Post-Colonialism: An in-Depth Look at its Cultural Effects in Nigeria

Nigeria has since its independence experienced post-colonialism, which has shaped its culture in all forms including identity, language, literature, traditions, and even media representation. This paper therefore explored the effect of post-colonialism on Nigerian cultural values and practices. The theoretical underpinnings from Edward Said, Homi Bhabha, and Gayatri Spivak served as the theoretical pillars for analyzing the hybrid identities that emerge from the interaction of these diverse influences of colonial legacy. Nigerian identity is dynamic and complex, with traditions of pre-colonial Nigeria interwoven with colonial customs and values. The dominance of English has influenced Nigerian literature, with authors like Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie using the colonial language to express indigenous themes and challenge colonial narratives. The continuous practice of traditional rites by the Nigerian indigenes, especially in areas like music and festivities shows how Nigerian culture is vibrant and enduring. Thus, the media, especially via Nollywood, have also been seen to provide support in lending a voice to combat stereotyped and negative Western images to construct a more diverse and complex Nigerian society. Drawing from the findings presented in this paper, it can be inferred that post-colonialism in Nigerian culture consists of a constant re-configuration of cultural identity, during which traditional characteristics are maintained, modified and infused with cultural representations from other regions of the globe. This paper further proposed a way forward for future studies to build on the contributions made in this study to explore how globalization and technology has continued to shape the dynamic culture of the post-colonial Nigerian society and other post-colonial African region.