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Atlantic-Congo · ISO 639-3 efi

Efik Language

Efik is an Atlantic-Congo language spoken by about 3.0 million people in 1 country. It is written in the Latin script.

3.0 million
Speakers · #250 in the world
1
Countries where it is spoken
0
Countries where it is official
Safe
Endangerment status

Where Efik is spoken

  • Official language
  • Regional official
  • Spoken by 10%+
  • 1–10%
  • Smaller communities

Countries that speak Efik

Flag of Nigeria3.3 million · 1%

Language family

  1. Atlantic-Congo
  2. Volta-Congo
  3. Benue-Congo
  4. Delta Cross
  5. Lower Cross
  6. Nuclear Lower Cross
  7. Central Lower Cross
  8. Efikic
  9. Okop Usem
  10. Efik-Ibibio
  11. Efik

Writing system

Latin script

Related languages

About the Efik language

Efik is spoken by about 3.0 million people, which makes it the 250th most spoken language in the world — just behind Brazilian Sign Language (3.0 million) and ahead of Pular (3.0 million). It belongs to the Atlantic-Congo language family and, more precisely, to the Efik-Ibibio group within the Benue-Congo branch.

Where is Efik spoken?

Efik is used in 1 country. The largest communities live in Nigeria (3.3 million).

Efik is not a national official language anywhere.

Writing system and status

Efik is written in the Latin script. It is a safe, widely transmitted language: children still learn it at home as their first language.

Its closest relatives in the same branch of the family are Ibibio, Anaang, Swahili, Swahili, Yoruba, Igbo and 2 more.

ISO codes: ISO 639-3 efi.

Frequently asked questions about Efik

How many people speak Efik?

About 3.0 million people — #250 among the world's languages.

Where is Efik spoken?

Mostly in Nigeria (3.3 million).

What language family does Efik belong to?

Efik belongs to the Atlantic-Congo family: Atlantic-Congo › Volta-Congo › Benue-Congo › Delta Cross › Lower Cross › Nuclear Lower Cross › Central Lower Cross › Efikic › Okop Usem › Efik-Ibibio.

Is Efik an endangered language?

No — Efik is not endangered.

Data: Languages of the World dataset (MIT) — ISO 639-3, Glottolog (CC BY 4.0), Unicode CLDR, Google LinguaMeta (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata; country lists: samayo/country-json (MIT). Speaker numbers include first- and second-language speakers where sources report them.