Nigerianisms

There are many but here are a few of my faves:

Help me to…. Actually means ‘do it for me’

A Leather is a thin plastic bag, usually with very weak seams and the handles fused together. Often used to decorate the countryside. In huge quantities.

9 o’clock = 10.15

I beg-oooo = pretty pretty please

‘Na wow’= ‘Golly Gosh! How outrageous.'

‘Ssssssssss!’= ‘Excuse me!’ (to get attention) Seriously hope I get that out of my system before returning home.

‘Used to ….’ Means something that is currently happening e.g. ‘That woman who used to sell biscuit’ means ‘that woman who sells biscuits’.

A Mineral is a soft drink – Sprite etc.

This thing. It’s never good to be too specific, so ‘this thing’ is a handy tool to use to keep your audience guessing.

'Somehow' is used to explain something is not quite right. Most effective when use with “this thing”– eg, ‘Kai! This thing eh? It’s really …somehow!You know?’

The Village. This is not a thatch-roof affair – but just a reference to home-town – eg –He’s gone back to the village does not mean he is now residing in a mud-hut, but probably a sprawling town of over 1 million people.