The Ultimate Guide to African Dating

Dating an African can be a rewarding experience because Africans have an exotic history and a vibrant culture. To help answer all your questions, we put together this detailed guide to African dating to help you enjoy the beautiful world of interracial dating.

As we like to reinforce with all of our Dating Help Articles, there’s no one-size-fits-all guide to dating people of a particular race, but you’ll find helpful tips to help you understand them, and the reasons why they act the way they do. However, at the core, most humans just want the same things from a relationship: love, reassurance, and companionship. It’s the ways we receive and express love that differs based on our preferences. Think of people as pizzas; you could get pepperoni or sweet ‘n sour or any other flavor variant, but at the base of that pizza, there’ll always be dough.

We’re all products of unique experiences, and that’s what we’ll help you discover in this article. Not only how to date an African man or woman, but basics to help you understand them better so that your relationship can have fewer bumps than it would otherwise! 

Before we dive in, let’s get familiar with Africa.

What’s Africa Like?

Many foreigners make the mistake of thinking of Africa as a country, but Africa is, in fact, a continent. There are fifty-four countries on the continent, so African people are diverse and have different cultures, accents, and even skin tones. 

Africa is like Europe- just like you could get a Frenchman or an Italian out of the continent with distinctly different behaviors. That’s the same way Africans can be totally different in their approach to dating and their general demeanor. For that reason, there cannot be a general handbook for understanding the African, but don’t fret; we’ll break it down as wholly as possible. 

But hey, before we go on, where does one even meet African singles?

Where to Meet African Singles

A lot of people are interested in dating Africans because hey, they’re super cool and so is their culture. We know Wakanda does not exist, but Africans have a lot going without the existence of vibranium, the Black Panther, and a whole, tech-controlled country. They have exotic, beautiful people and music that connects deeply with your soul even if you don’t understand the lyrics or language. Plus, Africans know how to have a good time, and who doesn’t like fun people?

So if you’re interested in meeting and dating African singles but have no clue where to start – you guessed right! We’ve got tips for you, too. African online dating is a popular phenomenon because many Africans are urban and tech-savvy. So you have a high chance of meeting an African date on a big African dating site like TrulyAfrican, where you can get numerous matches from different African countries.

Now that we have that cleared up let’s get into the full gist: the ultimate African dating guide!   

The Ultimate Guide to Dating an African

Acknowledge your differences

Since you’re reading this, we’re guessing it’s safe to assume that you’re not African (and we mean that as in African by race and by upbringing; don’t pull out your Genealogy results that say you’re 1/10 parts Eritrean yet). So if you’re dating an African or considering a relationship with one, you need to have the right mindset. Go into the relationship with the mindset that there will be a lot of differences between you two. Acceptance makes it easier to cross the hurdles that you two might face in your relationship, and that mindset will make you more open to understanding your partner instead of trying to change them.

Even if you both have similar interests, many basics will be different about you, and the outcome of your relationship depends a lot on how you choose to handle that fact.

Be open-minded

After accepting that your partner will be different, it will also help your relationship if you’re open-minded and interested in really understanding your partner and their culture. African cultures are generally fascinating. Many African countries have a variety of delicacies, great music, interesting African movies, and dance routines. Let loose and try a little of everything if you can; not only will you find a personal lifetime favorite, but you’ll also be bonding with your partner on a profoundly personal level. 

Taste spicy food, learn an African dance (and maybe do a TikTok of it), and just generally learn what makes your partner excited about their culture. You’ll show your partner that you care about them enough to learn about their background, and that’ll make them a lot more committed to reciprocating the gesture. And, take it from us, nothing is better than mutual effort.

READ MORE: What to Expect When Dating Egyptian Singles

Combine the modern and the traditional

Africans mostly have a deep respect for tradition, no matter how urban and Westernized they get. If you want a great relationship with an African partner, you’d have to respect their views about their culture and respect their traditions the same way they do. 

African men like their women to be subservient and let the man take charge, or at least that’s the case for many of them because that’s the kind of culture in which they were raised. The women are strong and independent but also like to have a man taking care of them. 

Of course, there can be differences depending on the orientation of the person you’re with, but the average African man likes a woman that is homely and reserved. The African woman wants a macho man that can take charge of the home and provide. With the way westernization has taken over many parts of Africa, you’ll most likely get a hybrid of the traditional African and the urban Westerner, so be prepared to meet them on both levels. 

Don’t rule out the family

Africans are very family-oriented, so be prepared to meet the family members. It may be hard to get along with them because many African families expect their children to marry locally, so if you’re not African, you may experience a road bump.

Also, the families’ opinions count, and many Africans will not go against their families for love. So if the family is against your union, you guys have to carefully evaluate if you want to fight for what you have.

The traditional African family consists of at least four or more immediate family members. From a westerner’s view, those kinds of families are big and costly to sustain. This is where an African guy gets his personality of being in control and wanting to provide. They believe that family is their priority, and they will do anything to make a decent life for them.

Expect to be judged

Many stereotypes surround Africa and dating Africans. Some people believe that they only date for money, and some think that all Africans have STDs. So don’t be surprised if you get some discomfiting stares or you’re treated some kind of way because of the way you or your partner looks. Learn to stand up for them and what you have so that your partner doesn’t end up feeling insecure. 

Discrimination is not fun for anyone, so reassure your partner as often as you can. Besides, you know what your partner is really like! So no hateful comments should hurt you or change the way you see your partner.

If you’re the man, you’ll probably have less judgment than a woman would. It is not uncommon to see African women dating a foreigner, and no fuss is made about it. It’s not the same if you’re a foreign woman dating an African man because many African countries are very patriarchal, and they like to have a say about how a woman should look and act.

Be confident

From Africa to Asia, dating is more enjoyable if you’re confident in yourself. Be true to yourself- and even though we’re advising you to try and learn your partner’s background and culture, don’t act like what you’re not. If your partner is not ready to accept you for who you are, then you have no business being in the relationship anymore.

Own yourself and be proud of your personality. You don’t have to change yourself to make anyone love you- don’t forget that. Africans have strong personalities, so if you’re a bender, you’ll lose yourself searching for love. 

Make sure you love yourself entirely first- that’ll give you the confidence to command respect wherever you go, and with whoever you date.

Don’t be afraid to compromise

It’s easy to take advice blindly, but ultimately, no one can make decisions for you when it comes to relationships. You know your partner and the strength of the bond that you both have. You also know how bad you want to be with them (if you haven’t started dating yet).

Learn how to balance all advice with your reality and learn to meet your partner in the middle. For example, let’s say that you’re an American woman dating a Nigerian man, and he wants you to meet his family. It will be an excellent icebreaker if you wear a modest dress made of beautiful African print. That would help the family warm up to you and show your interest in their culture.

If you usually wear revealing clothes and decide to meet the parents in those because you’ve read that you should ‘be yourself,’ that would probably not go well. If it does, we assure you it could have been better if you wore the print. 

Know when to make choices that’ll make your partner happy and ease the interracial tensions in your relationship.

Conclusion

Interracial dating takes a conscious effort to work, but then again, so does all relationships. Stay true to your heart, and we hope our tips guide you on your search for true love. You can check out TrulyAfrican success stories if you need some inspiration. Good luck!