Interesting Facts About Liberia – Fun Facts About Liberia

The second Black Republic in the world after Haiti, Liberia, better known as the Republic of Liberia, is an African country located on the west coast of the African continent. It is surrounded by Sierra Leone, Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire (formerly Ivory Coast) on three sides, while the south coast borders Atlantic Ocean. Spread across 111,369 square kilometers (43,000 sq mi), Liberia is home to over 3,476,608 people. This equatorially located country experiences a hot and humid climate with rainfall in the monsoon season and harsh harmattan winds in the dry season. The coastal land of Liberia was found by freed American slaves, when they started settling in 1820. However, the country was declared independent in 1847 by the United States, thereby marking Liberia as Africa’s first independent republic. Glance through the lines below to discover some more interesting and fun facts about Liberia.

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Interesting & Fun Facts About Liberia

The capital of Liberia is Monrovia.
The people of Liberia are known as Liberians.
The country is ethnically divided into 20% Kpelle, 16% Bassa, 8% Gio, 7% Kru, and 49% spread over 12 other ethnic groups.
The major religions followed comprise of 40% indigenous beliefs, 40% Christians, and 20% Muslims.
English is the official language of Liberia. Apart from it, there are more than 30 ethnic languages spoken by the natives that can be briefly categorized into Manding, Kru and Atlantic languages.
Interestingly, Liberia has the world’s third highest population growth rate of 3.66% per annum.
The official currency of Liberia is Liberian Dollar.
Liberia is officially known as the Republic of Liberia.
The name Liberia was given by the immigrants, which mean “Land of the Free’ in Latin. The capital of Monrovia was also established by Americo-Liberians named after US President James Madison.
The highest peak in Liberia is Mount Wuteve, measuring 1,440 meters (4,724 ft) above sea level, situated in the northwestern rnage of West Africa Mountains and the Guinea Highlands. However, Mount Nimba is the highest at 1,752 meters (5,748 ft), but it shares its border with Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire.
Liberia was one of the more stable African countries until the civil war broke out in 1989, which witnessed the brutal massacre of over 200,000 Liberians across seven years.
Did you know South Africa’s leader Nelson Mandela, one of the most admired world’s icons, was born in Liberia?
Liberia, which is considered to be one of the world’s poorest nations, was, once, one of the most prosperous black republics in the 1950s.
This nation has more female leaders, Presidents or Prime Ministers, than Norway, Sweden and South Korea combined together.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a Harvard-trained economist, is the first female President of Liberia elected in 2005.
Liberia shares more than 70% of its trade with countries like United States, Belgium, Japan and South Korea.
It serves as one of the biggest exporters of iron ore in Africa.
Containing one of the richest ecosystems on the African continent, the Sapo National Park is declared as one of the 261 natural wonders of the world. Home to the world-famous pygmy hippopotamus, this sanctuary has several other animal species and is spread over an area equal to the size of Los Angeles, California.

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