Liberia Trivia Quiz

Answer: Namibia

Starting with the northwest and going clockwise, we have Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire (or Ivory Coast). Liberia is the minnow of the group in terms of population. Namibia is just above South Africa on the southwest corner of the continent.

Answer: Former American slaves

The name of the country is perhaps a hint and the colonisation period may also have had something to do with the country's motto: "The love of freedom brought us here."

The American Colonisation Society (founded in 1816) assisted in the 'repatriation' of former American slaves. A colony was established in what became Liberia and former slaves were sent there, regardless of where their roots actually lay.

Answer: Wettest in the world

With 5.2 metres of rain annually, Monrovia can claim the dubious record of the world's wettest capital city.

Kuwait City is the hottest with an average of nearly forty-seven degrees Celsius. Cairo in Egypt takes the size prize. There are plenty joining Monrovia at sea level however it is Baku in Azerbaijan which comes in lowest at twenty-eight metres below sea level.

Answer: James Monroe

Monrovia is the capital and was named after James Monroe for his support of the colonisation programme. Freetown, capital of neighbouring Sierra Leone, was also established for former American slaves.

Answer: Mostly flat and rolling hills

The coastal mangrove swamps give way to rolling hills and large amounts of rainforest. Forty percent of the tropical rainforest in West Africa is said to be in Liberia. It is also the habitat for the rare pygmy hippopotamus as well as elephants, chimpanzees, gorillas and ... hairy frogs.

Answer: Melegueta Coast

The trading in melegueta pepper gave rise to these names. The Portuguese preferred Melegueta Coast, whereas the British and Dutch often referred to the spice as "grains of paradise" and eventually used the Grain Coast for the area. Pepper Coast was another name used. but not by the Portuguese.

The melegueta pepper is peppery in taste and has been used as a substitute for black pepper (from the Piperaceae family). The melegueta pepper is from the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. The similar sounding malagueta pepper is an unrelated chilli pepper from Central or South America.

Answer: Harmattan winds

The Harmattan is a dry, dusty wind that blows off the Sahara Desert. It carries a lot of dust and causes a haze, severely restricting visibility at times and disrupting aircraft movements. It blows from the end of November to mid-March.

Answer: Diamonds

'Blood diamonds' is a name given to diamonds mined in a war zone and used to fund the fighting.

From 1991, there was an eleven year war in neighbouring Sierra Leone. Liberia was accused of supplying weapons and training to one side in exchange for diamonds. Liberia has since been able to establish a legitimate diamond mining industry. The 2006 film "Blood Diamond" starring Leonardo DiCaprio is a story which takes place during this conflict.

Answer: Cavalla River

All of these rivers in Liberia were named by the Portuguese. The Cavalla (also known as Cavally, Youbou, or Diougou) emerges north of the Nimba Range in Guinea and flows south forming part of the Liberia-Côte d'Ivoire border. It is 515 kilometres long. The fish is the cavalla, a kind of horse mackerel.

Answer: Ship registries

Liberia produces all of these but it is as a flag of convenience that it nears the top of the world rankings. In January 2010, just over twenty-two per cent of all shipping tonnage was registered through Panama. Liberia's share was half of that. Flags of convenience help reduce operating costs, give owners some anonymity and allow them to avoid regulations of the owner's country, which no doubt helps to explain their popularity.