Pen pals in Nigeria

If your pen pal lives in Nigeria, there is a fair chance they move between two or three languages before lunch. English is the official language of school, government and most newspapers, but at home and in the market people may speak Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo or one of hundreds of other languages, and across almost every region there is Nigerian Pidgin. A friendly "How far?" is a common Pidgin greeting, roughly "How are things?", and you may see it at the top of a message.

That mix is the best way into understanding the country. Nigeria has 36 states plus the Federal Capital Territory around Abuja, and the north and south differ in climate, food, dress and daily rhythm. A pen pal in Lagos lives in one of Africa's busiest cities; a pen pal in Kano, Enugu or Port Harcourt will describe a different Nigeria. None of them is the "real" one.

Weather, traffic and food

Nigeria sits just north of the equator, so instead of four seasons people talk about the rainy season and the dry season. From around late November to the middle of March the harmattan wind blows in from the Sahara, bringing dry air, dust and hazy skies. Mornings can feel surprisingly cool, especially in the north, while afternoons stay hot. If your pen pal mentions dusty furniture or cracked lips in December, that is why.

In cities, people get about by bus, shared taxi, motorbike taxi and, increasingly, ride-hailing apps; traffic is a regular topic of conversation in Lagos. Food is regional too. Jollof rice is famous well beyond Nigeria's borders, but a pen pal might be just as proud of a soup from their own area that you have never heard of.

School and the calendar

The school year generally runs in three terms from September to July, with breaks around Christmas and Easter, though exact dates are set state by state. Secondary students often have big exams in their final year, so a quieter spell of letters at that point is normal.

The national calendar mixes secular, Christian and Muslim holidays:

• Independence Day, 1 October, marks independence from Britain in 1960.
• Democracy Day falls on 12 June.
• Christmas and Easter are public holidays, and Christmas is a big time for travelling back to home towns.
• Eid el-Fitr and Eid el-Kabir are also public holidays; their dates follow the Islamic lunar calendar and move earlier each year.

How your pen pal spends these depends on their family and faith, so ask rather than guess.

A misconception worth dropping

Nigerian Pidgin is sometimes dismissed by outsiders as "broken English". Linguists treat it as a language in its own right, with its own grammar, and it is used in music, radio and comedy. Many Nigerians also speak standard English fluently, often as one of their first languages. If you are practising English, a Nigerian pen pal is a genuine conversation partner, not a fellow learner by default.

Questions to start with

• Which languages do you use at home, at school and with friends?
• What does a normal weekday look like for you, from morning to evening?
• How does your family celebrate the holiday that matters most to you?
• What is a food from your state that people from other parts of Nigeria might not know?