Atsam is a language of Kaduna State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Kainji (Eastern Kainji: group A).
- Type
- Language
- Belongs to
- Kainji
- Glottocode
- atsa1241
Atsam is a language of Kaduna State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Kainji (Eastern Kainji: group A). The Atlas places it in Kachia LGA, as the LGA was before the 1989 splits. Other names include Tsam, Chawai, Chawe, Chawi. Speaker figures in the Atlas: 10,200 (1931); 30,000 (1972). The Atlas gives Atsam (singular Tsam) as the people's own name, and records Scripture portions from 1923 and 1932.
Kaduna State · Kachia · Kauru
Atsam
- Chawai
- Chawe
- Chawi
- Tsam
- An Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020 edition) — Roger Blench, Kay Williamson Educational Foundation / McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, 2020 · link
- Glottolog language index (resourcemap) — Glottolog · link
- Directory of Polling Units: Kaduna State (Revised January 2015) — Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), 2015-01 · link
How evidence is graded
- Verified: Supported by an official source, or by two or more independent sources that agree.
- Well documented: Supported by credible sources, but not yet independently confirmed.
- Reported: Found in a credible source; further corroboration is welcome.
- Needs corroboration: The evidence is thin or incomplete; more sources are being sought.
- Disputed: Credible sources or community accounts disagree; the differing accounts are noted.
- Uncertain: There is not yet enough information to classify this responsibly.
Sources are marked official, academic, reference, community or general web. Sources that copy each other count as one. Oral traditions are recorded as traditions, not as proven fact.
Archive ID: LANG-ATSAM · Last updated 7 October 2026.
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