Facts That You May Have Missed About Nigeria

Nigeria, also known as “The Federal Republic of Nigeria,” is one of 54 countries in Africa and has over 1.2 billion people. This post is to remind you of some facts that you may not be aware of or may have forgotten about Nigeria.

We are a country on the West Coast of the African continent that shares a border by land with other countries such as Cameroon and Chad in the east, Niger in the north, and Benin in the west. Nigeria’s coast is located in the Gulf of Guinea, which is in the northeastern part of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Britsh colonized Nigeria in the 18^th century and she officially gained independence from the United Kingdom on October 1, 1960. Independence Day is celebrated with much abundance and pride both at home and abroad.
The transatlantic slave trade started in Nigeria around the 16^thcentury. The coastal towns of Badagry and Calabar served as major ports for the export of thousands of slaves. These slaves were shipped off on huge slave ships to the Americas and Caribbean until the British Slavery Abolition Act took place in 1833.
The country has two major seasons which are the rainy and dry season and each lasts about half of the year but generally enjoys a hot climate.
With a population of over 195 million and over 250 ethnic groups, Nigeria is the most diverse and populated country on the African continent. Nigeria is also the 7^th most populated country in the world.
Nigeria has one of the largest deltas in the world, the Niger Delta River is the third largest delta.
In 1991, the capital was moved from Lagos and was replaced by the city of Abuja. Lagos is popularly tagged one of Nigeria’s busiest cities and also holds the record as the largest city on the African continent with over 21 million people living there.
The official language of Nigeria is English but there are over 500 other languages as well. Including English, the other major languages in Nigeria are Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo. Pidgin which is a mixture of English and native language is not an unofficial ‘official’ language as it is spoken widely in Nigeria.
Naira is the currency in Nigeria and as of July 2019, 1 United State Dollar is equivalent to 360 Nigerian Naira.
The Nigerian film industry, Nollywood, is the second largest feature film producer in the world. On average, the Nigerian film industry produces over 1,000 films per year. This number is right below the number of movies in India’s Bollywood and America’s Hollywood film industry.