The Efutop (or Ofutop), originally from Cameroon, settled in what is now Cross River State, Nigeria on the banks of the Cross River in the 14th century. In 1972, people migrated to the newly-built Ikom road. The Efutop language is linguistically related to the Nkum, Nkim, Ekajuk, Nnam, Abanyom, Nselle, Nde, and Nta. All of these groups together are known as the Bakor cluster.
Most of the Efutop people are farmers. Yams, cassava, palm oil, cocoa, oranges, melons, groundnuts, and plantains are some of their major crops. There is a strong sense of community amongst the Efutop. An elder of the Apostolic Church of Alesi says that, "All the villages in Efutop can work together if there is a need to." Working together they have built schools, their town hall, and have done road maintenance. Numerous churches and schools can be found in nearly all of the Efutop villages.
The Efutop have no access to any Scripture in their language nor has their language ever formally been written. An Efutop secondary school student has written a booklet of proverbs, songs, and names of some common objects in the language, but there is no Bible available for these people. Standard English and Nigerian Pidgin English are widely used in the area as well as the vernacular. When interviewed, however, one teacher said that although there are currently no literacy programs, the people would be pleased if literacy resources were available. In general, people seem eager to support Bible translation. One local church said that they would be very willing to serve in conjunction with a Bible translation project.
Scripture Prayers for the Efutop in Nigeria.
| Profile Source: Anonymous |
