The Tiv of Nigeria

The Tiv of Nigeria, numbering approximately 5,260,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Benue, Cross River, Plateau, Nassarawa, and Taraba states of Nigeria. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Tiv is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Tiv

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Nigeria
People Cluster: Benue
Primary Language(s): Tiv (tiv)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 5,260,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG014132
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Tiv of Nigeria

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

98%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tiv
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Tiv Speakers

Media Resources in Tiv:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Tiv:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1964 Bible Society of Nigeria✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Tiv bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Tiv are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Next steps for the Tiv:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Tiv of Nigeria

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
readJohn 3:17

Pray for those who are living under the burdens of man-made religion to learn about the freedom Jesus offers them and turn to Him in faith.

Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!
readPsalm 67:3

Pray that God will be working in people's hearts, give them opportunities to receive the gospel, and bring many to faith in Himself.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
readEphesians 6:10-11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will grow strong in His power, putting on the full armor of God, which will enable them to stand against the devil’s lies.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
read2 Corinthians 5:20

Pray that those God sends to cross cultures will be His ambassadors, faithfully imploring people on Christ's behalf to be reconciled to God through Jesus.

Tiv Across Countries (ROP3 - 110089) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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