Shamang New Testament — Shama-Sambuga (Tushama) Scripture Portions (Nigeria)
Overview
The Shamang New Testament is a 3-book scripture portion in the Shama-Sambuga language of north-central Nigeria, published by The Word for the World International and available via YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 4499). The project title Shamang likely reflects the name of the primary community or settlement associated with the translation; the autonym Tushama uses the Niger-Congo nominal prefix tu- (people/community) before the root -shama, giving "the Shama people." Shama-Sambuga (ISO 639-3: sqa) is a Plateau language within the Benue-Congo branch of Niger-Congo, spoken on the southern fringe of the Jos Plateau in Kaduna or Plateau State — a zone of extraordinary linguistic diversity.
Language and People
Shama-Sambuga (ISO 639-3: sqa; autonym: Tushama) is a Niger-Congo language: Niger-Congo → Atlantic-Congo → Volta-Congo → Benue-Congo → Plateau branch (North Plateau). The North Plateau languages cluster on the southern and eastern edges of the Jos Plateau — a highland region of north-central Nigeria that serves as a major center of language diversity, hosting dozens of small Plateau-family languages alongside larger Hausa-speaking populations. The Shama-Sambuga language encompasses two closely related communities (Shama and Sambuga) whose linked varieties are classified together under the single ISO 639-3 code.
The Shama-Sambuga/Tushama community inhabits:
- Southern Kaduna State or northern Plateau State, north-central Nigeria — on the plateau fringe
- The linguistically diverse corridor between the Jema'a LGA zone and the central Jos Plateau
Estimated speakers: small Plateau-language community; precise data is limited in widely available sources.
Cultural Context
The Jos Plateau of north-central Nigeria represents one of the most linguistically diverse regions in Africa, with over 50 distinct languages spoken within a relatively compact area. Many of these Plateau languages — including Shama-Sambuga/Tushama — have small speaker populations of only a few thousand, and have received little linguistic documentation outside of SIL/Wycliffe surveys. The Word for the World International's work in several North Plateau communities reflects the broader effort to provide initial scripture portions for Nigeria's numerous underdocumented minority language groups.
Publishing and Organizations
Published by The Word for the World International (thewordfortheworld.org), a Bible translation organization working in partnership with national churches.