Nearly a quarter of all black Africans live in one nation: Nigeria.
Although only two-thirds the size of Alaska, Nigeria has a population of 186 million (2015), the largest population of any country in Africa.
In fact, Nigeria is the seventh most populous country on the planet, with more people than any other country in Europe.
Nigeria is located in the Gulf of Guinea, where the delta of West Africa's largest river, the Niger, flows. Nigeria's coastal regions are swampy, but rainforests and grassy plains cover a large area of the interior. The northern part of the country is bordered by the Sahara desert.
About 250 tribal groups live in this populous country. The Yoruba, who live in the west, and the Ibo, who live in the east of the country, each represent about 15 percent of the population. In the north live the Hausa and Fulani Muslim peoples, who together account for about 30 percent of Nigeria's population.
After almost a century as a British colony, Nigeria gained its independence in 1960. But in 1967, the Ibo people declared that their country was going to be an independent nation, Biafra.
Troops from other parts of Nigeria invaded the homeland of the Ibo, and the fighting caused a famine that killed more than 1 million people. The Ibo abandoned their struggle in 1970, but conflicts between the peoples of Nigeria continued.
Today, most of Nigeria's income comes from the sale of oil. Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa and the eighth largest producer in the world. About 6 percent of all the oil used by Americans comes from Nigeria.
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