The Minangkabau people are a group of almost 7 million people on the island of Sumatra. They are considered an unreached people group (UPG). This means there are very few people who identify as Christian (less than 0.05% in this case). Although originally a Hindu-animistic society, they have been considered devout Muslims since Islam’s arrival to their area in the 16th and 17th centuries. Generally, their main sources of income are from farming and making clothing and jewelry. Often Minangkabau people move to other parts of Indonesia to seek work.

The Minangkabau people are traditionally a matriarchal society with multiple relatives living in one large house, called Rumah Gadang. Each family in the house would be descended from one female ancestor. As a matriarchal society, property is passed down through the mother to successive generations instead of the father. However, as society has modernized over the years, the culture is slowly shifting away from this to pass down through the father.

Marriage is usually orchestrated by the parents of two individuals when they have reached the ages of 13, 14, or 15. Divorce often quickly follows, and later on successive marriages. It is not uncommon for an individual to have had several marriage partners by the time they are a legal adult.

Ways to Pray for the Minangkabau People

• Please pray that the Minangkabau people would find new ways to provide for their families as cities around them continue to modernize and farming becomes less popular.
• Pray for open doors for workers to enter the Minangkabau communities and share the Good News.
• That any Minangkabau believers would be emboldened to share with their communities and protected from harm and persecution.
• Pray that Jesus would appear in dreams and visions to the Minangkabau people and the Holy Spirit would begin to soften hearts toward the gospel.