Tunzu is a language spoken in Jos East LGA of Plateau State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Kainji (Eastern Kainji: Northern Jos group).
- Type
- Language
- Belongs to
- Kainji
- Glottocode
- tunz1235
Tunzu is a language spoken in Jos East LGA of Plateau State, according to Roger Blench's Atlas of Nigerian Languages (2020), which classifies it as Kainji (Eastern Kainji: Northern Jos group). Other names include Dugusa, Duguza. It is spoken in five villages of Jos East LGA and in two villages of Toro LGA, Bauchi State. The Atlas cites speaker figures of 2,500 (Blench estimate, 2003), with perhaps another 2,000 ethnic Tunzu who do not speak it. Its speakers also use Izere, Ibunu and Hausa, and the Atlas describes it as threatened by a switch to Hausa.
- Dugusa
- Duguza
- 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
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-TUNZU · Last updated 30 September 2026.
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