The largest ethnic groups are the
Hausa and Fulani who are predominant in the northern part of the country, the Yoruba who are predominant
in the south-western part of the country and the Igbo (or Ibo) in the south-eastern
part of the country. These groups account for a fifth of the population of
Nigeria.
The
rest of Nigeria's ethnic groups, sometimes called 'minorities' are found all
over the country. These include the Edo ethnic group, who are predominant in the region between the Yorubaland and the
Igboland. Much of the Edo ethnic group tends to be Christian. This group
is followed by the Efik/Ibibio/Annang ethnic group who are of the coastal
south-southern Nigeria and the Ijaw
ethnic group who are of the Niger Delta.
The region of the central country is
also largely dominated by the minority ethnic groups known as the middle belt
which stretches across the country longitudinally which lacks designated boundaries.
The
Fulani, who are customarily nomadic, are spread all over West and Central
Africa and are predominantly Muslim. The Hausa are also predominantly Muslim
while the Igbo are predominantly Christian. The Efik/Ibibio/Annang ethnic group are mainly Christian. The
Yoruba have a balance of members that are believers of both Islam and
Christianity. Indigenous religious practices remain important in all of
Nigeria's ethnic groups, these beliefs are often combined with Christian
beliefs.
Nigeria is famous for English language
apart from the English speaking population, roughly a third of Nigeria's
population speak Pidgin English also known as broken English which is a
simplified form of the language. Nigerian pidgin English, is normally used in casual
conversation and is a mixture of the English language and Nigerian words, for
instance "How you dey na?" would be substituted for "How are you?".
In
the coming next article, we will delve into the different cultures in Nigeria.
Please don’t miss it.
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