Below are some interesting facts about Nigeria.
Nigeria, officially called the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country located in West Africa made of 36 states. It is the most populous country in Africa, as well as the seventh most populous in the world. This article talks about the history of Nigeria, the country’s culture, religion, climate, and business opportunities.
History of Nigeria
The history of Nigeria goes back thousands of years, with archaeological evidence showing that there have been signs of human habitation in the region in as early as 9000 BCE. The area around the Benue and Cross River is thought to be where the Bantu migrants are originally from, the people who would be known for spreading human population across central and Southern Africa. There is also evidence that an ancient Egyptian style of social structure and religion was followed in Central Nigeria.
As what you can read in the history of Nigeria, foreigners originally came to the country not to conquer, but to trade. Spanish and Portuguese Explorers arrived in Nigeria in Lagos (which they named) and in Calabar. Eventually, however, the Europeans also began slave trading, leading to a large number of people belonging to Nigerian ethnicities being brought to foreign lands as slaves. Britain eventually abolished Nigerian slave trade in 1807. They also established the West Africa Squadron in order to try to halt slave trafficking.
In fact, Britain would grow on to be a superpower in Africa, claiming portions of West Africa as part of their colonies. In 1886, the Royal Niger Company was chartered under the leadership of Sir George Taubman Goldie. By 1900, the history of Nigeria saw the country as being put under the control of the British government, and January 1, 1901 was the official date of Nigeria becoming part of the British Empire as a protectorate.
The history of Nigeria eventually saw another series of momentous events following World War II, which would later lead to the country achieving independence and becoming a self-governing state. However, the troubles of Nigeria are far from over, as the country saw several coups and wars even after it gained its independence on October 1, 1960. Its democratic form of government came to an abrupt halt, becoming replaced by military rule. In 1999, it was able to re-achieve democracy with the election of Olusegun Obasanio as the new President of Nigeria.
Nigeria Culture and Religion
The culture, religion, and history of Nigeria is largely shaped by the multiple ethnic groups in the country, with the largest being the Hausa-Fulani of the North, the Igbo from the Southeast, and the Yoruba from the Southwest. These ethnic groups comprise 68% of the countrys population, while the Edo, Ijaw, Ibibio, Ebira, Kanuri, Tiv, and Nupe comprise 27%.
As with culture, Nigeria is composed of people following different religions. According to a 2009 survey, the population of Nigeria is divided into 50.4% Muslims, 48.2% Christians (comprised of Protestants, Catholics, and other Christian groups), and the rest belonging to other religions. The northern region is primarily Muslim, while the West is evenly divided between Muslims and Christians. The southeastern regions as well as the Niger Delta area are composed of a primarily Christian population.
Nigeria Climate and Weather
As with other parts of West Africa, Nigeria only has two seasons: dry and rainy. During the dry season, Nigeria experiences the Tropical Continental airmass, which is airmass coming from the Sahara Desert that carries a lot of dust in the region. The rainy season, on the other hand, sees the arrival of the Tropical Maritime airmass, which is airmass that comes from the South Atlantic Ocean.
Agriculture in Nigeria
Nigeria was originally an agricultural country. While it has since moved to other sources of income, it still remains to be a producer of crops, including cocoa, palm oil, coconuts, citrus fruits, maize, cassava, yams, sugar canes, and pearl millet.
Business in Nigeria
Nigeria’s economy is one of the fastest growing in the world, due to the numerous business opportunities in the region. The country is rich in natural resources, providing a lot of job and business opportunities for several people. Nigeria also has good telecommunications, transport, and legal sectors. The Nigerian stock exchange is also quite profitable for investors. The country is also rich in oil, and in fact actually supplies 1/5 of the oil demands of the United States.
It is not just the history of Nigeria that is rich; thanks to being blessed with bountiful natural resources and hardworking people, Nigeria is set to become a country that has one of the most powerful economies in the world, and is in now part of the Next Eleven to prove just that.
