ABSTRACT
Marriage among the Tiv is a complicated subject for several reasons. First, exchange marriage was not only the basic form of marriage but the standard: that is, other means of acquiring wives varied regionally in name, ceremony, and as to the status of the children. One of these forms with a common name, kem marriage, showed considerable variation in content. Secondly, exchange marriage was prohibited by Government order in 1927 and marriage with bridewealth was substituted and termed (by Tiv in collaboration with Government) kem marriage.1
