Symbols
64Click a symbol to copy it and open its page.
Tiv alphabet
One row per letter, in alphabetical order with ô right after o. Sounds such as gb, kp, gh, mb, nd, ng, ny, sh and ts are written with two letters; q and x are not used for Tiv words.
Quotation marks
Tiv uses English-style curly quotes; ’ is also the apostrophe, as in the name of the striped cloth A’nger.
Currency
The Nigerian naira: ₦500.
Where it's spoken
Benue State in Nigeria's Middle Belt, with Tiv communities in neighbouring Nasarawa and Taraba.
Tiv culture
🍠 yams and 🍊 oranges of Benue, the Food Basket of the Nation; 🌽 maize; 💃🥁 the Swange dance; 🎭 Kwagh-hir puppet theatre; 👑 the Tor Tiv in Gboko; 📖 the Tiv Bible.
On the map
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The Tiv alphabet from A to Z
Tiv is written in the Latin alphabet: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O Ô P R S T U V W Y Z, each with a capital and a small form. Tiv's own letter is Ô ô, which sits right after o. Q and X are not needed for Tiv words, and c appears in the pair ch, as in Ichongo.
Many Tiv sounds are written with two letters: gb and kp, made at the lips and the back of the mouth at once (Gboko); gh, a soft throaty g (kwagh, thing); mb, nd and ng, sounds that begin with a hum (Mbatiav, ngu); ny, sh and ts (tsav). You type them as two letters one after the other, so the grid lists only single letters.
Tiv is a tonal language: the pitch of a syllable can change a word or the tense of a verb. Everyday writing often leaves tone unmarked, but the Tiv Bible uses acute accents for high tone; readers also rely on context.
What ô (o with circumflex) does in Tiv
ô is a vowel letter in its own right, not a decoration, and it turns up in some of the most important words: Aôndo (God) and ityô (a person's lineage on the father's side). The Tiv Bible and careful writing keep the circumflex.
In English documents and on official forms the mark is usually dropped, which is why names built on Aôndo are spelled Aondohemba or Aondoakaa. Both spellings are understood; when you write Tiv itself, the real ô reads correctly.
It is the same character French and Portuguese use, U00F4 for ô and U00D4 for Ô, so it is already on many keyboards and fonts and displays everywhere.
How to type ô on PC, Mac and phone
On a phone, long-press o on the standard keyboard and pick ô; hold the Shift key first for Ô.
On Windows, hold Alt and type 0244 on the number pad for ô, 0212 for Ô. With the US-International layout, press ^ and then o. In Microsoft Word, CtrlShift and then o works too, or type 00F4 and press AltX. On a Mac, press OptionI, then o.
In HTML, write ô and Ô. The naira sign is 20A6 then AltX in Word, or ₦ in HTML; it is also in the grid above.
Where the Tiv language is spoken
Tiv is the language of the Tiv people of the Benue valley in Nigeria's Middle Belt: most of Benue State, including the capital Makurdi, the old Tiv centre Gboko and Katsina-Ala, with Tiv communities in neighbouring Nasarawa and Taraba states. CLDR estimates about 3.8 million speakers; other counts put it higher, and it is one of Nigeria's largest languages.
Tiv belongs to the Benue–Congo family, in the Tivoid group of Bantoid languages, so it is a distant relative of Swahili and Zulu and, like them, sorts its nouns into classes. Its neighbours in Benue and around it speak Idoma, Jukun and Hausa, and many Tiv speakers also use English and Nigerian Pidgin.
For money, Tiv speakers use the Nigerian naira, written 500. For the letters of Nigeria's other languages see the Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Efik, Ibibio and Nigerian Pidgin collections, and for the flag, the naira and the country's emoji see Nigeria.
Yams, Swange and Kwagh-hir in emoji
Benue calls itself the Food Basket of the Nation, and Tiv farmers are at its heart: is the nearest emoji to the big yams that are the pride of every Tiv farm, the oranges and other citrus Benue is known for, and the maize in the fields.
is for Swange, the Tiv dance music played at weddings, festivals and parties, and for Kwagh-hir, the Tiv theatre of puppets and masquerades that tells stories at night. stands for the Tor Tiv, the paramount ruler of the Tiv, whose palace is in Gboko, and for the Tiv Bible, a book in which many people read their language. Add and the message is complete.
How to use them
5 situationsClick to copyTiv Alphabet combos
10Worth knowing
- In the 1950s the anthropologist Laura Bohannan told the story of Hamlet to Tiv elders, who corrected it to fit their own sense of how a family should behave; her essay “Shakespeare in the Bush” is still widely read and discussed.
- The Tiv trace their descent from one ancestor, Tiv, and his two sons Ichongo and Ipusu, and each family's lineage, its ityô, fits into that one family tree.
- Tiv is a Bantoid language, a cousin of the Bantu languages, and like Swahili or Zulu it sorts its nouns into classes that change their form in the plural.
Questions people ask
7What is the Tiv alphabet?
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O Ô P R S T U V W Y Z: the Latin alphabet with ô (after o) and without q and x. Gb, kp, gh, mb, nd, ng, ny, sh and ts are written with two letters.
Does Tiv use accents?
ô has a circumflex; tone is usually unmarked in everyday writing, but the Tiv Bible uses acute accents for high tone.
How to type ô on PC?
Hold Alt and type 0244 on the number pad (0212 for Ô), or on the US-International layout press and then o. On a Mac press OptionI, then o; on a phone long-press o.
What is the alt code for o with circumflex?
Alt0244 gives ô and Alt0212 gives Ô. In Word you can also type 00F4 and press AltX.
Where is the Tiv language spoken in Nigeria?
Mainly in Benue State (Makurdi, Gboko, Katsina-Ala and the rural areas around them), with Tiv communities in Nasarawa and Taraba states.
How do you greet in the Tiv language?
The everyday greeting is M sugh u, “I greet you”.
Is there a Tiv Bible?
Yes, the whole Bible is in Tiv, in print and in Bible apps, written with the letter ô.
