What is African soap? It is not named because it is for African skin only. It is sometimes referred to as Black soap for the skin tone of the people of Africa, who are actually brown skinned. The soap gets its name from originating from Africa and the process of how it is made. I have traveled to West Africa and plan to travel more throughout Africa. I have shopped the markets there and can tell you about the soap. Firstly, real African soap is not made into a soap bar. There is Dudu Osum bar soap from Nigeria though. They are sold as a six-pack. So if you are sold a single, the seller broke the six-pack. The soaps come in different shapes, and are made as a result of a 100% use of a particular item. For instance, Ghana soap is usually made from karite nuts, where Shea butter and Shea nut oil are derived from. Once the oil and butter are harvested from the nuts, the leftover is used to make other products including soap. The result is a dry cake of soap that varies in color from light brown sugar to molasses. In Nigeria, the soap is made from palm kernel nuts once the palm oil and juice are harvested from them. The color of this soap is a red molasses and is sold is round balls of various sizes. In America, you might find liquid African/Black soap. It was probably made here, by mixing the actual African soap with a solvent. There is liquid Dudu Osum, which is made in Nigeria. You might find some other African soaps that are bar soaps. Those were definitely made in America by Africans and non-Africans alike, who took a soap making class at Adult Education or Art School. These soaps are made with a European process, and contain glycerin, which is not native to Africa or their soap making process. Lastly, African soap is completely vegan. Real African soap is not made with lard or glycerin (a fatty acid from animals or plants). African soap cleans very well, without allergic reaction, and while softening and healing your skin. Be aware that there are random small pieces of nut shell in the soap. Also, African soap is used for washing the face, body, hair and clothes. There aren’t separate soaps like there are here. In fact if you looked at the ingredients of our hand soap, shampoo, body wash, and bar soap, you would see that all of them are using the same active ingredients.