There are over 520 native languages spoken in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

. The

official language An official language is defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as, "the language or one of the languages that is accepted by a country's government, is taught in schools, used in the courts of law, etc." Depending on the decree, establishmen ...

is English, which was the language of

Colonial Nigeria Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1st of October 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence. Britain Lagos Treaty of Cession, annexed Lagos Colony, Lagos in 1861 and established the Oil River ...

. The English-based creole ''

Nigerian Pidgin Nigerian Pidgin, also known simply as Pidgin or as Naijá in scholarship, is an English-based creole language spoken as a ''lingua franca'' across Nigeria. The language is sometimes referred to as ''Pijin'' or ''Vernacular''. Coming into existe ...

'' – first used by the British and African slavers to facilitate the

Atlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...

in the late 17th century – is the most common

lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, link language or language of wider communication (LWC), is a Natural language, language systematically used to make co ...

, spoken by over 60 million people. The most commonly spoken native languages are

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

(over 63 million when including second-language, or L2, speakers), Yoruba (over 47 million, including L2 speakers),

Igbo Igbo may refer to: * Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria * Igbo language, their language * anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria See also * Ibo (disambiguation) * Igbo mythology * Igbo music * Igbo art * * Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...

(over 31 million, including L2 speakers),

Ibibio Ibibio may refer to: *Ibibio language, Niger-Congo language of Nigeria *Ibibio people an ethnic group of southern Nigeria *Ibibio Sound Machine, an English electronic afro-funk band who sing in Ibibio See also * Ibiblio, a digital library and ar ...

(over 10 million, including L2 speakers),

Ijaw Ijaw may refer to: *Ijaw people The Ijaw people, also known as the Izon people, are an ethnic group found in the Niger Delta region in Nigeria, with primary Population, population clusters in Bayelsa State, Bayelsa, Delta State, Delta, and River ...

cluster (over 5 million),

Fulfulde Fula ( ),Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student's Handbook'', Edinburgh also known as Fulani ( ) or Fulah (, , ; Adlam: , , ; Ajami: , , ), is a Senegambian language spoken by around 36.8 million people as a set of various diale ...

(18 million), Kanuri (7.6 million), Tiv (5 million), and approximately 2 to 3 million each of

Nupe Nupe or NUPE may refer to: *Nupe people, of Nigeria *Nupe language, their language * Nupe River, in the Huánuco Region, Peru * Bida Emirate, also known as the Nupe Kingdom, their former state *A member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity in the Uni ...

Karai-Karai Karai-karai (Francophonic spelling: Karekare, Kerrikerri, Ajami: كاراي-كاراي) is the third largest Chadic language by number of speakers, and a language spoken in West Africa, most prominently North eastern Nigeria. The number of speak ...

Kupa The Kupa () or Kolpa ( or ; from in Roman Empire, Roman times; ) river, a right tributary of the Sava, forms a natural border between north-west Croatia and southeast Slovenia. It is long, with a length of serving as the border between Croati ...

, Kakanda,

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

Igala Igala or IGALA may refer to: * IGALA, the International Gender and Language Association, an interdisciplinary academic organization * Igala Kingdom, a pre-colonial West African state * Igala language, a Volta–Niger language * Igala people ...

, Mafa, Idoma and

Efik The Efik are an ethnic group located primarily in southern Nigeria, and western Cameroon. Within Nigeria, the Efik can be found in the present-day Cross River State and Akwa Ibom state. The Efik speak the Efik language which is a member of the ...

. Nigeria's linguistic diversity is a microcosm of much of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

as a whole, and the country contains languages from the three major African language families: Afroasiatic,

Nilo-Saharan The Nilo-Saharan languages are a proposed family of around 210 African languages spoken by somewhere around 70 million speakers, mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile rivers, including historic Nubia, north of where the two tributari ...

and Niger-Congo. Nigeria also has several as-yet

unclassified languages An unclassified language is a language whose genetic affiliation to other languages has not been established. Languages can be unclassified for a variety of reasons, mostly due to a lack of reliable data but sometimes due to the confounding inf ...

, such as Centúúm, which may represent a relic of an even greater diversity before the spread of the current language families.

English and Pidgin

English is the single most widely spoken language in Nigeria, spoken by 60 million of the population. It is the main lingua franca of the country and there are a growing number of sole English speakers due to rapid

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

and

globalization Globalization is the process of increasing interdependence and integration among the economies, markets, societies, and cultures of different countries worldwide. This is made possible by the reduction of barriers to international trade, th ...

. English remains the official language and is the major language of communication in government, business and education. Furthermore, the national anthem, constitution and pledge are written in English. Almost all mass media transmit information in English. English became the official language when Nigeria was created from diverse national groups by the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

. Despite decolonization, Nigeria chose to make English the official language to promote national cultural unity and so not to favour any particular native language. Despite its status, English is not widely spoken in rural areas. Many Nigerians struggle with English, evidenced by the 60 percent fail rate of the WASSCE in English (May/June 2015), an important exam certificate. Nevertheless, many Nigerians hold negative social attitudes towards the country's native languages, combining to lead to the neglect of Nigeria's many native languages. As such, there are fears from prominent linguists that Nigerian native languages are

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

and face eventual extinction. Pidgin, first used by British and African slavers to facilitate the

in the late 17th century, has replaced the native language for many Nigerians. Many Nigerians speak

, a

creole language A creole language, or simply creole, is a stable form of contact language that develops from the process of different languages simplifying and mixing into a new form (often a pidgin), and then that form expanding and elaborating into a full-fl ...

based on English, which is a popular social and cultural language. It has become popular in the mass media and in political slogans. According to a 2012 study, the replacement of native local languages with Pidgin is inevitable in the areas studied.

Afroasiatic languages

The

Afroasiatic language The Afroasiatic languages (also known as Afro-Asiatic, Afrasian, Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic) are a language family (or "phylum") of about 400 languages spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of the ...

s of Nigeria are divided into Chadic, Semitic and Berber. Among these categories,

Chadic The Chadic languages form a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken in parts of the Sahel. They include 196 languages spoken across northern Nigeria, southern Niger, southern Chad, and northern Cameroon. By far the most widely ...

languages predominate, with more than 700 languages. Semitic is represented by various dialects of

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

spoken in the Northeast and Berber by the Tuareg-speaking communities in the extreme Northwest. The

Hausa language Hausa (; / ; Hausa Ajami, Ajami: ) is a Chadic language spoken primarily by the Hausa people in the northern parts of Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Benin and Togo, and the southern parts of Niger, and Chad, with significant minorities in Ivory Coas ...

is the best known

language in Nigeria; though there is a paucity of statistics on native speakers in Nigeria, the language is spoken by 24 million people in West Africa and is the second language of 15 million more. Hausa has therefore emerged as ''

'' throughout much of West Africa, and the Sahel in particular. The language is spoken primarily amongst Northern Nigerians and is often associated with Islamic culture in Nigeria and West Africa on the whole. Hausa is classified as a West Chadic language of the

grouping, a major subfamily of Afroasiatic. Culturally, the

Hausa people The Hausa (Endonym, autonyms for singular: Bahaushe (male, m), Bahaushiya (female, f); plural: Hausawa and general: Hausa; exonyms: Ausa; Ajami script, Ajami: ) are a native ethnic group in West Africa. They speak the Hausa language, which is the ...

became closely integrated with the Fulani following the establishment of the

Sokoto Caliphate The Sokoto Caliphate (, literally: Caliphate in the Lands of Sudan), also known as the Sultanate of Sokoto, was a Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslim caliphate in West Africa. It was founded by Usman dan Fodio in 1804 during the Fula jihads, Fulani jihads ...

by the Fulani

Uthman dan Fodio Shehu Usman dan Fodio (; full name; 15 December 1754 – 20 April 1817). (Uthman ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman ibn Saalih ibn Haarun ibn Muhammad Ghurdu ibn Muhammad Jubba ibn Muhammad Sambo ibn Maysiran ibn Ayyub ibn Buba Baba ibn Musa Jokolli ibn ...

in the 19th century. Hausa is the

of several states in Northern Nigeria and the most important dialect is generally regarded as that spoken in

Kano Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria *Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State ** Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries ** Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom betwee ...

, an Eastern Hausa dialect, which is the standard variety used for official purposes. Eastern dialects also include some dialects spoken in

Zaria Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...

and

Bauchi Bauchi (Fula: ''Leydi Bauchi'' 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤦𞤢𞤵𞤷𞥅𞤭) is a States of Nigeria, state in the North East (Nigeria), North-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered by Jigawa State, Jigawa to the north, Yobe State, Y ...

; Western Hausa dialects include Sakkwatanchi spoken in

Sokoto Sokoto (Hausa language, Hausa: ; Fulfulde, Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Niger, Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 m ...

, Katsinanchi in Katsina Arewanchi in both

Gobir Gobir (Demonym: ''Gobirawa'') was a traditional state in what is now Nigeria. Founded by the Hausa in the 12th century, Gobir was one of the seven original kingdoms of Hausaland, and continued under Hausa rule for nearly 700 years. Its capital ...

and

Adar Adar (Hebrew: , ; from Akkadian ''adaru'') is the sixth month of the civil year and the twelfth month of the religious year on the Hebrew calendar, roughly corresponding to the month of March in the Gregorian calendar. It is a month of 29 days. ...

, Kebbi and

Zamfara Zamfara (; ; Adlam: ) is a state in northwestern Nigeria. The capital of Zamfara state is Gusau and its current governor is Dauda Lawal. Until 1996, the area was part of Sokoto State. Zamfara is a densely populated area with the Hausa. The ...

Katsina Katsina State ( ; 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤢𞥁𞤭𞤲𞤢) is a state in the northwestern geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered to the west by Zamfara State, to the east by Kano and Jigawa states, and to the south by Kaduna St ...

is transitional between Eastern and Western dialects. Northern Hausa dialects include

Arewa Arewa or Arewaland is a Hausa language, Hausa word which means "The North". The term is used to refer to Northern Nigeria general. The terms ' (literally "north") and Arewacin Nijeriya (literally "Northern Nigeria") are used in Hausa to refer to ...

and Arawa, whilst

is a prominent Southern version; Barikanchi is a

pidgin A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified form of contact language that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn f ...

formerly used in the military.

is a very atypical

language, with a reduced tonal system and a phonology influenced by

. Other well-known Chadic languages include Mupun, Ngas, Goemai, Mwaghavul, Bole, Ngizim, Bade and Bachama. In the East of Nigeria and on into Cameroon are the Central Chadic languages such as Bura, Kamwe and Margi. These are highly diverse and remain very poorly described. Many Chadic languages are severely threatened; recent searches by Bernard Caron for Southern Bauchi languages show that even some of those recorded in the 1970s have disappeared. However unknown Chadic languages are still being reported, such as the recent description of Dyarim. Hausa, as well as other Afroasiatic languages such as, Kamwe, Margi,

and Bade (another West Chadic language spoken in northeastern Nigeria), have historically been written in a modified

Arabic script The Arabic script is the writing system used for Arabic (Arabic alphabet) and several other languages of Asia and Africa. It is the second-most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world (after the Latin script), the second-most widel ...

known as '' ajami''. However, the modern official orthography is now a romanization known as ''boko'' introduced by the British regime in the 1930s.

Niger–Congo languages

Niger–Congo predominates in the Central, East and Southern areas of Nigeria; the main branches represented in Nigeria are

Mande Mande may refer to: * Mandé peoples of western Africa * Mande languages, their Niger-Congo languages * Manding languages, Manding, a term covering a subgroup of Mande peoples, and sometimes used for one of them, Mandinka people, Mandinka * Garo p ...

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

, Gur, Kwa, Benue–Congo and Adamawa–Ubangi. Mande is represented by the Busa cluster and Kyenga in the northwest.

is the single Atlantic language, of

Senegambia The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...

n origin but now spoken by cattle

pastoralists Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anima ...

across the

Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...

and largely in the northeastern states of Nigeria, especially Adamawa. The

Ijoid languages Ijoid is a proposed but undemonstrated group of languages linking the Ijaw languages (Ịjọ) with the endangered Defaka language. The similarities, however, may be due to Ijaw influence on Defaka. The Ijoid languages, or perhaps just Ijaw, a ...

are spoken across the

Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...

region and include Ịjọ (Ijaw), Kalabari, and the intriguing remnant language Defaka. The

Ibibio language Ibibio is the native language of the Ibibio people of Nigeria, belonging to the Ibibio-Efik dialect cluster of the Cross River languages. The name ''Ibibio'' is sometimes used for the entire dialect cluster. In pre- colonial times, it was written ...

is spoken across the coastal southeastern part of Nigeria and includes the dialects

Oron Oron may refer to: "Light" or someone that is "being able" or "capable" of doing anything posible or impossible. *Oron people a multi ethnic group of people living In the lower Cross River basin. *Oron Nation, one of the major states in the old Ca ...

Annang Anaang (also spelled Annang and Ànnang) is an ethnic group in Southern Nigeria, whose land is primarily within 8 of the present 31 Local Government Areas in Akwa Ibom State: Abak, Essien Udim, Etim Ekpo, Ika, Ikot Ekpene, Obot Akara, Oruk ...

, and

proper. The single

Gur language The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna regions of West Africa, namely: in most areas of Burkina Faso, and in south-central Mali, northeastern Ivor ...

spoken is Baatọnun, in the extreme Northwest. The Adamawa–Ubangian languages are spoken across a region spanning central Nigeria to the Central African Republic. In Nigeria, the westernmost languages of this group are the Tula-Waja languages. The Kwa languages are represented by the Gun group in the far southwest, which is related to the Gbe languages spoken in Benin and Togo. The classification of the remaining languages is controversial;

Joseph Greenberg Joseph Harold Greenberg (May 28, 1915 – May 7, 2001) was an American linguist, known mainly for his work concerning linguistic typology and the genetic classification of languages. Life Early life and education Joseph Greenberg was born on M ...

classified those without noun-classes, such as Yoruba, Igbo, and Ibibio (Efik, Oron, and Annang), as 'Eastern Kwa' and those with classes as ' Benue–Congo'. This was reversed in an influential 1989 publication and reflected on the 1992 map of languages, where all these were considered Benue–Congo. Recent opinion, however, has been to revert to Greenberg's distinction. The literature must thus be read with care and due regard for the date. There are several small language groupings in the Niger Confluence area, notably Ukaan, Akpes, Ayere-Ahan and Ọkọ, whose inclusion in these groupings has never been satisfactorily argued. Former Eastern Kwa, i.e. West Benue–Congo would then include Igboid, i.e.

Igbo language Igbo ( , ; Standard Igbo: ''Ásụ̀sụ́ Ìgbò'' ) is the principal native language cluster of the Igbo people, an ethnicity in the Southeastern part of Nigeria. Igbo languages are spoken by a total of 31 million people. The number of Igbo ...

proper, Ukwuani, Ikwerre, Ekpeye etc., Yoruboid, i.e. Yoruba,

Itsekiri The Itsekiri (also called the Isekiri, ''iJekri'', ''Itsekri'', ''Ishekiri'', or Itsekhiri) are an ethnic group who mainly inhabit Nigeria's Niger Delta area. They speak a Yoruboid languages, Yoruboid language and can be found in Ondo State, Ondo ...

and

, Akokoid (eight small languages in Ondo, Edo and Kogi state), Edoid including

(sometimes referred to as) Bini in

Edo State Edo State, Edo, officially known as Edo State, is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South Geopolitical zones of Nigeria, geopolitical zone of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As of 2024, the state was ranked as the List of Ni ...

Ibibio-Efik Central Ibibio is the major dialect cluster of the Cross River branch of Benue–Congo. Efik proper has national status in Nigeria and was erroneously made the literary standard of the Ibibio language, though Ibibio proper has more native sp ...

, Idomoid ( Idoma) and Nupoid (

) and perhaps include the other languages mentioned above. The

Idoma language Idoma (Ìdɔ́mà) is the second official language spoken in Benue State in southeast-central Nigeria, by approximately one million people (2020 estimate). The Idoma language is made up of the dialects of Agatu, Edumoga, Otukpo, Otukpa, Orokam, ...

is classified in the Akweya subgroup of the Idomoid languages of the Volta–Niger family, which include Alago, Agatu, Etulo and Yala languages of Benue, Nasarawa and Northern Cross River states. East Benue–Congo includes Kainji,

Plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

(46 languages, notably Gamai language), Jukunoid, Dakoid and some parts of Cross River. Apart from these, there are numerous

Bantoid languages Bantoid is a major branch of the Benue–Congo language family. It consists of the Northern Bantoid languages and the Southern Bantoid languages, a division which also includes the Bantu languages that constitute the overwhelming majority and afte ...

, which are the languages immediately ancestral to Bantu. These include Mambiloid, Ekoid of

Cross River State Cross River State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named for the Cross River, the state was formed from the eastern part of the Eastern Region on 27 May 1967. The state has its capital as Calabar and is bordered to ...

, Bendi, Beboid, Grassfields and

Tivoid languages The Tivoid languages are a branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in parts of Nigeria and Cameroon. The subfamily takes its name after Tiv language, Tiv, the most spoken language in the group. The majority are threatened with extinction ...

. Within the Benue-Congo languages, the expansive Bantu language family which covers much of central and southern Africa is represented in Nigeria by; Jarawa with around a quarter million speakers, making it the most spoken Bantu language in the country. Others include Mbula-Bwazza (100,000), Kulung (40,000), Labir (13,000),

Bile Bile (from Latin ''bilis''), also known as gall, is a yellow-green/misty green fluid produced by the liver of most vertebrates that aids the digestion of lipids in the small intestine. In humans, bile is primarily composed of water, is pro ...

and a few others. The geographic distribution of Nigeria's Niger-Congo languages is not limited to the middle east and south-central Nigeria, as migration allows their spread to the linguistically Afro-Asiatic northern regions of Nigeria, as well as throughout

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

and abroad. Igbo words such as 'unu' for 'you people', 'sooso' for 'only', 'obia' for 'native doctoring', etc. are used in patois of Jamaica and many Central American nations, Yoruba is spoken as a ritual language in cults such as the Santeria in the Caribbean and South-Central America, and the Berbice Dutch language in Surinam is based on an Ijoid language. Even the above listed linguistic diversity of the Niger–Congo in Nigeria is deceptively limiting, as these languages may further consist of regional dialects that may not be mutually intelligible. As such some languages, particularly those with a large number of speakers, have been standardized and received a romanized orthography. Nearly all languages appear in a Latin alphabet when written. The Ibibio, Igbo, and Yoruba languages are notable examples of this process. The more historically recent standardization and romanization of Igbo have provoked even more controversy due to its dialectical diversity, but the Central Igbo dialect has gained the widest acceptance as the standard-bearer. Many such as

Chinua Achebe Chinua Achebe (; born Albert Chinụalụmọgụ Achebe; 16 November 1930 – 21 March 2013) was a Nigerian novelist, poet, and critic who is regarded as a central figure of modern African literature. His first novel ''Things Fall Apart'' ( ...

have dismissed standardization as colonial and conservative attempts to simplify a complex mosaic of languages. Such controversies typify inter- and intra-ethnic conflict endemic to post-colonial Nigeria. Also worthy of note is the Enuani dialect, a variation of the Igbo that is spoken among parts of Anioma. The Anioma are the Aniocha, Ndokwa/Ukwuani, Ika and Oshimilli of Delta state.

Standard Yoruba Yoruba (, ; Yor. ) is a Niger-Congo language that is spoken in West Africa, primarily in Southwestern and Central Nigeria, Benin, and parts of Togo. It is spoken by the Yoruba people. Yoruba speakers number roughly 50 million, including arou ...

came into being due to the work of Samuel Crowther, the first African bishop of the

Anglican Church Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

and owes most of its lexicon to the dialects spoken in Ọyọ and

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the List of Nigerian cities by population, third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano (city), Kano, with a total populatio ...

. Since Standard Yoruba's constitution was determined by a single author rather than by a consensual linguistic policy by all speakers, the Standard has been attacked regarding for failing to include other dialects and spurred debate as to what demarcates "genuine Yoruba". Linguistically speaking, all demonstrate the varying

phonological Phonology (formerly also phonemics or phonematics: "phonemics ''n.'' 'obsolescent''1. Any procedure for identifying the phonemes of a language from a corpus of data. 2. (formerly also phonematics) A former synonym for phonology, often prefer ...

features of the Niger–Congo family to which they belong, these include the use of

tone Tone may refer to: Visual arts and color-related * Tone (color theory), a mix of tint and shade, in painting and color theory * Tone (color), the lightness or brightness (as well as darkness) of a color * Toning (coin), color change in coins * ...

, nasality, and particular

consonant In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract, except for the h sound, which is pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract. Examples are and pronou ...

and

vowel A vowel is a speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract, forming the nucleus of a syllable. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness a ...

systems; more information is available

here Here may refer to: Music * ''Here'' (Adrian Belew album), 1994 * ''Here'' (Alicia Keys album), 2016 * ''Here'' (Cal Tjader album), 1979 * ''Here'' (Edward Sharpe album), 2012 * ''Here'' (Idina Menzel album), 2004 * ''Here'' (Merzbow album), ...

Branches and locations

Below is a list of major Niger–Congo branches and their primary locations based on Blench (2019). In addition,

Ijaw languages The Ijaw languages (), also spelled Ịjọ, are the languages spoken by over 14 million Ijaw people in Nigeria. Classification The Ijo languages were traditionally considered a distinct branch of the Niger–Congo family (perhaps along with ...

are spoken in

Rivers State Rivers is a states of Nigeria, state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed on 27 May 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Nigeria, Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include Imo State, Im ...

Bayelsa State Bayelsa is a state in the South South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. The capital, Yenag ...

, and other states of the

region.

Mande languages The Mande languages are a family of languages spoken in several countries in West Africa by the Mandé peoples. They include Maninka (Malinke), Mandinka, Soninke, Bambara, Kpelle, Jula (Dioula), Bozo, Mende, Susu, and Vai. There are ar ...

are spoken in

Kebbi State Kebbi State (; Fulfulde: Leydi Kebbi 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤫𞤦𞥆𞤭) is a state in northwestern Nigeria, bordered to the east and north by the states of Sokoto and Zamfara, and to the south by Niger State while its western border ...

Niger State Niger State is a state in the North Central (Nigeria), North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kaduna State and the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory, to the north by Kebbi State and Zamfara State, ...

, and

Kwara State Kwara () is a state in Western Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kogi State, to the north by Niger State, and to the south by Ekiti, Osun, and Oyo states, while its western border makes up part of the international border with Benin. Its ca ...

Nilo-Saharan languages

In Nigeria, the

language family is represented by: *

Saharan languages The Saharan languages are a small family of languages across parts of the eastern Sahara, extending from northwestern Sudan to southern Libya, north and central Chad, eastern Niger and northeastern Nigeria. Noted Saharan languages include Kanuri ...

: ** Kanuri and Kanembu in the northeastern part of Nigeria in the states of Borno, Yobe and parts of Jigawa, and Bauchi states ** Teda in northern Nigeria *

Songhai languages The Songhay, Songhai or Ayneha languages (, or ) are a group of closely related languages/dialects centred on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the West African countries of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso and Nigeria. In particular, ...

: ** Zarma (Zabarma) and Dendi in

Zamfara State Zamfara (; ; Adlam script, Adlam: ) is a States of Nigeria, state in northwestern Nigeria. The capital of Zamfara state is Gusau and its current List of Governors of Zamfara State, governor is Dauda Lawal. Until 1996, the area was part of Soko ...

Sokoto State Sokoto ( Hausa: ; Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 miles), and the states of Zamf ...

near the border with the neighbouring countries of Niger and northern Benin, also in

Kaduna State Kaduna (, جىِهَر كَدُنا; مدينة كدونا; , ; ) is a States of Nigeria, state in the northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna (city), Kaduna, which was the List of Nigerian ...

Yobe State Yobe is a States of Nigeria, state located in northeastern Nigeria. A mainly agricultural state, it was created on 27 August 1991. Yobe State was carved out of Borno State. The capital of Yobe State is Damaturu, and its largest city by populati ...

and

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

trading community. *

Central Sudanic languages Central Sudanic is a family of about sixty languages that have been included in the proposed Nilo-Saharan language family. Central Sudanic languages are spoken in the Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Congo (DRC), N ...

: ** Lau Laka, a recently discovered

Central Sudanic Central Sudanic is a family of about sixty languages that have been included in the proposed Nilo-Saharan language family. Central Sudanic languages are spoken in the Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Congo (DRC), Nige ...

language of

Taraba State Taraba is a States of Nigeria, state in north-eastern Nigeria, named after the Taraba River, which traverses the southern part of the state. It is known as "Nature's Gift to the Nation". Its capital is Jalingo. The state's main Demographics ...

Foreign languages

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

is compulsory in all schools. In January 2016, the

Minister for Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

Anthony Anwukah announced a wish to make French the second language of business in Nigeria because the majority of African countries are

francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

and all of Nigeria's neighbouring countries are francophone.

List of languages

This is a non-exhaustive list of languages spoken in Nigeria.

Notes

Bibliographies

*Crozier, David & Blench, Roger (1992) ''An Index of Nigerian Languages (2nd edition)''. Dallas: SIL.mbembe language in cross river *Blench, Roger (1998) 'The Status of the Languages of Central Nigeria', in Brenzinger, M. (ed.) ''Endangered languages in Africa''. Köln: Köppe Verlag, 187–206
online version
*Blench, Roger (2002
Research on Minority Languages in Nigeria in 2001
''Ogmios''. *Blench, Roger (n.d.
Atlas of Nigerian Languages, ed. III
(revised and amended edition of Crozier & Blench 1992) *Kwache, Iliya Yame (2016) Kamwe People of Northern Nigeria :Origin, History and Culture *Chigudu, Theophilus Tanko (2017); Indigenous peoples of North clCentral Nigeria Area: an endangered race. * *Emenanjo, E. N. (2019). ''Four Decades in the Study of Nigerian Languages and Linguistics: A Festschrift for KayWilliamson.'' *Lamle, Elias Nankap, Coprreality and Dwelling spaces in Tarokland. NBTT Press. Jos Nigeria in "Ngappak" journal of the Tarok Nation 2005

External links

on Muturzikin.com
Ethnologue listing of Nigerian languages
{{Navboxes , title = Articles related to languages of Nigeria , list = {{Africa in topic, Languages of {{English dialects by continent {{English official language clickable map {{West Chadic languages {{Niger-Congo branches