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THE BEROM: PLATEAU'S FIRST PEOPLE, AFRICA'S ANCIENT CIVILIZATION, AND THE UNCONQUERED NATION OF JOS

There is a people on the Jos Plateau who have never been conquered.

Not by Queen Amina of Zazzau. Not by Usman Dan Fodio's jihadist forces. Not by British colonial soldiers who burned their huts and destroyed their granaries. Not by decades of political marginalization. Not by the waves of violence that have claimed hundreds of their sons and daughters in recent years.

They are still here. On the same hills. Farming the same land. Speaking the same language. Celebrating the same festivals.

They are the Berom. And their story is the story of the Jos Plateau itself.

A CIVILIZATION OLDER THAN MOST NATIONS ON EARTH

The Berom are among the oldest indigenous groups inhabiting Nigeria's Jos Plateau, with archaeological and anthropological evidence suggesting their presence in the region dates back over 2,500 years.

But the most remarkable connection is this: the Berom have been linked to the Nok civilization — dated between 500 BC and 200 AD — renowned for its exquisite terracotta sculptures that represent some of Africa's earliest figurative art. The striking similarities between Berom oral traditions and Nok archaeological findings have led scholars to posit that the Berom may be direct descendants of this ancient civilization.

Think about what that means. When you walk through the Jos Museum and stand before those ancient Nok terracotta figures — you may be looking at the artistic legacy of the Berom's own ancestors. A civilization producing fine art in Central Africa while Rome was still building its empire.

FROM ETHIOPIA TO THE HILLS OF RIYOM — A JOURNEY ACROSS CENTURIES

The Berom carry their migration history in their folk tales — told in the Berom language across generations with the words: "wot yin Bayer ku wot vok Babi yin Babi ku wot vok Baba" — meaning: "we came from Niger to Bira Sokoto to Riyom."

Many historians trace the full journey from Ethiopia to Sudan, to Chad, to Niger, where they settled in Gobir at the boundary between Sokoto and Niger Republic — before the great wave of migration that brought them southward to the Jos Plateau, settling in Riyom, Vwang, Foron, Ropp,Du, Zawan, Kuru, Gyel, Heipang, Fan, kabong and Gashish.

The name Berom itself was carved out of the name of a place in Sokoto called Bira — their last major settlement before they finally descended onto the Plateau that would become their eternal home.

When they arrived — they were the first. Historians confirm that the Berom were the first to settle not only in Jos and environs but on the entire Jos Plateau. They did not come to take someone's land. They came to land that was waiting for them.

THE PEOPLE THAT QUEENS AND JIHADISTS COULD NOT CONQUER

In the 16th century, the legendary warrior queen Amina of Zazzau — one of the most militarily accomplished rulers in West African history — expanded her kingdom through relentless military campaigns, conquering territory after territory across the region.

She could not pe*****te Berom land.

Berom oral history maintains that her forces were unable to breach their fortified hill settlements. The Berom chose the high ground deliberately — their ancestral lands are all located on elevated terrain on the Jos Plateau — and that elevation was their fortress.

Then came the Jihad. When Usman Dan Fodio's forces swept across northern Nigeria in the early 19th century — subjugating kingdoms, toppling rulers, and imposing new political and religious orders — the Berom were among the very few groups who successfully resisted subjugation.

Oral traditions recount how Berom spiritual leaders invoked the protection of Dagwi — the Berom name for the Almighty God — when the jihadists approached. The land itself was believed to have "swallowed" advancing armies, with Islamic scholars accompanying the forces reportedly warning that Berom territory was protected by powerful spiritual forces — possibly referencing the region's treacherous terrain of sudden sinkholes, caves, and rocky escarpments that made military advance extraordinarily difficult.

This history of successful resistance against multiple powerful forces shaped the Berom identity as an unconquered people — and explains the strong sense of autonomy and dignity that persists among them to this day.

THEN CAME THE BRITISH — AND THE TIN

When British colonial administrators discovered the Jos Plateau's extraordinary tin deposits in the early 20th century, they transformed the region into one of Britain's most valuable colonial possessions — and the Berom paid the price.

The 1910 Mining Ordinance created a forced labour system that disrupted traditional farming cycles. Young Berom men were drawn to mining camps, weakening agricultural production and family structures. Mining camps became melting pots where Berom people were forced to interact with workers from across Nigeria and with European supervisors on unequal terms.

And yet — the Berom did not disappear into that colonial machinery. They adapted. They sent their children to mission schools. They learned the new systems of power. And when independence came, they were ready.

47% OF PLATEAU STATE — AND STILL GROWING

Today the Berom constitute the largest indigenous ethnic group on the Jos Plateau — approximately 47 percent of Plateau State's population — covering four Local Government Areas: Jos North, Jos South, Barkin Ladi (Gwol), and Riyom, with additional communities in Southern Kaduna State.

With a population of over 2.5 million people scattered across the globe, the Berom speak their own language — Berom (also spelled Birom) — which belongs to the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family. It is not related to Hausa, not related to Arabic, not related to any Afro-Asiatic language. It is its own ancient tongue — carrying within it the whole civilization of a people who have been on this Plateau for two and a half millennia.

There are eleven Berom-speaking districts — Gashish, Ropp, Fan, Heipang, Foron, Du, Gyel, Kuru, Vwang, Bauchi, and Riyom — the cradle of Berom.

FARMERS, HUNTERS, AND WARRIORS

At the heart of Berom life is the land. The Berom are skilled farmers — growing potatoes, maize, millet, acha (hungry rice), and vegetables on the cool, fertile Plateau soil. Farming is not just economic activity for the Berom. It is identity. It is spiritual connection. It is the reason their ancestors made the long journey from Ethiopia to these hills.

But the Berom are also hunters. And their names tell that story. Names like Bot (frog), Tok (fish), Tsok (toad) — given to children as connections to the living world around them. Names like Gyang, Pam, Dung, Davou, Kaneng, Kangyang — all species of the duiker antelope — given because the Berom found beauty in the creatures of their Plateau world.

And they are warriors. A people who resisted Queen Amina. A people who held back the Jihad. A people who resisted British colonial conquest long enough that the soldiers had to burn their homes to bring them to the table. The warrior tradition of the Berom is not mythology. It is documented, multi-century historical fact.

THE GBONG GWOM JOS — THE GREAT PYTHON ON THE THRONE

In the pre-colonial period, the Berom were governed by autonomous community structures led by council of elders and a chief priest — the Gwom Kwit — who settled disputes over land, marriage, and community affairs through wisdom and consensus.

The paramount chieftaincy — the Gbong Gwom Jos — was established in 1935 under the colonial administration. The Gbong Gwom is not just the paramount ruler of the Berom. He is the Chairman of the Plateau State Council of Chiefs — the highest traditional authority in the entire state.

The stool has been held by five distinguished rulers:
- Da Dachung Gyang — 1935 to 1941
- Da Rwang Pam — 1947 to 1969 — the greatest of them all
- Da Fom Bot — 1970 to 2002
- Victor Dung Pam — 2004 to 2008
- Da Jacob Gyang Buba — 2009 to present

Da Rwang Pam deserves special mention. It was under his leadership that the Berom Tribal Council was transformed into a paramount chieftaincy institution. It was his political genius and dignity that gave the Gbong Gwom Jos its unassailable prestige. He is to Berom what Sardauna was to the North — a founding giant.

THE FESTIVALS THAT KEEP A CIVILIZATION ALIVE

The Berom understand something profound — that culture must be deliberately preserved or it will be lost. That understanding gave birth to some of Nigeria's most vibrant cultural celebrations.

Nzem Berom — held in the first week of April — is a one-week festival of Berom cultural identity first celebrated in 1980 or 1981. Born out of the realization that Christianity and western education were erasing pre-colonial cultural practices, the Nzem Berom brought all traditional ceremonies — Mandyeng, Nshok, Worom Chun, Vwana — under one magnificent umbrella. Music. Dance. Arts. Culture. Every part of Berom land represented. It is the most powerful annual declaration that the Berom know who they are.

Mandyeng — celebrated to usher in the rainy season. Mado — a hunting festival celebrated in October and November for prosperity. Behwol — a hunting festival in February and March, shared with neighboring Che, Anaguta, and Afizere peoples. Wusal Berom — a Christian festival first celebrated in 1992, weaving faith into cultural identity.

And their music. The Yom Nshi — a two-string banjo made of calabash and skin. The Yom — a straw string instrument. The Kwag or Gwashak — a scraper made from dry cactus played with a stick. The Kundung — a xylophone made of cattle horns and cobwebs.

Cattle horns and cobwebs. A xylophone. From the same people who resisted Queen Amina and the Jihad.

THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS WHO CARRIED THE BEROM NAME TO NIGERIA'S HEIGHTS

The Berom have given Nigeria leaders, generals, senators, and scholars whose contributions to the nation far exceed what their population numbers would suggest.

Lt. Col. James Yakubu Pam — Adjutant General of the Nigerian Army, killed in the January 15, 1966 coup. A soldier of the highest distinction.

Michael Botmang — first Berom Deputy Governor and Governor of Plateau State.

Jonah Jang — soldier and statesman, former Governor of Plateau State for eight years.

Gyang Dalyop Dantong and Gyang Pwajok — both Senators of the Federal Republic, both killed in one of Plateau's most devastating political assassinations.

Barnabas Dusu — the luminary who translated the entire Holy Bible into the Berom language — Bwok Basa Dagwi — ensuring that the Berom could worship God in their own tongue.

Justice Jummai Sankey — Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

Prof. Ishaya Pam — former Chief Medical Director of the Jos University Teaching Hospital.

These are not footnotes. These are pillars of Nigerian national life — sons and daughters of a people who came from Ethiopia, crossed deserts, resisted empires, climbed the Plateau hills, and refused to be erased.

TODAY — A PEOPLE UNDER SIEGE, BUT UNBROKEN

The Berom face their most sustained period of threat in modern history. Their communities in Riyom, Barkin Ladi, and Jos South have been the sites of repeated, devastating attacks. Their farmers have been killed on their ancestral farmlands. Their villages have been burned. Their children have been displaced from schools. Their senators were murdered.

And yet — the Nzem Berom festival still holds every April. The Gbong Gwom still sits on his throne. The Berom language is still spoken in homes from Riyom,zawan,Du,Ropp, kabong, Jishe,laranto Foron to Kuru. The Berom farmers still go to their fields.

A people who could not be conquered by Queen Amina's armies, by Usman Dan Fodio's jihad, by British colonial soldiers — will not be conquered by terror.

They are Berom. The hills chose them. The land remembers them. And history will vindicate them.

To every son and daughter of Berom land — from the hills of Riyom to the diaspora across the globe:

Your ancestors walked from Ethiopia to these hills. They built a civilization the archaeologists are still uncovering. They resisted every empire that came against them. They gave Nigeria governors, generals, judges, and senators.

**Rise in their honor. Protect what they built. Speak Berom. Celebrate Nzem. Guard the land of great grandfather....

The Gbong Gwom sits. The Great Python watches. And the Berom endure — as they always have.

🤝 Tag every proud Berom today. Let the world hear the name wurom.....

"I'm not that big. You people are bodyshaming me" — TikToker Jarvis reacts after being called "Mr Ibu" over her alleged weight gain.

IGBO IS NOT THE PROBLEM BUT THE SOLUTION: History has always been rewritten by the conquerors. Truth be told the European and British colonizers knew who we were and still are, it’s only us that don’t remember.

Now imagine your own history is not taught in your schools, even the most recent history of pre and post Biafra that will bring peace and unity when the real truth is out they influenced your government to take the subject called history out of secondary schools even though it was edited.

PAINFUL REALITY
Now when I used the word “They” and “Conquerors” I want you to remember that when Britain 🇬🇧 was leaving Nigeria 🇳🇬 they handed over Nigeria to the Fulani people and not Hausa people of Nigeria but another colonial power called Fulani.

Don’t be delusional Nigeria is not a 3 wise men country, the truth your ancestors who are crying endured was they were still being ruled and they rebelled against it with their blood sweat and tears in pains.

SOLUTION
Igbo is not the problem but the solution because only an Igbo man among the 3 wise men can look in the face of the colonial system and say it’s enough, the Yorubas and Hausa were conquered, the other powerful tribes like Tiv/ Idoma etc didn’t have the numbers,that’s why Benue in the middle belt is a major target by the pretentious colonizer wearing two masks (the fighter and savior 😂😂😂) because only Benue can support Igbo people to save Israel, Judah, Eden, Nigeria, African.

Wake up from your slumber be watchful of the elders and leaders who keep betraying and selling us out.

Honorable Anointing Orngu Agulebe

Sabali (Patiently)
Selah