Quechua of Peru
In the central highlands of the Peruvian Andes, more than 970,000 people each speak one of six Quechua languages. Though each group speaks a different variety of the Quechua language, their lifestyles are very similar. Various teams, composed of both national and expatriate translators, have previously translated or are currently translating the NT into all six of these languages. Teams have already printed and distributed several New Testaments, and the remaining versions are nearing completion.
Pura of Timor
11,000 speakers. Most Pura people are fishermen and gardeners, growing or catching enough on their island to provide for their families. Missionaries brought Christianity to the Pura people decades ago, establishing both Protestant and Catholic traditions in the area. Approximately 80% of all Pura attend church and consider themselves Christians. However, because they have never had Scripture in their language, they do not readily connect faith with their daily problems.
Priau of India
301,000 speakers who are traditionally animistic spirit worshipers although their religion is heavily influenced by the national religion. Swedish and Norwegian missionaries brought the Gospel to the area around 75 years ago. Several churches resulted but struggled without a Bible they could understand. Since then the country has become hostile to missionary activity.
Polynesian Outlier of PNG
Mortlock and Tasman atolls are home to 1,680 people, two groups of Polynesian Outliers who speak the Takuu and Nukumanu languages. An atoll is the rim of an ancient undersea volcano, which has formed a large ring of islets and coral reef encircling a huge lagoon. A snorkeler’s dream come true, this paradise would seem the perfect “get away from it all” destination; but for those who live there, it is no vacation.
Paze of SE Asia
20,000 Paze people inhabit a mountainous region of Southeast Asia that straddles two countries. Christian missionaries came to the Paze region about 80 years ago, and many Paze accepted Christ at that time. Today almost 95 percent of the Paze call themselves Christian and only about five percent of the people practice the traditional animistic religion. Because the political situation within the country is volatile, the homeland area is no longer accessible to foreigners.
Paranan of Philippines
15,000 Paranan people live in Palanan, a remote coastal region of Luzon Island in the northern Philippines. Two efforts by Philippine cross-cultural workers in the 1980s and 1990s produced 43 percent of the New Testament in Paranan, but work stopped when they left. Today, as a result of the previous Scripture translation, Paranan pastors lead five churches, and other churches have been planted.
Olgam of India
15,000 speakers, most of whom live in small villages scattered among remote hills and the narrow valleys in between. Today they practice a lifestyle and wear clothing that has remained unchanged for hundreds of years. The Olgam practice a traditional animistic religion, attributing power to the spirits of ancestors, trees, water and other objects that they believe control their lives. Because the concept of Christianity is new to the Olgam people, they remain very resistant toward the Gospel.
Okphela of Nigeria
About 100,000 Okphela speakers live in midwestern Nigeria. An additional 50,000 people understand the Okphela language because they speak closely related dialects. Although up to 70 percent of the people would identify themselves as Christians, their exposure to the gospel has been through English or the Yoruba trade language, not through their own Okphela language.
Noon of Senegal
On the westernmost tip of Africa lies Dakar, the capital city of Senegal. Not far from Dakar is the town of Thiès and the surrounding villages where 25,000 people of the Noon (pronounced known) language group live. The Noon are predominantly Catholic, unlike 95 percent of the people of Senegal who practice another major world religion. In 2002 only five Noons were identified as evangelical Christians; the remainder blended traditional animistic beliefs with their other beliefs.
Ninzo of Nigeria
About 100,000 Ninzo people live in a hilly region of central Nigeria. Missionaries from South Africa brought the gospel to the Ninzo people in the 1920s, and today, about 35 percent of the people consider themselves Christians. About ten percent of the people adhere to another major religion, and the rest have no strongly stated religious identification at all, though many seem to practice various elements of traditional animistic religion.