This study investigates the psycho-semantics of emotional expressions in Tiv, examining how emotional meaning is constructed, conveyed, and interpreted within Tiv cultural contexts. Motivated by the limited scholarly attention to the psychological dimensions of Tiv emotional language, the study addresses a significant gap left by earlier works that focused primarily on phonology, syntax, and general semantics.

Using a qualitative descriptive methodology supported by field interviews and linguistic analysis, the study explores the lexical, syntactic, and prosodic features underlying Tiv emotional expressions and endearment terms. Findings reveal that Tiv emotional language encodes complex psychological states through tone, metaphor, and culturally grounded expressions, providing insight into how speakers interpret and communicate emotion. The study contributes to semantics, psycholinguistics, and indigenous language documentation by offering a culturally specific account of emotional meaning-making previously lacking in the literature.