Tivoid languages
Encyclopedia
The Tivoid languages are a group of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

n languages, a sub-family of the Southern Bantoid group, spoken in parts of Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

 and Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...

.

The majority are threatened with extinction. The largest of these languages by far is the Tiv language
Tiv language
The Tiv language is spoken by over 2 million people in Nigeria, with a few speakers in Cameroon. Most of the Language's Nigerian speakers are found in Benue State of Nigeria. The language is also widely spoken in the Nigerian States of Plateau, Taraba, Nasarawa as well as the FCT Abuja...

 for which the group is named, with some 2 million speakers (as of 1991). The second largest is the Bitare language with some 110,000 speakers (as of 2000). Most apart from Tiv are extremely poorly known, and the next best, Esimbi, has not even been demonstrated to be Tivoid.

Following Blench (2010), Tivoid languages fall into three branches, though North Tivoid languages are almost unattested. The names in parentheses are dialects per Ethnologue, separate languages per Blench:
Central Tivoid: (A) Tiv
Tiv language
The Tiv language is spoken by over 2 million people in Nigeria, with a few speakers in Cameroon. Most of the Language's Nigerian speakers are found in Benue State of Nigeria. The language is also widely spoken in the Nigerian States of Plateau, Taraba, Nasarawa as well as the FCT Abuja...

–Iyive–Otank, Ceve (Oliti), Evant
(B) Caka (Batanga, Asaka), Ipulo (Olulu), Eman (Amanavil)

North Tivoid: Batu
Batu language
Batu is a Tivoid language of the Cameroons. Dialects are Amanda-Afi, Angwe, Kamino....

 (Afi, Kamino), Abon, Bitare, ? Ambo
Mesaka

Esimbi is well known, but there is not much reason to consider it Tivoid; it has just about as much in common with Grassfields languages.

SIL Ethnologue lists three additional languages, Manta, Balo
Balo language
Balo is a Grassfields language of Cameroon. Alunfa is distinct, and perhaps should be considered a different language.Balo and Alunfa are poorly documented, and for a time had been considered Tivoid languages....

, and Osatu
Osatu language
Osatu is a Grassfields language of Cameroon.Osatu is poorly documented, and for a time had been considered a Tivoid language....

, based on an old, provisional assignment of Blench; Blench (2010) states they are instead in the Southwest Grassfields (Western Momo) family.
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