Ijo languages

Also known as: Ijaw languages

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July 16, 2026

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The Ijoid languages form the smallest branch of the Niger-Congo language family. This group includes the Ijo (Ijaw) language cluster, spoken by approximately two million people, and the Defaka (Afakani) language, with very few speakers. These languages are spoken in the coastal Niger River delta region of Nigeria.1

The Ijo people were among the first West Africans to interact with Europeans, leading to the Ijo language being one of the earliest Nigerian languages to be written. Due to the slave trade, the Kalabari language, a part of the Ijo cluster, was taken to eastern Guyana, where it influenced the development of the now nearly extinct Dutch creole, Berbice.1

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Ijoid languages
…consists of a language cluster, Ijo (Ijaw), comprising seven other language clusters with a total of approximately two million speakers, and Defaka (Afakani), a solitary language spoken by very few. All these languages are found in the relatively narrow coastal Niger River delta region of Nigeria. The Ijo language cluster…
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…consists of a language cluster, Ijo (Ijaw), comprising seven other language clusters with a total of approximately two million speakers, and Defaka (Afakani), a solitary language spoken by very few. All these languages are found in the relatively narrow coastal Niger River delta region of Nigeria. The Ijo language cluster…
Read More