Niger–Congo predominates in the Central, East and Southern areas of Nigeria; the main branches represented in Nigeria are
Mande,
Atlantic,
Gur,
Kwa,
Benue–Congo and
Adamawa–Ubangi. Mande is represented by the
Busa cluster and
Kyenga in the northwest.
Fulfulde is the single Atlantic language, of
Senegambian origin but now spoken by cattle
pastoralists across the
Sahel and largely in the northeastern states of Nigeria, especially
Adamawa. The
Ijoid languages are spoken across the
Niger Delta region and include
Ịjọ (Ijaw), Kalabari, and the intriguing remnant language
Defaka. The
Ibibio language is spoken across the coastal southeastern part of Nigeria and includes the dialects
Oron,
Annang, and
Efik proper. The single
Gur language spoken is
Baatọnun, in the extreme Northwest. The Adamawa–Ubangian languages are spoken across a region spanning central Nigeria to the Central African Republic. In Nigeria, the westernmost languages of this group are the Tula-Waja languages. The Kwa languages are represented by the Gun group in the far southwest, which is related to the Gbe languages spoken in Benin and Togo. The classification of the remaining languages is controversial;
Joseph Greenberg classified those without noun-classes, such as Yoruba, Igbo, and Ibibio (Efik, Oron, and Annang), as 'Eastern
Kwa' and those with classes as '
Benue–Congo'. This was reversed in an influential 1989 publication and reflected on the 1992 map of languages, where all these were considered Benue–Congo. Recent opinion, however, has been to revert to Greenberg's distinction. The literature must thus be read with care and due regard for the date. There are several small language groupings in the Niger Confluence area, notably Ukaan, Akpes, Ayere-Ahan and Ọkọ, whose inclusion in these groupings has never been satisfactorily argued. Former Eastern
Kwa, i.e. West Benue–Congo would then include
Igboid, i.e.
Igbo language proper,
Ukwuani,
Ikwerre,
Ekpeye etc., Yoruboid, i.e.
Yoruba,
Itsekiri and
Igala,
Akokoid (eight small languages in Ondo, Edo and Kogi state),
Edoid including
Edo (sometimes referred to as) Bini in
Edo State,
Ibibio-Efik,
Idomoid (Idoma) and
Nupoid (
Nupe) and perhaps include the other languages mentioned above. The
Idoma language is classified in the Akweya subgroup of the Idomoid languages of the Volta–Niger family, which include Alago, Agatu, Etulo and Yala languages of Benue, Nasarawa and Northern Cross River states. East Benue–Congo includes
Kainji,
Plateau (46 languages, notably
Gamai language),
Jukunoid,
Dakoid and some parts of
Cross River. Apart from these, there are numerous
Bantoid languages, which are the languages immediately ancestral to Bantu. These include
Mambiloid,
Ekoid of
Cross River State,
Bendi,
Beboid,
Grassfields and
Tivoid languages. Within the Benue-Congo languages, the expansive Bantu language family which covers much of central and southern Africa is represented in Nigeria by;
Jarawa with around a quarter million speakers, making it the most spoken Bantu language in the country. Others include
Mbula-Bwazza (100,000),
Kulung (40,000),
Labir (13,000),
Bile and a few others. in
Abia State The geographic distribution of Nigeria's Niger-Congo languages is not limited to the middle east and south-central Nigeria, as migration allows their spread to the linguistically Afro-Asiatic northern regions of Nigeria, as well as throughout
West Africa and abroad. Igbo words such as 'unu' for 'you people', 'sooso' for 'only', 'obia' for 'native doctoring', etc. are used in many
English-based creole languages in the Americas, Yoruba is spoken as a ritual language in cults such as
Santería in the Caribbean and South-Central America, and the now-extinct
Berbice Creole Dutch language of Guyana is based on an Ijoid language. Even the above listed linguistic diversity of the Niger–Congo in Nigeria is deceptively limiting, as these languages may further consist of regional dialects that may not be mutually intelligible. As such some languages, particularly those with a large number of speakers, have been standardised and received a
romanised orthography. Nearly all languages appear in a Latin alphabet when written. The Ibibio, Igbo, and Yoruba languages are notable examples of this process. The more historically recent standardisation and romanisation of Igbo have provoked even more controversy due to its dialectical diversity, but the Central Igbo dialect has gained the widest acceptance as the standard-bearer. Many such as
Chinua Achebe have dismissed standardisation as colonial and conservative attempts to simplify a complex mosaic of languages. Such controversies typify inter- and intra-ethnic conflict endemic to post-colonial Nigeria. Also worthy of note is the Enuani dialect, a variation of the Igbo that is spoken among parts of Anioma. The Anioma are the Aniocha, Ndokwa/Ukwuani, Ika and Oshimilli of Delta state.
Standard Yoruba came into being due to the work of
Samuel Crowther, the first African bishop of the
Anglican Church and owes most of its lexicon to the dialects spoken in
Ọyọ and
Ibadan. Since Standard Yoruba's constitution was determined by a single author rather than by a consensual linguistic policy by all speakers, the Standard has been attacked regarding for failing to include other dialects and spurred debate as to what demarcates "genuine Yoruba". Linguistically speaking, all demonstrate the varying
phonological features of the Niger–Congo family to which they belong, these include the use of
tone,
nasality, and particular
consonant and
vowel systems; more information is available
here.
Branches and locations Below is a list of major Niger–Congo branches and their primary locations based on Blench (2019). In addition,
Ijaw languages are spoken in
Rivers State,
Bayelsa State, and other states of the
Niger Delta region.
Mande languages are spoken in
Kebbi State,
Niger State, and
Kwara State. ==Nilo-Saharan languages==