Nigerian English

Nigerian English is spoken by well over 100 million people across Nigeria and the Nigerian diaspora, making it one of the largest English-speaking communities in the world. The rhythm is syllable-timed rather than stress-timed: every syllable gets roughly equal weight, which immediately distinguishes it from the flow of American or British speech. Vowel reduction is light, so words like office or computer keep their full vowel sounds where other varieties would weaken them. Underneath educated Nigerian English sits a substrate of Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa influences, plus a thriving parallel code (Nigerian Pidgin, sometimes called Naija) used widely in informal contexts. Distinctive vocabulary covers everything from gist (conversation, gossip) to wahala (trouble, drama). The variety carries Nollywood and Afrobeats globally; if you're listening to Burna Boy or Davido lyrics, you're hearing it.