Tiv (dzwa Tiv)

Tiv is a member of the Tivoid branch of the Southern Bantoid language family. It is spoken by about 4.56 million people mainly in Benue State in the southeast of Nigeria. There are also Tiv speakers in the states of Cross River, Nassarawa, Plateau and Taraba in Nigeria, and in the South West region of Cameroon.

Tiv is the de facto language of provincial identity in Benue state, and is taught in primary and secondary schools. It is written with the Latin alphabet, and there is are translations of parts of the Bible in Tiv.

Tiv was first documented in the mid-18th century. Further studies of the language were undertaken since then. The first grammar of Tiv was published in 1933, and a dictionary was published in 1940.

Tiv alphabet

Tiv alphabet and pronunciation

Notes

In some Tiv texts [ɔ] is written ô. In others, [o] and [ɔ] are written o.
Tiv has five tones which are not usually marked in writing.

Download an alphabet chart for Tiv (Excel)

Sample text in Tiv

I mar maor ken kpan ga, nan ngu a icivir man mbamkpeiyol cii. I na nan mhen man ishima i kaven kwagh; nahan gba keng u nana tema a orgen ken mtem u angbian a angbian.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Sample videos in and about Tiv

Information about Tiv | Phrases | Numbers | Tower of Babel

Links

Information about Tiv
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiv_language
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/tiv
http://www.bisharat.net/wikidoc/pmwiki.php/PanAfrLoc/Tiv
https://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/tivv1240
http://www.language-archives.org/language/tiv
https://tivpeople.com/language

Bantoid languages

Awing, Bafanji, Bamum, Bamunka, Feʼfeʼ, Ghomalaʼ, Kenswei Nsei, Limbum, Medumba, Mmen, Nso, Oku, Pinyin, Tiv, Vengo

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page created: 09.03.22. Last modified: 10.03.22

[top]

Why not share this page:

The Fastest Way to Learn Korean with KoreanClass101

If you like this site and find it useful, you can support it by making a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or by contributing in other ways. Omniglot is how I make my living.

Note: all links on this site to Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.fr are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission if you click on any of them and buy something. So by clicking on these links you can help to support this site.

Get a 30-day Free Trial of Amazon Prime (UK)

If you're looking for home or car insurance in the UK, why not try Policy Expert?

[top]