Nigeria | History, Population, Flag, Map, Languages, Capital, & Facts (2024)

FAQs

What is the brief history of Nigeria population? ›

It was only a century ago that there were 2 billion people. Since then, the global population has quadrupled to eight billion. Around 108 billion people have ever lived on our planet. This means that today's population size makes up 6.5% of the total number of people ever born.

The area began to come under British control in 1861 and was made a British colony in 1914. Nigeria gained independence in 1960 and became a republic in 1963. Ethnic strife soon led to military coups, and military groups ruled the country from 1966 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1999.

Archaeological research, pioneered by Charles Thurstan Shaw, has shown that people were already living in south-eastern Nigeria (specifically Igbo Ukwu, Nsukka, Afikpo and Ugwuele) 100,000 years ago. Excavations in Ugwuele, Afikpo and Nsukka show evidence of long habitations as early as 6,000 BC.

Answer and Explanation: Named for its association with the river, the first section was named The Northern Nigeria Protectorate, and the other half was referred to as the Southern Nigeria Protectorate. However, in 1914 the two halves were united, and the area became known as simply Nigeria.

From 1960 to 2022 the population of Nigeria increased from 45.14 million to 218.54 million people. This is a growth of 384.2 percent in 62 years.

Nigeria is the country with the highest population in Africa. In 2024, its population amounted to over 227 million and was estimated to constantly increase in the next decades. By 2050, this figure considerably increase to reach around 380 million people.

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.

There has been much argument about which tribe in Nigeria is the oldest. The Ijaws started inhabiting the Niger Delta region of what is now Nigeria as far back as 800 BCE, thus making them one of the world's most ancient peoples. They have existed as a distinct language and ethnic group for over 5,000 years.

Hausa is the oldest known written language in West Africa, dating back to before 1000 C.E.” (Countries and Their Cultures). Because English is the most commonly used language, those who are not ethnic Yourbas or Igbos rarely speak their language (Countries and Their Cultures).

What was Nigeria's first religion? ›

Prior to the advent of Christianity and Islam, there was African Traditional Religion (ATR) in the Nigerian State. ATR had close collaborative relationship with virtually every aspect of communal living; economic, political and social.

On 1 January 1914, the British formally united the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and the Northern Nigeria Protectorate into the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Administratively, Nigeria remained divided into the Northern and Southern Protectorates and Lagos Colony.

"Before the name 'Nigeria' emerged, the British had taken control of Lagos and the southern coast. The Royal Niger Company had control of the region around the river which was generally referred to as the 'Royal Niger Company Territories'."

Is Nigeria truly the giant of Africa? If “giant” means population, then yes. Nigeria is the giant of Africa with an estimated population of over 200million people and a lot of diversities. But if you're talking about other indices that means “giant”, then no.

The National Population Commission had a long history spanning over four decades. The nucleus of the agency was the National Census Board which conducted the 1973 Census and headed by the late Justice Adetokunbo Ademola. It was an ad-hoc body and became the National Population Bureau after the exercise.

Nigeria's rapid growth is the result of its large young population coming into child-bearing age, with currently half of the population under the age of 19. It's home to some of Africa's richest individuals, however stark wealth inequality divides the country, with two-thirds of the population below the poverty line.

This high population growth in Nigeria has over stressed all sectors of the economy with high cost of living. According to Fan and Besong (2010), the factors that were responsible to the population explosion in Nigeria were high birth rate, low death rate and immigration.

In fact, as the Nigerian population increases over the years, so have poverty and other developmental challenges. At independence in 1960 with a population of about 43 million people, the poverty ratio was estimated at 15%.