Fun Facts about Liberia
The name Liberia means "Land of the Free".
After Haiti in the Caribbean, Liberia is the world's second oldest Black
Republic. It is also Africa's first independent republic. Liberia
was founded and colonized by freed slaves from the United States who
wanted to return to Africa in 1822. Their descendants are still
called Americo-Liberians.
There are more than thirty African languages spoken in Liberia. But, the
language of the government and the language in schools is English,
brought to Liberia by the Americo-Liberians.
Twelve of Liberia's presidents were born in the United States.
They were the Americo-Liberians, who make up about 5% of the
population. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was the first female president
elected in Africa.
The original name of the capital city was Christianopolis. Now
Monrovia, it was re-named after the United States president, James
Monroe. Monroe was a prominent supporter of freed slaves returning
to Africa. It is the largest city in the country and has a
population of over a million people.
Liberia is about the same size as the state of Tennessee.
Liberia has one national park. It is the Sapo National Park near
Greenville. It's the second largest tropical rainforest in West
Africa and about the size of Los Angeles, California. This park is
your best chance to see some wild animals in the country. There
are elephants, leopards, duiker antelope, and pygmy hippos. It's a great
place to ride a canoe on the river, but I never saw any of the animals
there.
Oprah Winfrey has traced her roots back to the Kpelle people, who live
near Gbarnga in central Liberia.
Rice is the staple food. Other foods in the Liberian diet include
cassava, plantains, bitterball, coconut, okra, hot peppers, sweet
potatoes, onions, pumpkin (more like a squash), mangos (called plums),
fish, goat, and beef.
Liberian exports include rubber, timber, iron, diamonds, coffee, and
cocoa.