Recounting History through Pristine Settlements: A Study of Selected Basa Toponyins in Nasarawa and Toto Local Governments of Nasarawa State

This paper studies Basa toponyms in Toto and Nasarawa local government councils of Nasarawa State. Every place name in most Nigerian and African settlements has narratives which constitute the symbolic historical narrative behind it. The study seeks to answer the question: What are the motivations and the narratives behind toponyms in Toto and Nasarawa local government councils of Nasarawa stale? Ethnographic data for the study were obtained through interviews and metalinguistic conversations in Basa speaking domains of Toto and Nasarawa local councils. The investigation adopted the linguistic descriptive method using the Leipzig Glossing Rule to interpret the data obtained. The facts in this study show that, while various approaches such as oral history, archaeology and other scientific methods can be used by researchers to study toponyms, a linguistic approach can also be adopted as an alternative complement. The findings from this study show that place names are historical preserving strategies and tools among the Bas& ethnic group in Toto and Nasarawa local government areas. The linguistic approach used in the study revealed that the place names examined in the study involves various grammatical structures through complex morphological processes to derive their surface forms. The commonest sources of nomination of Basa toponyms are geographical features, water bodies, vegetations, animals, ideology, personal names, ideophones, transfer of settlement names and social factors. The investigation unearths, reminds, teaches and preserves unknown stories encapsulated in these toponyms.