The Oxford English Dictionary has expanded its vocabulary with over 500 new Nigerian and West African words and expressions in its latest update, published in December 2025 and carried into 2026. The update highlights how African languages and cultures are increasingly influencing English worldwide.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the December 2025 update also revised over 1,000 existing entries and expanded pronunciation guides, including multiple audio recordings for West African English words. Catherine Sangster, Head of Pronunciations at the Oxford English Dictionary, noted that the update introduced a new model for Maltese English and marked a decade of spoken pronunciations in the dictionary.
Among the newly added Nigerian entries:
- abeg – a versatile interjection or adverb in Nigerian Pidgin, often meaning “please” or used to express surprise, exasperation, or disbelief.
- Afrobeats – a popular West African music genre blending traditional rhythms with jazz, funk, soul, and modern pop.
- Ghana Must Go – a humorous West African phrase originating from mass migration events in the 1980s.
- biko – a polite expression in Nigerian Pidgin/Igbo meaning “please.”
- Mammy Market – a West African market, often run by women near military barracks, selling food, crafts, and household items.
- nyash – slang for buttocks in Nigeria and Ghana, often used in casual conversation.
- Moi Moi – a Nigerian steamed bean pudding made from black-eyed beans, peppers, onions, and spices.
Other Ghanaian and West African words added include:
- abrokyire – Twi/Akan for foreigner or someone from abroad.
- Adowa – a traditional dance from the Akan people of Ghana.
- ampesi – boiled yam, plantain, or cassava served with sauce or stew.
- benachin – a rice dish, sometimes called Jollof rice, cooked with tomato, spices, and meat or fish.
- bichir – a Ghanaian snack, usually fried dough.
- domoda – a peanut-based stew popular in Gambia and Senegal.
- dumboy – a Ghanaian street snack.
- hiplife – Ghanaian music genre mixing hip hop and highlife.
- kpanlogo – traditional Ga dance from Ghana.
- light soup – tomato-based Ghanaian soup served with fufu or rice balls.
- nawetan – Ghanaian slang for “new town” or lively new areas.
- obroni – Twi/Akan for foreigner or white person.
- poda-poda – deep-fried snack from Ghana.
- yassa – West African dish of marinated meat, chicken, or fish cooked with onions, lemon, and spices.
The update builds on a previous Oxford English Dictionary expansion that included popular Nigerian words such as japa (to flee abroad), agbero (street hustler), eba (cassava dough), 419 (internet scam), abi (tag question in Nigerian Pidgin), area boy (street youth), yahoo boy (cyber fraudster), Naija (informal term for Nigeria), suya (spicy grilled meat), kobo (currency subunit), Edo (ethnic group/state in Nigeria), Kanuri (ethnic group in northeast Nigeria), jand / janded (going abroad), and cross-carpet / cross-carpeting (switching political party allegiance).
This latest expansion by the Oxford English Dictionary showcases the growing global influence of African languages and culture on English, from music and food to slang and everyday expressions.
