I like to believe that I think in Tiv before I speak in English.
Growing up, my siblings and I went to very good primary schools, and English was the official language. We spoke Tiv at home and with friends and neighbours, but English was always taking the front seat.
But somehow, my brain keeps telling me that I think in Tiv.
Now, the thing is, my Tiv vocabulary was actually not as solid as I wanted it to be. A tad fluent but not perfect. Some words didn’t come easily, especially the deep ones.
My mom loved English, and even though she spoke Tiv with us, she was a real sucker for good spoken and written English. As a woman who excelled in secretarial studies, grew through the ranks and eventually retired as a Director in the civil service, you wouldn’t wonder why she was that way. She had been brought up by Catholic European nuns in her school days too and all that.
We were more fluent in English than Tiv.
So while I could speak English very beautifully, my Tiv vocabulary was not exactly doing the same thing.
I remember there were times when people would say something in Tiv and laugh and say, “You wouldn’t know the meaning of this,” knowing very well that we simply hadn’t learnt that much Tiv.
And they were right.
But something interesting has happened to me.
I now work in a rural area, although I live in urban Makurdi and commute to Wannune every day. And I have found myself around many Tiv people who speak the deep, concentrated Tiv language.
That deep Tiv that doesn’t stop to translate or even simplify itself into English for you.
And I’m beginning to realise that something is happening to my vocabulary.
My Tiv vocabulary has improved. Very, very much.
I actually smiled at myself the other day because I suddenly realised that there are words and expressions I understand now that I probably wouldn’t have understood a few years ago.
I’m learning simply by being around people who speak the language naturally.
And I’m so excited about it.
Because Tiv is my love language. I love this language so much.
English became the language I was very comfortable with because that’s how I grew up… And I love English… But there is something about Tiv that is difficult to explain. Sometimes, when I really want to express myself… when English suddenly feels like it isn’t quite carrying what I’m trying to say, I find myself switching to Tiv.
I think that’s why this whole thing feels so special to me.
Now, being around people who speak it so naturally every single day is giving me the immersion I didn’t have growing up.
I listen, pick up new words, I ask questions…and then I sometimes realise, “Oh! So THAT is what that word means!”
Slowly, my vocabulary is growing. It feels a little bit like discovering something that was always mine.
And I love it.
So here’s to more deep Tiv conversations. More new words. More understanding. And hopefully, fewer people laughing and saying, “You wouldn’t know the meaning of this.”
Cheers to a better Tiv vocabulary.
Tiv is the indigenous language of the Tiv people of central Nigeria. They are particularly from Benue State. It is a beautiful, expressive language with a rich vocabulary. One thing I love is its colourful idioms and proverbs. It had a very rhythm that gives it so much character.
