| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Nigerian-born residents 312,000 [1] (2021 Official data) 215,000 (2019 ONS estimate) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Throughout the United Kingdom In particular Greater London, South East England, East of England, North West England | |
| Languages | |
| Predominantly English (British, Nigerian, Pidgin), Yoruba and Igbo Others Nigerian languages | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Christianity, minority Sunni Islam, traditional religions | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Nigerian Canadians, Nigerian Americans, Nigerian Australians |
| Part of a series on |
| British people |
|---|
| United Kingdom |
| Eastern European |
| Northern European |
| Southern European |
| Western European |
| Central Asian |
| East Asian |
| South Asian |
| Southeast Asian |
| West Asian |
| African and Afro-Caribbean |
| Northern American |
| South American |
| Oceanian |
British Nigerians (here meaning British people of Nigerian descent [2] [3] rather than Nigerians of British descent) have formed long-established communities in London, Liverpool and other industrial cities. Many Nigerians and their British-born descendants in Britain live in South London, and they are one of the larger immigrant groups in the country. [4]
Nigerians have formed long-established communities in London, Liverpool and other industrial cities. The earliest known Nigerian presence in London took place over 200 years ago as a direct result of the transatlantic slave trade. Olaudah Equiano, born in what is now Nigeria and a former slave, lived in London and was involved in the debate that occurred in Britain over the abolition of the slave trade. [5]
Like many other former British colonies, Nigeria has been a large source of immigrants to the United Kingdom. Prior to Nigerian independence from Britain, gained in 1960, many Nigerians studied in the UK along with other countries such as Australia and the United States; with the majority returning to Nigeria upon completion of their higher education. [6] [7] In the 1960s, civil and political unrest in Nigeria contributed to many refugees migrating to Britain, along with skilled workers. [5]
Nigerians emigrated in larger numbers in the 1980s, following the collapse of the petroleum boom. [6] This wave of migration has been more permanent than the pre-independence wave of temporary migration. [6] Asylum applications from Nigerians peaked in 1995, when the repression associated with the military dictatorship of Sani Abacha was at its height. [6]
In 2015, Britain's Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner expressed concerns about the extent of contemporary slavery involving Nigerians smuggled to the UK. Of more than 2,000 potential victims of human trafficking referred to the National Crime Agency in 2014, 244 were from Nigeria. This represented a 31 per cent increase on 2013's figure. According to the BBC, "Campaigners believe the real figure of potential trafficking victims from Nigeria could be much higher". [8]
| Location | Nigerian-born population (2011) [9] [10] [11] | Largest Community in 2011 |
|---|---|---|
| East Midlands | 6,601 | Nottingham - 1,872 |
| East of England | 15,557 | Essex - 2,787 |
| London | 114,718 | London Borough of Southwark - 13,588 |
| North East England | 2,768 | Newcastle Upon Tyne - 1,226 |
| North West England | 13,903 | Manchester - 6,444 |
| South East England | 16,273 | Kent - 3,100 |
| South West England | 3,941 | Bristol - 1,124 |
| West Midlands | 8,628 | Birmingham - 3,399 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 6,301 | Leeds - 1,744 |
| Northern Ireland | 543 | Belfast [ citation needed ] |
| Scotland | 9,458 | Glasgow [ citation needed ] |
| Wales | 2,493 | Cardiff - 696 |
The 2001 UK Census recorded 88,378 Nigerian-born people resident in the UK. [12] The 2011 Census recorded 191,183 Nigerian-born residents in England and Wales. [9] The censuses of Scotland and Northern Ireland recorded 9,458 and 543 Nigerian-born residents respectively. [10] [11] More recent estimates by the Office for National Statistics put the figure at 215,000 in 2019. [13]
A Council of Europe report gives a figure of 100,000 Nigerians in the UK but suggests that this is likely to be an underestimate since it does not include irregular migrants or children born outside of Nigeria. Similarly, Nigerians with citizenship of another EU member state who then relocated to the UK are not necessarily included in this estimate. The report suggests to multiply the figure by between 3 and 8 to reflect the size of the Nigerian community in the UK. [14]
The UK's largest concentration of Nigerians is found in the capital city, London. Peckham is now home to the largest overseas Nigerian community in the UK, with 7% of the population of the Peckham census tract at the time of the 2001 UK Census having been born in Nigeria. [15] Many of the local establishments are Yoruba and Igbo owned. [16] Nigerian churches and mosques can be found in the area. As immigrants have become assimilated, English has always been the predominant language of the local Nigerian British population as English is the main spoken language in Nigeria. The Yoruba language and the Igbo language are declining in use in the Peckham area despite the growing Nigerian population of Igbo and Yoruba descent. [4] Outside London and South East England, the largest Nigerian-born communities are found in the East of England and the North West. [15]
Below is a table showing how many Nigerians were granted British citizenship and the right of abode in the period 1998 to 2008.
| Persons granted citizenship | |
|---|---|
| 1998 | 3,550 [17] |
| 1999 | 3,481 [18] |
| 2000 | 5,594 [19] |
| 2001 | 6,290 [20] |
| 2002 | 6,480 [21] |
| 2003 | 6,300 [22] |
| 2004 | 6,280 [23] |
| 2005 | 6,615 [24] |
| 2006 | 5,875 [25] |
| 2007 | 6,030 [26] |
| 2008 | 4,530 [27] |
| 2009 | 6,955 [28] |
In England and Wales in 2011, 14,914 people (0.03% of all residents aged three and over) spoke Yoruba as a main language, 7,946 (0.01%) spoke Igbo and 6,639 (0.01%) spoke other Nigerian languages. [29] In London, 10,119 people (0.13% of all residents aged three and over) spoke Yoruba as a main language, 5,252 (0.07%) people spoke Igbo and 3,577 (0.05%) spoke other Nigerian languages. [30]
According to the Institute for Public Policy Research, Nigerian pupils are among best performing student groups in the United Kingdom. Taking data for only England, a 2013 IPPR survey reported that the proportion of British Nigerian pupils gaining 5 A*–C grades at GCSE (including Maths and English) in 2010–2011 was 21.8 percentage points higher than the England mean of 59.6 per cent. This average was calculated using student data, where available, from various local authorities in England. [31]
The number of Nigerian pupils at British private schools is growing. In November 2013, The Spectator noted that Nigerians, along with Russians, "are now the fastest-growing population in British private schools". [32] In 2013, the number of entrants to private schools from Nigeria increased by 16 per cent. [33]
According to Higher Education Statistics Agency data, 17,620 students from Nigeria were studying at British public higher education institutions in the academic year 2011–12. This made them the third largest country-of-origin group behind students from China and India. Of the 17,620, 6,500 were undergraduates, 9,620 taught postgraduates and 1,500 research postgraduates. [34]
Research by Euromonitor International for the British Council indicates that in 2010, the majority (66 per cent) of Nigerian foreign students attended universities in the UK. The students are mainly drawn to these institutions' English language academic system. Their time studying in Britain is also facilitated by an established and large Nigerian community and by "the relative proximity of the UK to Nigeria". [35]
The history of Nigeria can be traced to the earliest inhabitants whose remains date from at least 13,000 BC through early civilizations such as the Nok culture which began around 1500 BC. Numerous ancient African civilizations settled in the region that is known today as Nigeria, such as the Kingdom of Nri, the Benin Empire, and the Oyo Empire. Islam reached Nigeria through the Bornu Empire between and Hausa Kingdom during the 11th century, while Christianity came to Nigeria in the 15th century through Augustinian and Capuchin monks from Portugal to the Kingdom of Warri. The Songhai Empire also occupied part of the region. Through contact with Europeans, early harbour towns such as Calabar, Badagry and Bonny emerged along the coast after 1480, which did business in the transatlantic slave trade, among other things. Conflicts in the hinterland, such as the civil war in the Oyo Empire, meant that new enslaved people were constantly being "supplied".
The culture of Nigeria is shaped by Nigeria's multiple ethnic groups. The country has 527 languages, seven of which are extinct. Nigeria also has over 1150 dialects and ethnic groups. The three largest ethnic groups are the Hausas that are predominantly in the north, the Yorubas who predominate in the southwest, and the Igbos in the southeast. There are many other ethnic groups with sizeable populations across the different parts of the country. The Kanuri people are located in the northeast part of Nigeria, the Tiv people of north central and the Efik-Ibibio are in the south South. The Bini people are most frequent in the region between Yorubaland and Igboland.
Nigerian Americans are Americans who are of Nigerian ancestry. The number of Nigerian immigrants residing in the United States is rapidly growing, expanding from a small 1980 population of 25,000. The 2022 American Community Survey (ACS) estimated that 712,294 residents of the U.S.A were of Nigerian ancestry. The 2019 ACS further estimated that around 392,811 of these (85%) had been born in Nigeria. Which puts the total Nigerian American population a little over 400,000.
Filipinos in the United Kingdom are British citizens or immigrants who are of Filipino ancestry.
British Jamaicans are British people who were born in Jamaica or who are of Jamaican descent. The community is well into its third generation and consists of around 300,000 individuals, the second-largest Jamaican population, behind the United States, living outside of Jamaica. The Office for National Statistics estimates that in 2015, some 137,000 people born in Jamaica were resident in the UK. The number of Jamaican nationals is estimated to be significantly lower, at 49,000 in 2015.
Latin American migration to the United Kingdom dates back to the early 19th century. However, before the 1970s, when political and civil unrest became rife in many Latin American countries, the United Kingdom's Latin American community was not particularly large. Economic migration to the United Kingdom has since increased. Brazilian and Colombian-born residents are the two largest groups standing at 95,000 and 36,000 respectively as of 2019. A number of refugees and asylum seekers moved to the UK during the late 20th century, however, since the turn of the century, Latin Americans have been migrating to the UK for a wide range of reasons and at present the community consists of people from all walks of life. The UK is also home to British-born people of Latin American ancestry. During the 2008–2014 Spanish financial crisis, Britain also became one of the favourite European destinations for some of the roughly 1.4 million Latin Americans who had acquired Spanish citizenship.
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British journalist Flora Shaw, who later married Baron Frederick Lugard, a British colonial administrator. Nigeria is composed of various ethnic groups and cultures and the term Nigerian refers to a citizenship-based civic nationality. Nigerians are derived from over 250 ethno-linguistic groups. Though there are multiple ethnic groups in Nigeria, economic factors result in significant mobility of Nigerians of multiple ethnic and religious backgrounds to reside in territories in Nigeria that are outside their ethnic or religious background, resulting in the mixing of the various ethnic and religious groups, especially in Nigeria's cities. The English language is the lingua franca of Nigerians. Nigeria is divided roughly in half between Muslims, who live mostly in the north, and Christians, who live mostly in the south; indigenous religions, such as those native to the Igbo and Yoruba ethnicities, are in the minority.
Anti-Igbo sentiment encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards the Igbo people. The Igbo people make up all of south-eastern Nigeria and a part of South-South and Middle Belt Nigeria's geopolitical zones. Igbophobia is observable in critical and hostile behaviour such as political and religious discrimination and violence towards the Igbo.
Colombians in the United Kingdom or Colombian Britons include British citizens or residents who are of Colombian ancestry. According to the 2011 UK Census, the Colombian-born population of England was 25,016, Wales 166, Scotland 507 and Northern Ireland 72.
Mexicans in the United Kingdom or Mexican Britons include Mexican-born immigrants to the United Kingdom and their British-born descendants. Although a large percentage of Mexican-born people in the UK are international students, many are also permanently settled and work in the UK as the community expands into its second generation.
Ecuadorians in the United Kingdom include people of Ecuadorian ancestry living in the United Kingdom, who have been born or raised in the UK. They can be either British citizens or non-citizen immigrants.
Barbadian British people, Bajan Brits or British Barbadians, are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ethnic origins lie fully or partially in the Caribbean island of Barbados. The UK is home to the second largest Barbadian-born migrant population out of all the OECD countries, with the 2001 Census recording 21,601 UK residents born on the Caribbean island, compared to the 53,785 Barbadian-born residents of the United States.
Algerians in the United Kingdom are residents of the UK with ancestry from Algeria. They include Algerian-born immigrants and their British-born descendants.
According to the 2022 census, there were 8,368 resident Nigerians in Ireland in 2022. 20,559 persons usually resident in the state in 2022 were born in Nigeria, an increase of 3,990 since 2016. They constitute the largest African group in the country.
Nigerian nationality law is regulated by the Constitution of Nigeria, as amended, and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Nigeria. The legal means to acquire nationality, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as citizenship. Nationality describes the relationship of an individual to the state under international law, whereas citizenship is the domestic relationship of an individual within the nation. Commonwealth countries often use the terms nationality and citizenship as synonyms, despite their legal distinction and the fact that they are regulated by different governmental administrative bodies. Nigerian nationality is typically obtained under the principal of jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth to parents with Nigerian nationality. It can be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country, or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalisation.
Yoruba Americans are Americans of Yoruba descent. The Yoruba people are a West African ethnic group that predominantly inhabits southwestern Nigeria, with smaller indigenous communities in Benin and Togo.
Nigerian Australians are Australian citizens and residents of Nigerian origin or descent. The Nigerian-born form one of the fastest-growing migrant groups in Australia.
The Ìjẹ̀bú people are a Yoruba subgroup hailing from Nigeria. They are a part of the broader Yoruba people who are native to south-central Yorubaland, located in the southwest of the country. The Ijebu people speak the Ijebu dialect, a dialect of the Yoruba language.
BBC Yoruba is the Yoruba language service of the BBC World Service meant primarily for the Yoruba-speaking communities in Nigeria, Benin Republic, Togo and Yoruba speakers in diaspora. It is part of the 12 new language services incorporated by the BBC World Service. The other languages are Afaan Oromo, Amharic, Gujarati, Igbo, Korean, Marathi, Pidgin, Punjabi, Telugu and Tigrinya.
BBC Igbo is the Igbo language service of BBC World Service meant primarily for the Igbo-speaking communities in the south-east, South-south of Nigeria and Igbo people in diaspora. It is part of the 12 new language services added to the BBC services and the other languages are Afaan Oromo, Amharic, Gujarati, Yoruba, Korean, Marathi, Pidgin, Punjabi, Telugu and Tigrinya.
Nigerian diaspora | ||
|---|---|---|
| Africa |  | |
| Americas | ||
| Asia | ||
| Europe | ||
| Oceania | ||
