English
Marriage by Elopement
Tiv
Kwase Ngohol
Marriage Customs
📅 July 14, 2026
👁 3 views
🌐 English Summary
A traditional Tiv marriage system that developed from the forceful seizure of women by men who could not obtain wives through exchange marriage, later regulated through peaceful community covenants known as Iye.
🌐 English
Kwase Ngohol emerged as a result of the limitations of Yamshe (Exchange Marriage). Because many young men had to wait years before obtaining a sister for exchange, some began forcefully seizing women or daughters from neighbouring communities to become their wives.
This practice often resulted in conflict and warfare. To reduce violence, Tiv elders introduced Iye, a covenant of peace between communities that allowed young men to seek wives peacefully across agreed communities. These covenants were sealed through traditional oaths and rituals, sometimes involving blood pacts or animal sacrifices.
Although Kwase Ngohol began as marriage through forceful seizure, it gradually evolved into a more regulated system that encouraged peaceful courtship and eventually led to exchanges between the families involved