THE NARRATIVES OF ORIGIN AND MIGRATION OF THE TIV PEOPLE (OF NIGERIA) AS AN INDIGENOUS INTERPRETIVE RESOURCE FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE BOOK OF EXODUS

  • Jonathan T. Weor Department of Old Testament Stellenbosch University

Abstract

Gerald West has drawn the attention of Biblical scholars in Africa to the usefulness of indigenous reading resources in Africa. This essay will take as its point of departure West’s persuasive argument that indigenous interpretive resources can enrich the interpretive work of trained biblical scholars. The essay will attempt to show how narratives of the origin and migration of the Tiv people from the Swem Mountain in Cameroon to north central Nigeria influence and elucidate their understanding and interpretation of the origin and religion of the people of Israel. Specifically, the essay will show how this understanding further influenced the Tiv people’s interpretation of the book of Exodus. Suggestions will be made on how Biblical scholars in Nigeria could utilize this interpretive resource in their reading encounter with those that West describes as ordinary readers of Tiv extraction.
Published
2013-06-12
Section
APPROPIATING EXODUS IN AFRICA