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Pidgin English remains the “great” equalizer - a way of communicating on a base level that cuts through bullshit. Pidgin English is extremely popular in most parts of Africa, particularly West Africa, and has been accepted as the de-facto language of blue collar trade and merchants. There’s a certain intimacy that this form of broken English emits a down-to-earth, survivalist approach to everyday living and hustling in Africa’s most populous nation. Speaking Nigerian Pidgin transforms them from visiting foreigner into one of the hundreds of well-integrated expatriates in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital.
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If they open up with Pidgin English instead, I instantly perk up.
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