Culture

List Of Languages In Nigeria And Their States

List Of Languages In Nigeria And Their States. Get A Detailed List Of The Languages We Have In Nigeria. Check This Post For More.

List Of Languages In Nigeria And Their States

People basically think we have just 3 languages in Nigeria which is the Yoruba, the Igbo and the Hausa but I will shock you to tell you that we have a lot more of Languages in Nigeria than you would ever imagine. Are you looking for a list of all the languages we have in Nigeria? Then you are definitely on the right page for this information. In this article today, we are going to look at all the languages in Nigeria and all the states they are peculiar to. Sounds interesting right? Before we have a list of all the languages we have in Nigeria, it is best we look at what a language really is do that we do not confuse it for something else. Let’s get started!

What does a language mean?

A language in simple and clear terms refers to the method or manner of human communication. It should be noted that a language can be written or be spoken and can sometimes even be in signs. Every language has its own origin as well. A language should be one that is properly structured.

Read Also: Traditional Marriage Rites In Edo State, Nigeria

What are the languages we have in Nigeria and what states are they from?

Like I said earlier, there are a lot more of languages we have in Nigeria than you would ever think of. There are more than 500 languages in Nigeria. We cannot look at the totality of all the Languages we have in Nigeria in just this ingle article. To this end, I have put a list of all the languages we have in Nigeria below according to their states while giving a brief note on the top 10 most common languages we have in Nigeria:

Most Common Languages Spoken In Nigeria

1. Hausa

The first language we have on our list as the most common spoken language we have in Nigeria. It is said that about 70 million people in Nigeria speak Hausa as a native language, while this is a native language for millions of Nigerians; it is also a second language for millions of Nigerian as well. Did you know that? The Hausa language as a native language is peculiar with people in the northern part of Nigeria.

2. Igbo

The second language we have in Nigeria that is considered to be one of the widely spoken language is the Igbo language. It is said that about 25 million people in Nigeria speak the Igbo language. This particular language is peculiar with people that are native of the Eastern part of Nigeria. One thing you should note is that Igbo language is not spoken in Nigeria alone but in some other countries as minority language.

3. Yoruba

The third language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Yoruba language. This particular language is said to be spoken by more than 20 million people in Nigeria both as first language and second language. This particular language is also peculiar with people in the western part of Nigeria. Again, Yoruba is not only spoken in Nigeria but in other countries in the world.

Read Also: Efik And Calabar Traditional Marriage List And Requirement

4. Fulfulde

The fourth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Fulfulde.  This particular language is peculiar with the Fulani people in the northern part of Nigeria. This Language is a native language for some people in Kano state, Kastina state, Sokoto state etc.

5. Kanuri

The fifth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Kanuri. Kanuri is peculiar to the Northern states in Nigeria. Kanuri is said to be spoken by about 3 million people in Nigeria.

6. Ijaw

The sixth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Ijaw. This particular language is spoken by the people in some parts of Delta, Ondo, Bayelsa and Ekiti state. Many times, it is considered to be a language of the people of some parts of the southern Nigeria.

7. Pidgin

The seventh language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Pidgin language. Every body in Nigeria must have heard about the pidgin language and a wide range of people in Nigeria are able to speak it regardless of what region or state they come from. The pidgin Language is however widely spoken in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

8. Tiv

The eighth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Tiv language. This particular language is mostly associated with people from the Benue state although we have other people in other parts of Nigeria that speak it.

9. Ibibio

The ninth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Ibibio language. Over a million people in Nigeria speak the Ibibio language. It is widely associated with people from the Awka ibom and cross river states.

10. Edo

The tenth language on our list that is considered to be one of the widely spoken languages in Nigeria is the Edo language. Just as the name implies, it is widely spoken by people in Edo state.

Apart from this languages which I have mentioned above, here is a list of some states and how many languages they have or speak in the state:

List Of Languages In Nigeria And Their States

1. Adamawa

There are about 58 languages spoken in Adamawa state alone.

2. Bauchi State

There are about 60 languages or more spoken in Bauchi state alone.

3. Bayelsa State

In Bayelsa state alone, there are about 10 languages.

4. Benue State

There are about 14 languages spoken in Benue State.

5. Borno State

There are about 28 languages that are spoken in Borno state alone.

Read Also: Traditional Marriage Rites in Igbo Land, Bridal List And All You Must know

6. Cross River State

There are about 50 languages or more that are existent in Cross river state.

7. Delta state

There are about 11 languages spoken in Delta state alone.


We Believe This Article Was Helpful, Don’t Hesitate To Share This Information With Your Friends On Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and Google plus.
Copyright Warning: Contents on this website may not be republished, reproduced, redistributed either in whole or in part without due permission or acknowledgement. All contents are protected by DMCA.
The content on this site is posted with good intentions. If you own this content & believe your copyright was violated or infringed, make sure you contact us via This Means to file a complaint & actions will be taken immediately.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button