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Liberia
What languages are spoken in Liberia?
English is the official language of Liberia, but more than two dozen other languages are also spoken in the country, including Kpelle, Bassa, Grebo, Dan, Kru, Mano, Loma, and Mandingo.
What is unique about Liberia’s history?
Liberia is Africa’s oldest republic and was never subjected to colonial rule. It was established in 1821 on land in western Africa that was acquired by theAmerican Colonization Society to be a home for formerly enslaved and freeborn Black people from the United States. In 1824 the territory was named Liberia and over the years, its boundaries were expanded. Liberia became an independent republic in 1847.
What are the main geographical features of Liberia?
Who was the first woman elected as a head of state in Africa?
Ellen Johnson Sirleafwas the first woman elected as a head of state in Africa. She won Liberia’s presidential election in 2005 and served as the country’s president from 2006 until 2018.
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Liberia,country along the coast ofwestern Africa. Liberia’s terrain ranges from the low and sandy coastal plains to rolling hills and dissected plateau further inland. The country is home to a lushrainforest containing a richdiversity of flora and fauna.
Liberia is the only Black state in Africa never subjected to colonial rule and is Africa’s oldest republic. It was established on land acquired for people who formerly had been enslaved in theUnited States by theAmerican Colonization Society, which founded a colony atCape Mesurado in 1821. In 1824 the territory was named Liberia, and its main settlement was namedMonrovia, which is the present-day capital. Liberian independence was proclaimed in 1847, and its boundaries were expanded. The country enjoyed relativestability until a rebellion in 1989 escalated into a destructive civil war in the 1990s that did not fully cease until 2003. The country’s first post-conflict elections, held in 2005, were noteworthy for the election ofEllen Johnson Sirleaf to the presidency, as she was the first woman to be elected head of state in Africa.
- Head Of State And Government:
- President: Joseph Boakai
- Capital:
- Monrovia
- Population:
- (2025 est.) 5,655,000
- Form Of Government:
- multiparty republic with two legislative bodies (Liberian Senate [30]; House of Representatives [73])
- Official Language:
- English
- Official Religion:
- none
- Official Name:
- Republic of Liberia
- Total Area (Sq Km):
- 97,081
- Total Area (Sq Mi):
- 37,483
- Monetary Unit:
- Liberian dollar (L$)
- Urban-Rural Population:
- Urban: (2024) 54.1%
- Rural: (2024) 45.9%
- Life Expectancy At Birth:
- Male: (2022) 55.6 years
- Female: (2022) 61.2 years
- Literacy: Percentage Of Population Age 15 And Over Literate:
- Male: (2017) 63%
- Female: (2017) 34%
- Gni Per Capita (U.S.$):
- (2023) 710
Land
Liberia is bounded bySierra Leone to the northwest,Guinea to the north,Côte d’Ivoire to the east, and theAtlantic Ocean to the south and west.
Relief
The four physiographic regions of Liberia parallel the coast. The coastal plains are about 350 miles (560 km) long and extend as far as 25 miles (40 km) inland. They are low and sandy, with miles of beaches interspersed with bar-enclosed lagoons,mangrove swamps, and a few rocky promontories—the highest being CapeMount (about 1,000 feet [305 meters] in elevation) in the northwest, Cape Mesurado in Monrovia, andCape Palmas in the southeast. Parallel to the coastal plains is a region of rolling hills some 20 miles (32 km) wide with an average maximum elevation of about 300 feet (90 meters); a few hills rise as high as 500 feet (150 meters). It is a region suitable for agriculture and forestry. Behind the rolling hills, most of the country’s interior is a dissected plateau with scattered low mountains ranging from 600 to 1,000 feet (180 to 305 meters) in elevation; some mountains rise to 2,000 feet (600 meters). A striking feature of the mountainous northern highlands along the Guinea frontier is Mount Nimba.
Drainage
TheMano andMorro rivers in the northwest and theCavalla in the east and southeast are major rivers and form sections of Liberia’s boundaries. Other major rivers are the Lofa in the north and, moving southward, theSt. Paul,St. John, and Cestos, all of which parallel each other and flow perpendicular to the coast. TheFarmington River is a source ofhydroelectric power. Waterfalls, rapids, rocks, and sandbanks occur frequently in upstream sections of most rivers,inhibiting river traffic, and limiting navigation inland to short distances. During the rainy season there is often severe flooding in the coastal plains.
Liberia forms part of theWest African Shield, a rock formation 2.7 to 3.4 billion years old, composed of granite, schist, and gneiss. In Liberia the shield has been intensely folded and faulted and is interspersed with iron-bearing formations known as itabirites. Along the coast lie beds of sandstone, with occasional crystalline-rock outcrops. Monrovia stands on such an outcropping, a ridge of diabase (a dark-colored, fine-grained rock).
Soils
Four types of soil are found in Liberia. Latosols of low to medium fertility occur in rolling hill country and cover about three-fourths of the total land surface. Shallow, coarse lithosols, in the hilly and ruggedterrain, cover about one-eighth of the land. Infertile regosols, or sandy soils, are found along the coastal plains. Highly fertile alluvial soils represent a small percentage of the land area and are utilized largely for agriculture.
Climate
The climate, especially on the coast, is warm and humid year-round, dominated by a dry season from November to April and by a rainy season from May to October. The dusty and dryharmattan (desert winds) blow from theSahara to the coast in December, bringing relief from the highrelative humidity. Deforestation and drought in theSahel have affected the climate, lengthening the dry season by almost a month in some areas.
Mean annual temperatures range between 65 °F (18 °C) in the northern highlands to 80 °F (27 °C) along the coast. Rainfall is irregular, and the rainy season varies in intensity and begins earlier at the coast than in the interior. The greatest amount of rainfall, 205 inches (5,200 mm), occurs at Cape Mount and diminishes inland to about 70 inches (1,800 mm) on the central plateau. The interior has hot but pleasant days and cool nights during the dry season.
Plant and animal life
Liberia has year-round evergreen vegetation. Many trees—such as red ironwood, camwood, whismore, teak, and mahogany—are valuable, but occur with other species, preventing easy harvest. Other trees of value are rubber, cacao, coffee, and the raffia palm.
Liberia’s rainforest used to abound with animals such as monkeys, chimpanzees, small antelopes, pygmy hippopotamuses, and anteaters. However, these animals, along with the already threatened elephants, bush cows (short-horned buffalo), and leopards, were hunted for food during the civil war; their populations are recovering. There are many reptiles, including three types of crocodiles and at least eight poisonous snakes. There are several unique species of bats and birds, and scorpions, lizards, and fishes are numerous. Sapo National Park, established in 1983 in the country’s southeast, was expanded in 2003 toencompass an area of some 700 square miles (1,800 square km). The 2000s saw an expansion of protected regions in Liberia, with new and enlarged wildlife reserves at Gola National Forest, the Wonegizi National Forest Reserve, and Lake Piso, and ecotourism was seen as a potential growth industry for the country.