5 Original Ways to Spot a Foreigner in Nigeria

There are hundreds of foreigners and visitors in different Nigerian cities at any given time and, while a number of them have spent a long time in Nigeria, it is still really easy to spot someone who hasn’t quite blended in with the surrounding.This post details some of the easiest ways to spot a foreigner in Nigeria.

Giving or collecting stuff with your left hand

Many Nigerians have deeply etched cultural beliefs which dictate the nature of their interaction with other people. Favouring the use of the right hand over the left is one of them. They would reject something you are handing to them if you do so with your left hand. Same way they would refuse to give stuff to you if you tried to receive it with your left hand. A lot of foreigners aren’t really aware of this trait and tend to be more liberal with the use if their hands. Nigerians who have lived abroad all their lives tend to do this too.

Chewing their ‘swallow’

Practically every Nigerian ethnic group has a ‘swallow’ food ranging from eba, pounded yam (iyan) to tuwo, *semovita, wheat meal etc. These meals are not chewed when eaten but swallowed – usually – and they are eaten with soups or stews. Foreigners to the Nigerian culture can usually be found chewing their *swallow, a funny sight for many Nigerians and an easy way to spot a newbie.

Eating ‘swallow’ with cutlery

Swallows are usually rolled into balls before swallowing with soup or stew. Most Nigerians use their hands to eat their swallow food, even in public places. Eating swallow with cutlery – forks and knives, is one of the ways of spotting someone who is not familiar with the Nigerian culture.

Greeting elders without genuflection

Nigerians can be very respectful towards their elders. This usually means that whenever these elders are seen they must be greeted, and not simply by mumbling pleasantries, but with genuflection. In some tribes, prostrating on the floor to greet an elder or a superior is not uncommon. Greeting elders without genuflecting usually shows that the person is not used to the Nigerian culture.

Greeting only one person in a group

A person not familiar with Nigerian culture would come on a group of people and recognizing one as a friend or acquaintance would greet only that one and strike up conversation or move on. A Nigerian on the other hand would greet the acquaintance and then proceed to salute everyone else in the group, before moving on or striking up a conversation. It is seen as the polite thing to do.

Are there any others we missed, don’t forget to add them in the comments section.