Benue State University, Makurdi

Tiv Pre-Colonial Settlement Patterns

Sylvester I. Ugbegili, PhD and Asor Gbamwuan

Abstract

The paper examines pre-colonial Tiv settlement patterns in the Benue Valley Area. It argues that Tiv settled on the hilly enclaves during their early period ofarrival in the Benue Valley, while larger compounds known as the ‘ikyar-ya’ settlements emerged in the latter period. The paper made use of primary, secondary, and tertiary sources, while its’ approach is historic, narrative, and analytic. The study reveals that Tiv hilly settlementswere mainly for security challenges from external invaders. The collapse of the Kwararafa Empireand the defeat of the Chamba in wars led to abandoned hill settlements for ‘ikyar-ya’ settlements. The ‘ikyar-ya’ settlements were hugely populated because of their largeness and were headed by the ‘orya’ whose administration anchors on tiv traditionalvalues, norms, and belief system.

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