Waja

Jonathan Demenongo Ndera (Ph.D.)
Department of Archaeology
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

Abstract
This paper is a report of the recent archaeological excavations carried out on the northeastern
part of the Katsina Ala basin in the middle Benue valley of Nigeria. Archaeological
investigations started on the northeastern part of the Katsina Ala basin in the 1950s but this
was not sustained until the 1970s when the staff of the Department of Archaeology,
University of Ibadan initiated an archaeological research scheme for the Benue Valley.
Between 1980 and 2008, the northeastern part of the Katsina Ala basin witnessed series of
archaeological investigations leading to the location of historical and archaeological sites,
understanding of settlement behaviour and the history of origin and migration of different
groups in the Benue Valley. This paper is a report of the excavations conducted on and
around Dikpo hill in Mbagena-Shitire, a Tiv group inhabiting the northeastern part of the
Katsina Ala Basin. Though archaeological investigations have contributed immensely to the
understanding of the settlement history of the Shitire, the investigations would be more
rewarding if they are expanded and sustained over a period of time.