A semiotic analysis of the significances of Tiv colour terms

Ethno-semantics studies the way meaning is structured in different cultural settings. This study which is ‘A semiotic analysis of the significances of Tiv colour terms’ is designed to examine the significances of colour terms in Tiv since the existing literature on colour terms at the disposal of the researchers do not cover the significances of colour terms in the Tiv language. The study adopted an eclectic approach by using the Theory of Basic Colour Terms and Linguistic Relativity Theory. The researchers conducted semistructured oral interviews with twenty native speakers of Tiv from Gboko and Makurdi Local Government Areas of Benue State on colour terms in Tiv to collect data for the study. Th e findings of the study show that the colour nyíàn dìndèè ‘maroon’ symbolises dooshima ‘love’ and iember ‘joy’ while the colour shorshor/kyôn-kyôn‘green’ symbolises growth of animal, man and plant. The study also discovered that nyian ‘red’ signifies danger and blood sacrifice in Tiv language while the black colour signifies bereavement, death, mourning, richness of soil and personality among the Tiv people. The study found out that the colour kwèr ‘blue’ represents celestial elements and forces, as well as love in the Tiv language. Furthermore, findings of the study show that the colour ágbédàáng ‘yellow’ symbolises friendliness among the Tiv people; the colour nduran ‘brown’ symbolizes earthiness or unfertile state of soil the colour dìmììn ‘dark’ symbolises ‘evil’, darkness among the Tiv people. On the whole, the study demonstrates that the nomenclature of colour terms in Tiv is largely influenced by the interaction between Tiv culture and language, which in turn has impacted on aspects of Tiv culture and the corresponding colour terms.