Liberia Flag

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Brief History. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach the region that would become Liberia in 1461, but though other soon followed, the country remained of little interest to the outside world. This changed in the early 19th century when the US Congress granted a charter to the American Colonization Society to proceed with the repatriation of slaves back to Africa from America. In 1822, the first group arrived and by 1838 the Commonwealth of Liberia had been organized. Independence as a republic, was declared in 1847 with a constitution designed along the lines of the US constitution. Over the course of the next 14 years, the world powers Britain, France and the US all recognized Liberia. The country is currently facing the challenges of rebuilding an economy and a people decimated by war.

picture of Liberia flag

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Country Information

Local name: Liberia

Capital: Monrovia

Population: 3,042,004

Government: republic

Currency: Liberian dollar (LRD)

Land size: 111,370 sq km

Topography: mostly flat to rolling coastal plains rising to rolling plateau and low mountains in northeast

Typical foods:

Major exports: rubber, timber, iron, diamonds, cocoa, coffee
Information on the People

Official language: English 20%

Other languages spoken: some 20 ethnic group languages, of which a few can be written and are used in correspondence

Religions: indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20%

Literacy rate: 57.5%

Male/Female Ratio: 0.99 male(s) to every 1 female

Life expectancy: 39.65 years

Ethnic groups: indigenous African tribes 95% (including Kpelle, Bassa, Gio, Kru, Grebo, Mano, Krahn, Gola, Gbandi, Loma, Kissi, Vai, Dei, Bella, Mandingo, and Mende), Americo-Liberians 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the US who had been slaves), Congo People 2.5% (descendants of immigrants from the Caribbean who had been slaves)

Internet users: 1,000

Famous people: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Charles Taylor

  

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