Nigerian Culture Research Paper

NIGERIA, THE UNKNOWN

Nigeria, a country located on the western coast of Africa is often overlooked and its culture goes unrecognized. Contrary to misinformed beliefs, Nigeria is a well-developed country with a general population of 170 million and many different qualities and interesting facts. Petroleum for example, which was first discovered in 1956, is the most important source of Nigerian government revenue and foreign trade (The World Factbook: NIGERIA. (2018, February 22). Nigeria has its own currency which is Naira as well as its own political infrastructure that consists of government, military, and presidency. Outside of politics there are other notable people from the country of Nigeria such as NBA Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon,

Nigerian people are also diverse in their dialect, with English being the Official language of Nigeria, there are still over 500 different indigenous languages like Hausa, Yoruba, Fulani, and Igbo to name a few (Ajayi, J. A., Kirk-Greene, et al (2018, January 16). Religion is also something that the Nigerian people hold sacred to their culture. At the beginning of the 20th century most Nigerians were followers of traditional religions, but through the enforcing of British colonial policy these practices were nearly eradicated so by the time of independency in 1960 most Nigerians were classified as either Christian or Muslim. By the 21st century only 10% of the country is of indigenous faith, 40% practice Christianity and the remaining 50% are Muslim (Ajayi, J. A., Kirk-Greene, et al (2018, January 16). Nigeria is also the native land to some household names in America, Hakeem, Olajuwon an accomplished Hall of Fame NBA center who throughout his 18 year stint played for the Houston Rockets, Toronto Raptors and also won back to back NBA Championships in 1994 and 1995. Christian Okoye, another household name in America, was a two-time Pro Bowl NFL fullback for the Kansas

But unlike the United States, women have participated in the government since the colonial period, especially in the south. Their Political strength is rooted in the precolonial traditions among particular ethnic groups, such as the Igbo, which gave women the power to correct excessive male behavior (The World Factbook: NIGERIA. (2018, February 22). In the Nigerian Police force the Inspector General of police, which is appointed by the President as established in the Federal Constitution, oversees the police force much like the Chief of Police in the United States. The Nigerian federal Military on the other hand, consists of Army, Navy, and Air Force contingents. The Nigerian Military faces its share of terrorism and terrorist factions like the Ansaru group that wishes to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria. This terrorist group is headquartered in the northern region of Nigeria and was formed in 2012 as a breakaway faction of the Boko Haram. Boko Haram being another terrorist faction headquartered in the northeastern region of Nigeria, formed in 2011 and aimed to replace the Nigerian Government with an Islamic state under strict Sharia Law and ultimately establish and Islamic caliphate across Africa (The World Factbook: NIGERIA. (2018, February 22). Sharia law is the law of Islam. The Sharia (also spelled Shari 'a or Shariah)