🇳🇬 Language

Kamwe

Evidence: Well documented

Kamwe is a language spoken in Michika LGA of Adamawa State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Chadic (Biu–Mandara A: Bura–Higi major group, Higi group).

Type
Language
Belongs to
Biu–Mandara
Glottocode
kamw1239

Kamwe is a language spoken in Michika LGA of Adamawa State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Chadic (Biu–Mandara A: Bura–Higi major group, Higi group). Other names include Vəcəmwe. It extends into Cameroon. The Atlas cites speaker figures of 64,000 (1952); 180,000 (SIL 1973), with an estimated 23,000 in Cameroon. Its speakers are also called Higi, Hiji or Kapsiki. Its dialects are Nkafa, Dakwa (Bazza), Səna, Wula, Futu, Tili Pte and, in Cameroon, Kapsiki (Ptsəkɛ). Folk tales and a reading book appeared in 1970 and the New Testament in 1975.

  • Vəcəmwe · endonym
    Blench's Atlas (2020), field 1.B: the speakers' own name for the language.
  1. An Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020 edition) — Roger Blench, Kay Williamson Educational Foundation / McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, 2020 · Academic source · link (accessed 24 Sep 2026)
    Supports: Kamwe: location, classification, other names, speakers
  2. Glottolog language index (resourcemap) — Glottolog · Academic source · link (accessed 26 Sep 2026)
    Supports: Glottocode kamw1239
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-KAMWE · Last updated 30 September 2026. Spotted an error or have a source to add? Tell us.

← Nigeria Heritage Archive