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Federal Republic of Nigeria

Nigeria location
Изображение-2: 

Official language – English
Capital – Abuja
Other Major Cities: Lagos (Largest city, more than 15 mln people), Ibadan, Kano and at least 7 other cities with a population of over 1 million
The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was coined by Flora Shaw, the future wife of Baron Lugard, a British colonial administrator, in the late 19th century http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria
National holiday – Independence Day, 1 October (1960) (from the United Kingdom)
Government type – Federal presidential republic

Border countries: Benin (in the west), Chad and Cameroon (in the east), Niger (in the north). Its coast in the south lies on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean.

Area – 923,768 sq km
Natural resources: Nigeria's natural resources include but are not limited to petroleum, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc, natural gas, hydropower, and arable land
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Nigeria
and niobium. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ni.html

Population – 206,1 mln (2020, UNCTAD)
The people of Nigeria have an extensive history. Archaeological evidence shows that human habitation of the area dates back to at least 9000 BC. The area around the Benue and Cross River is thought to be the original homeland of the Bantu migrants who spread across most of central and southern Africa in waves between the 1st millennium BC and the 2nd millennium.

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and the seventh most populous country in the world. Its oil reserves have brought great revenues to the country. It is listed among the "Next Eleven" economies, and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

According to the United Nations, Nigeria has been undergoing explosive population growth and one of the highest growth and fertility rates in the world. By their projections, Nigeria is one of eight countries expected to account collectively for half of the world's total population increase from 2005–2050.
According to current data, one out of every four Africans is Nigerian. Presently, Nigeria is the seventh most populous country in the world, and even conservative estimates conclude that more than 20% of the world's black population lives in Nigeria
Health, health care, and general living conditions in Nigeria are poor. Life expectancy is 47 years (average male/female) and just over half the population has access to potable water and appropriate sanitation.
Education is in a state of neglect. After the 1970s oil boom, tertiary education was improved so that it would reach every subregion of Nigeria. Education is provided free by the government, but the attendance rate for secondary education is only 29% (32% for males, 27% for females). 68% of the population is literate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Demographics

Nigeria has six cities with a population of over 1 million people (from largest to smallest: Lagos, Kano, Ibadan, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Benin City). Lagos is the largest city in sub-Saharan Africa, with a population of over 8 million in its urban area alone.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Geography

Nigeria has more than 250 ethnic groups, with varying languages and customs, creating a country of rich ethnic diversity. The largest ethnic groups are the Fulani/Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, accounting for 62% of population, while the Edo, Ijaw, Kanuri, Ibibio, Ebira, Nupe, Gwari, Itsekiri, Jukun, Urhobo, Igala, Idoma and Tiv comprise 33%; other minorities make up the remaining 5%. The middle belt of Nigeria is known for its diversity of ethnic groups, including the Pyem, Goemai, and Kofyar. The official population count of each of Nigeria's ethnicities has always remained controversial and disputed as members of different ethnic groups believe the census is rigged to give a particular group (usually believed to be northern groups) numerical superiority.

There are small minorities of British, American, East Indian, Chinese (est. 50,000), white Zimbabwean Japanese, Greek, Syrian and Lebanese immigrants in Nigeria. Immigrants also include those from other West African or East African nations. These minorities mostly reside in major cities such as Lagos and Abuja, or in the Niger Delta as employees for the major oil companies. A number of Cubans settled in Nigeria as political refugees following the Cuban Revolution.

In the middle of the 19th century, a number of ex-slaves of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian descent and emigrants from Sierra Leone established communities in Lagos and other regions of Nigeria. Many ex-slaves came to Nigeria following the emancipation of slaves in the Americas. Many of the immigrants, sometimes called Saros (immigrants from Sierra Leone) and Amaro (ex-slaves from Brazil) later became prominent merchants and missionaries in these cities.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Ethno-linguistic_groups

The number of languages currently estimated and catalogued in Nigeria is 521. This number includes 510 living languages, two second languages without native speakers and nine extinct languages. In some areas of Nigeria, ethnic groups speak more than one language. The official language of Nigeria, English, was chosen to facilitate the cultural and linguistic unity of the country. The choice of English as the official language was partially related to the fact that a part of the Nigerian population spoke English as a result of British colonization that ended in 1960.

The major languages spoken in Nigeria represent three major families of African languages: the majority are Niger–Congo languages, such as Yoruba and Igbo; the Hausa language is Afro-Asiatic; and Kanuri, spoken in the northeast, primarily Borno State, is part of the Nilo-Saharan family. Even though most ethnic groups prefer to communicate in their own languages, English as the official language is widely used for education, business transactions and for official purposes. English as a first language is used only by a small minority of the country's urban elite, and it is not spoken at all in some rural areas. Hausa is the most widely spoken of the three main languages spoken in Nigeria itself (Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba) but unlike the Yorubas and Igbos, the Hausas tend not to travel far outside Nigeria itself.
With the majority of Nigeria's populace in the rural areas, the major languages of communication in the country remain indigenous languages. Some of the largest of these, notably Yoruba and Igbo, have derived standardized languages from a number of different dialects and are widely spoken by those ethnic groups. Nigerian Pidgin English, often known simply as 'Pidgin' or 'Broken' (Broken English), is also a popular lingua franca, though with varying regional influences on dialect and slang. The pidgin English or Nigerian English is widely spoken within the Niger Delta Regions, predominately in Warri, Sapele, Port Harcourt, Agenebode, Ewu, and Benin City
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Language

Religion
Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10%
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ni.html
Nigeria is roughly divided in half between Muslims, concentrated mostly in the north, and Christians, who mostly live in the South. A very small minority practice traditional religions, although the rate of syncretism is high. Since 2002 there have been a spate of clashes, particularly in the North of the country, between government forces and the Islamist group Boko Haram, militant jihadists who seek to establish sharia law.
Nigeria is home to a variety of religions which tend to vary regionally. This situation accentuates regional and ethnic distinctions and has often been seen as a source of sectarian conflict amongst the population. Even though, Nigeria is apparently divided equally between Islam and Christianity between north and south, it is evident that across Nigeria there is widespread belief, albeit suppressed for political reasons, in traditional religious practices.
Among Christians, 27.8% are Catholic, 31.5% are Protestant and 40.7% belong to other Christian denominations. The core north is largely Muslim, there are large numbers of both Muslims and Christians in the Middle Belt, including the Federal Capital Territory. In the west of the country, especially in the Yorubaland, the population is said to be evenly divided between Muslims and Christians, while in the southeastern regions are predominantly Christians with widespread traditional beliefs, Catholics, Anglicans, and Methodists are the majority with few traditional beliefs, while the Niger Delta region is mainly Christian.
The majority of Nigerian Muslims are Sunni, but a significant Shia and Sufi minority exists (see Shia in Nigeria) and a small minority of Ahmadiyya. Some northern states have incorporated Sharia law into their previously secular legal systems, which has brought about some controversy. Kano State has sought to incorporate Sharia law into its constitution.
Christian Nigerians are about evenly split between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Leading Protestant churches are the Church of Nigeria, of the Anglican communion, Assemblies of God Church, Nigeria, Redeemed Christian Church of God, the Nigerian Baptist Convention and The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations. The Yoruba area contains a large Anglican population, while Igboland is predominantly Catholic and the Edo area is predominantly Assemblies of God which was introduced into Nigeria by Augustus Ehurie Wogu and his associates at Old Umuahia.
Across Yorubaland in the west many people are adherents to Yorubo/Irunmole spirituality with its philosophy of divine destiny that all can become Orisha (ori, spiritual head; sha, is chosen: to be one with Olodumare (oni odu, the God source of all energy; ma re, enlighthens / triumphs).
Other minority religious and spiritual groups in Nigeria include Hinduism, Judaism, The Bahá’í Faith, and Chrislam (a syncretic faith melding elements of Christianity and Islam). Further, Nigeria has become an African hub for the Grail Movement[citation needed] and the Hare Krishnas, and the largest temple of the Eckankar religion is in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, with a total capacity of 10,000.

Calling code: 234