Hungwarhea New Testament — Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ (Ngwe/Hungworo) New Testament (Nigeria)
Overview
Hungwarhea New Testament is the complete New Testament (27 books) in the Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ language of Niger State, Nigeria, published by The Word for the World International (TWFTW) and available via YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 4482). The language carries multiple names in circulation: the ISO name Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ (with hook-below diacritics marking vowel modification), the community autonym Ngwe (also spelled Ingwe, Ingwo, Ngwoi, Nkwoi, Ungwe), and the alternate scholarly designation Hungworo widely used in linguistic literature. The translation project title "Hungwarhea" is a vernacular rendering of the language/people name. Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ belongs to the Kamuku branch of the Kainji language family — a Niger-Congo branch of Benue-Congo concentrated in northwestern Nigeria.
Language and People
Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ (ISO 639-3: nat; autonym: Ngwe / Ingwe; scholarly name: Hungworo; project name: Hungwarhea) is a Niger-Congo language: Niger-Congo → Atlantic-Congo → Benue-Congo → Kainji → Kamuku → Hungworo. The Kainji languages are a branch of Benue-Congo concentrated in northwestern Nigeria, distinct from both Adamawa and Plateau language families. Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱/Hungworo sits within the Kamuku sub-group of the Kainji family.
The Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱/Ngwe community inhabits:
- Rafi Local Government Area, Niger State, north-central Nigeria — specifically the Tegina, Kagara, and Pandogari areas of Rafi LGA
- Six documented clans: Kabitu, Karaku, Makangara, Karaya, Tambari, and Makangada, distributed across villages in the Rafi area
- Northwestern Niger State, a zone with multiple small Kainji-family language communities
Estimated speakers: approximately 20,000 (2003 data, the most recent available). Ethnologue status 6a (vigorous).
Cultural Context
The Rafi LGA zone of Niger State contains a cluster of small Kainji-family language communities, each with distinct identities despite their linguistic relatedness. Global Recordings Network has produced one audio resource in Ca̱hungwa̱rya̱ ("Becoming a Friend of God," program 32750); no JESUS Film has been produced. TWFTW's completed NT (27 books) provides a full New Testament foundation for the community. The northwestern Niger State region is characterized by subsistence agriculture (millet, sorghum, yams) and Islamic majority populations in the surrounding area, though minority language communities maintain distinct religious and cultural practices.
Publishing and Organizations
Published by The Word for the World International (TWFTW) (twftw.org), an indigenous-led Bible translation organization founded 1981 in South Africa by Dr. Véroni Krüger and P.J. Vivier. Active in 32 countries with 373 translation projects.