Nigeria (/naɪˈdʒɪəriə/ (listen)), officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa, bordering Niger in the north, Chad in the northeast, Cameroon in the east, and Benin in the west. Its coast in the south is located on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. The federation comprises 36 states and 1 Federal Capital Territory, where the capital, Abuja, is located. The constitution defines Nigeria as a democratic secular state.

Nigeria is viewed as a multinational state as it is inhabited by 250 ethnic groups,^[14] of which the three largest are the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba; these ethnic groups speak over 500 distinct languages and are identified with a wide variety of cultures.^{[14][15][16][17]} The official language of Nigeria is English, chosen to facilitate linguistic unity at the national level. Nigeria is divided roughly in half between Christians, who live mostly in the southern part of the country, and Muslims, who live mostly in the north. A minority of the population practice religions indigenous to Nigeria, such as those native to the Igbo and Yoruba ethnicities.

Nigeria is considered to be an emerging market by the World Bank;^[18] it has been identified as a regional power on the African continent,^[19][20][21] a middle power in international affairs,^{[22][23][24][25]} and has also been identified as an emerging global power. It is also listed among the "Next Eleven" economies set to become among the biggest in the world. Nigeria is a founding member of the African Union and a member of many other international organizations, including the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations and OPEC.