Nigerian British

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Nigerian British

Notable Nigerian Britons: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Shirley Bassey, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje Seal, Christine Ohuruogu, Olaudah Equiano Osi Umenyiora, Lemar, Tupele Dorgu
Total population
Est. 800,000–3 million Between 1.3% and 5% of the UK's population
Regions with significant populations
Throughout the United Kingdom In particular Greater London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Cardiff, Sheffield
Languages
Predominantly English, Yoruba, Igbo, Edo Others Nigerian languages
Religion
Predominantly Christianity Others Islam, Traditional beliefs

Nigerian British is the term given to describe British people of Nigerian descent.^[1] Many live in South London. The UK is home to the world's second largest Nigerian community, behind only Nigeria itself.^[2]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Early 1.2 Modern 2 Population 2.1 Economics 2.2 Citizenship 2.3 Distribution 2.3.1 London 2.3.2 North West England 2.3.3 West Midlands 2.3.4 Yorkshire 2.3.5 Elsewhere 3 Famous Nigerian Britons 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Early

The 17th to 19th Centuries
Nigerians have formed long-established communities in London, Liverpool and other industrial cities. One of the most famous Nigerian Britons of the 17th century was Olaudah Equiano, a former slave who spoke out in the British debate for the abolition of the slave trade.

Calabarian sailors also have reported ties with the UK (notably Cardiff in the 19th century). Due to the slave trade, links between Benin chiefs and British merchants were established over three centuries ago. The Nigerian community makes up the oldest Black community in the United Kingdom.

[edit] Modern

Post Nigerian independence and World War II (20th and 21st Centuries)

[edit] Population

According to the 2001 UK Census 90,000 Nigerian-born people were living in the UK, with 3/4 of them in London (an increase in immigrants of almost 90% from 1991).^[3] The Nigerian British population is a long-established community. Counting British-born people of Nigerian descent, illegal immigrants and recent immigrants, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office puts the Nigerian British population total at between 800,000 and 3,000,000. The vast majority of Nigerians in the UK come from the south of Nigeria, and are mainly of Yoruba and Igbo heritage. They are predominantly Christian or animist in religious practice.^[4]

[edit] Economics

61.15% of recent Nigerian immigrants to the UK of working age are employed (compared to 73.49% for British born people regardless of race or ethnic background). 18.48% of recent immigrants are low earners, which is pay less than £149.20 a week (compared to 21.08% for British-born people), and 13.04% are high earners, which is more than £750 per week (compared to 6.98% for British-born people). The percentages for settled immigrants are slightly different, 72.93% are employed, with 14.17% being low earners and 15.00% high earners.^[5]

[edit] Citizenship

Below is a table showing how many Nigerians were granted British citizenship and the right of abode (1998-2008).

	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	Total in past decade
Persons granted citizenship	3,550[6]	3,481[7]	5,594[8]	6,290[9]	6,480[10]	6,300[11]	6,280[12]	[13]	5,875[14]	6,030[15]	4,530[16]	Over 60,000

[edit] Distribution

Location	Nigerian-born population (2001)
London	68,907[17]
- Southwark	10,673[18]
- Lambeth	6,121[19]
- Lewisham	5,297[20]
South East England	4,737[21]
East of England	3,112[22]
North West England	3,011[23]
- Manchester	975[24]
- Liverpool	579[25]
West Midlands	1,778[26]
- Birmingham	753[27]
South West England	1,467[28]
Yorkshire and the Humber	1,401[29]
Wales	588[30]
North East England	573[31]
Scotland
Northern Ireland

[edit] London

London (in particular the Southern Boroughs) is home to the largest Nigerian community in the UK, and possibly the largest overseas Nigerian community in the world. The first Nigerians in London where those caught up in the slave trade over 200 years ago.

In the mid-1900s a wave of Nigerian immigrants came to London after hearing of the need for more skilled workers. Civil and political unrest in the country contributed to numerous refugees' arriving in England.^[32] The vast majority of famous and notable British people of Nigerian origin where either born in or now live in London.

Peckham (also known as Little Lagos and Yorubatown) is home to one of the largest overseas Nigerian communities in the world; many of the local establishments are Yoruba owned. Nigerian churches and mosques can be found in the area. As immigrants become assimilated, English is becoming the predominant language of the local Nigerian British population. The Yoruba language is declining in use in the Peckham area despite the increasing Nigerian population.^[33] In 2001, about 7 percent of Peckham's population was born in Nigeria.^[34] A much larger proportion of the ward's 60% Black population is of Nigerian descent, as 40% are Black African.^[35]

[edit] North West England

Liverpool - some Nigerians in Liverpool can trace their roots back ten generations; the city is home to the UK's oldest Black community, with the first Blacks arriving in Liverpool around 1730. Similarly to London, these first Nigerians were often enslaved.^[36] It is unknown how many Nigerians live in Liverpool; however, according to 2006 estimates, there are around 8,000 people in the city of Black African origin (not including via the Caribbean).^[37]

Manchester is home to a large Black British community, with around 8% of the city's population being of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent (some 70,000 in the city's metropolitan area). There is also a strong presence of Nigerian nationals in Manchester's universities.^[38] The University of Manchester has 246 Nigerian students. ^[39]

[edit] West Midlands

Birmingham is home to the second largest Black community in the UK outside of London. People of sub-Saharan origin numbered 182,000 in 2006, of whom 41,300 identified as Black African or mixed Black-African and White.^[40]

[edit] Yorkshire

Sheffield's Nigerian community is one of the city's newest and fastest growing ethnic groups. Many Nigerians in Sheffield tend to patronize Afro-Caribbean stores and community centres instead of starting up their own. It is unknown how many people of Nigerian origin live in Sheffield, although the Black African community numbers around 10,000. The highest concentration of Nigerians in the city can be found in the Burngreave ward.

[edit] Elsewhere

Cardiff is the home of Wales' Black community, despite this, the most recent census recorded a little over 5,000 Black Africans and/ or Caribbeans. Nigerians made up the fourth largest sub-group of these.^[41] Also worth of note is the 100+ Nigerian students who study at the University of Cardiff.^[42] Singer Shirley Bassey is likely to be the most famous person of Nigerian origin to hail from Cardiff.

[edit] Famous Nigerian Britons

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Voice of Africa Radio
• West African Business Association
• Igbo Cultural & Support Network
• Nigerian Carnival UK

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