefer to be called Ilwana (meaning free men) closely related to the Kiswahili word muunguana translated by Krapf and Cust (1882) to be "a free man". A Christian community among the Ilwana has provided refuge to Muslim Background Believers and other Christians when fighting breaks out and persecution is intense.

Where Are they Located?

They live along the Tana River

What Are Their Lives Like?

Their livilihood is based on farming, fishing and bee-keeping.

What Are Their Beliefs?

They practice Islam mixed with animism and witchcraft. Evangelism efforts have met opposition.

Prayer Points

Scripture Prayers for the Ilwana in Kenya.

Profile Source: Worker in Kenya, Pray for Kenya brochure

Additional Info

Global Prayer Digest: 2012-01-31

General Info

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People Name General	Ilwana
People Name in Country	Ilwana
Population this Country	23,000
Population all Countries	23,000
Total Countries	1
Indigenous	Yes
Progress Scale	1 ●
Unreached	Yes
Frontier People Group	Yes
GSEC	1 (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed	1
Alternate Names	Malakote; Waliwana
People ID	13432
ROP3 Code	106128

Ethnicity

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Affinity Bloc	Sub-Saharan Peoples
People Cluster	Bantu, East-Coastal
People Group	Ilwana
Ethnic Code	NAB57j

Affinity Bloc	Sub-Saharan Peoples
People Cluster	Bantu, East-Coastal
People Group	Ilwana
Ethnic Code	NAB57j

Geography

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Country	Kenya
Region	Africa, East and Southern
Continent	Africa
10/40 Window	No
National Bible Society	Website
Persecution Rank	Not ranked
Location in Country	Garissa and Tana River counties: Tana River north of Pokomo, between Bura and Garissa. Source: Ethnologue 2016

Country	Kenya
Region	Africa, East and Southern
Continent	Africa
10/40 Window	No
National Bible Society	Website
Persecution Rank	Not ranked
Location in Country	Garissa and Tana River counties: Tana River north of Pokomo, between Bura and Garissa.. Source: Ethnologue 2016

Maps

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Map Symbols:

City Symbol	City Population ▲	City Type
	1 Less than 10,000
	1 Less than 10,000	Province capital
	2 10,000 to 75,000
	2 10,000 to 75,000	Province capital
	3 75,000 to 200,000
	3 75,000 to 200,000	Province capital
	4 200,000 to 750,000
	4 200,000 to 750,000	Province capital
	5 750,000 to 2 million
	5 750,000 to 2 million	Province capital
	6 Greater than 2 million
	6 Greater than 2 million	Province capital
	7 Less than 200,000	National capital (3 sizes)
	8 Greater than 200,000	National capital (3 sizes)

Cities are selected for reference. Many populated places do not appear for the sake of clarity. Maps feature larger, potential "gateway" cities related to each people group.

Lines	Description
Blue	Rivers
Gray solid	Country borders
White solid	State / Province borders
Gray dashed	District borders

Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Languages

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Primary Language	Kiwilwana (23,000 speakers)
Language Code	mlk Ethnologue Listing
Language Written	Yes ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages	1

Primary Language	Kiwilwana (23,000 speakers)
Language Code	mlk Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages	1
People Groups	Speaking Kiwilwana

Resources

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Primary Language: Kiwilwana

Bible Translation Status: Unspecified

Resource Type ▲	Resource Name
Audio Recordings	Audio Bible teaching
Audio Recordings	Online New Testament
Film / Video	LUMO film of Gospels
Text / Printed Matter	Jesus Messiah comic book

Religion

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Primary Religion:

Islam

Major Religion ▲	Percent
Buddhism	0.00 %
Christianity (Evangelical 0.02 %)	0.02 %
Ethnic Religions	0.00 %
Hinduism	0.00 %
Islam	99.98 %
Non-Religious	0.00 %
Other / Small	0.00 %
Unknown	0.00 %

Christian Segments ▲	Percent
Anglican	0.0 %
Independent	15.0 %
Orthodox	0.0 %
Other Christian	0.0 %
Protestant	60.0 %
Roman Catholic	25.0 %

Sources

Photo Source	Jeff Nelson
Map Source	People Group location: Anonymous. Map geography: ESRI / GMI. Map design: Joshua Project.
Profile Source	Worker in Kenya, Pray for Kenya brochure
Data Sources	Data is compiled from various sources. Read more

Disclaimers:

Joshua Project data is drawn from many sources and of varying accuracy depending on source and editorial decisions. Populations are scaled to the current year. Other data may have varying ages. We welcome updates.
Joshua Project occasionally adjusts profile text from third party sources. This is done to avoid confusion regarding the current reality of a people group, to fix grammar and spelling and to avoid potentially offensive wording.
A displayed zero can mean true zero, a very small rounded number or sometimes unknown. Blanks mean an unknown value.
The data is sometimes not as precise as it appears. Values for %Christian Adherent and %Evangelical (which determine unreached status) are often informed estimates, some more accurate than others. We recommend against using %Christian Adherent and %Evangelical to calculate absolute numbers.
Joshua Project makes every effort to ensure that the subject in an image is in fact from the specific people group. In rare instances a representative photo may be used.
Joshua Project may be able to provide more information than what is published on this site. Please contact us.
On-the-ground reality may vary from what is presented here. Before making travel plans based on data presented here, please confirm with other sources to the extent possible.

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