Culture & Etiquette

1. Naija

   Naija (Nigeria's nickname)

   Usage

   How Nigerians affectionately call their country; the Pidgin language is also known by this name

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

2. Nigerian Pidgin

   Nigerian Pidgin (the lingua franca)

   Usage

   A widely used common language between people of different groups, also used in broadcasts

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

3. Nollywood

   Nollywood (Nigeria's film industry)

   Usage

   The name for Nigerian cinema, one of the most productive in the world

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

4. Afrobeats

   Afrobeats (modern Nigerian-led pop music)

   Usage

   Written with a final s; the modern pop heard at parties and clubs

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

5. Afrobeat

   Afrobeat (the music created by Fela Kuti)

   Usage

   Afrobeat without the s is the separate genre born in the 1970s

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

6. Fela Kuti

   Fela Kuti (founder of Afrobeat)

   Usage

   A towering Nigerian musician, remembered in Lagos with an event each October

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

7. Highlife

   Highlife (West African popular music)

   Usage

   A light, guitar-led style still played at weddings and gatherings

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

8. Fuji music

   Fuji music (percussion-led Yoruba-area music)

   Usage

   Built on interlocking drums and often played at south-western parties

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

9. Juju music

   Juju music (guitar-and-drum popular music)

   Usage

   The name of a music style, not the charm called juju

   Grammar Note

   A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

10. Talking drum

    Talking drum (a drum that imitates speech tones)

    Usage

    Played under the arm, changing pitch so it sounds like speech

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

11. Agbada

    Agbada (a man's long ceremonial robe)

    Usage

    A big embroidered robe worn at weddings and religious events

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

12. Gele

    Gele (a woman's head wrap)

    Usage

    A bright cloth tied high on the head for special occasions

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

13. Fila

    Fila (a man's cap)

    Usage

    A soft cap worn with the agbada

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

14. Aso oke

    Aso oke (hand-woven traditional cloth)

    Usage

    A hand-woven cloth used for outfits on big occasions

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

15. Adire

    Adire (indigo-dyed cloth)

    Usage

    A traditional resist-dyed indigo cloth, popular as a souvenir

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

16. Nsibidi

    Nsibidi (an old system of symbols)

    Usage

    An old symbol system from the south-east

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

17. Benin Bronzes

    Benin Bronzes (court plaques and sculptures)

    Usage

    Works from the old Benin Kingdom's court; not the Republic of Benin

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

18. Nok culture

    Nok culture (known for ancient terracotta figures)

    Usage

    An ancient culture known for terracotta figures over two thousand years old

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

19. Naira

    Naira (Nigeria's currency)

    Usage

    One naira is 100 kobo; prices are said like "500 naira"

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

20. Super Eagles

    Super Eagles (the national football team)

    Usage

    The nickname of the national football team; people wear the green kit on match days

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

21. Dambe

    Dambe (traditional boxing of the north)

    Usage

    A fighting sport from the Hausa-speaking north

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

22. Owambe

    Owambe (a big, lavish party)

    Usage

    A celebration with matching outfits, loud music and lots of food

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

23. Naming ceremony

    Naming ceremony (for a new baby)

    Usage

    Family and friends gather to celebrate a baby a few days after the birth

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

24. Kola nut

    Kola nut (offered to welcome guests)

    Usage

    A bitter nut offered as a sign of welcome to guests

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

25. Chinua Achebe

    Chinua Achebe (author of Things Fall Apart)

    Usage

    One of Nigeria's best-known novelists, often named in bookshops and schools

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

26. Wole Soyinka

    Wole Soyinka (Nobel Prize-winning writer)

    Usage

    The playwright and poet who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

27. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (author)

    Usage

    A contemporary author known for Half of a Yellow Sun

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

28. Wizkid

    Wizkid (Afrobeats singer)

    Usage

    A Lagos-born singer with a worldwide audience

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

29. Burna Boy

    Burna Boy (Afrobeats singer)

    Usage

    A Port Harcourt-born singer with an international career

    Grammar Note

    A proper name, written as on signs, maps and menus and said as it is.

30. Water no get enemy.

    Water has no enemy (nobody can do without it)

    Usage

    A saying made famous by a Fela Kuti song, meaning something nobody can do without

    Grammar Note

    A Pidgin expression. no is the negator before the verb and get means "have".

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