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History of LiberiaPresented by: John Deryusorh Willie

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Where Liberia is Located?• Liberia is located on the

west coast of Africa

• Bordering countries are Sierra Leone (Gallinas territory) in the west, Guinea in the north, and the Ivory Coast in the east

• The Atlantic ocean covers the south of the Liberian coast

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Tribes of Liberia-one nation many people

• Liberia consists of 17 indigenous tribal groups and the Americo-Liberians:

• The Kumba tribes-Gola, Lorma, Kpelle, Gbandi, Mende, and Mano-600BC

• Bassa, Kru, Grebo, Mamba, and Dei-1500 from present day Ivory Coast.

• Vai and Mandingo-Niger region and Western Sudan in 1500-1600

• Krahn, Gio, Kissi, and Bella-Congo Basin 1700

• Americo Liberian, West Indians, and Congo-People-1800

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Brief Political History of Liberia  

The Presidents 1847-2005

Three assassinated presidents:  a. E.J. Roye (1871) b. William R. Tolbert Jr.

(1980) c. Samuel K. Doe (1990) 

Four presidents who resigned: a. Anthony W. Gardiner

(1883) b. William D. Coleman

(1900) c. Charles D.B. King (1930)

Charles G. Taylor (2003)

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History of Presidents of Liberia

• Liberia has had 23 Presidents and 8 Interim-Presidents

• Liberia is the only African country that has had 2 female Head of States-Ruth Perry (Interim) and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf-current and Africa’s first female

• 12 Presidents were born in the USA • 11 Presidents were born in Liberia • Only two Presidents were of full tribal

descent-Samuel Doe and Gyude Bryant • At least two, possibly three Presidents

were assassinated • Two more Presidents died in office • Four Presidents resigned • Two Presidents were deposed in a coup

d’étatone of them in a military coup

• One President was removed during a civil war

• One President served over 27 years • One president only served two months-

Moses Blah.

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Historical Timeline of Liberia• Timeline of important historical events of Liberia

Black Colonization

Colony to Republic

Nation Survival

Exploration & Grebo war

Lost of the Gallinas

Lost of the Cavalla lands

Nation of Many people

End of Americo-Liberian Rule

Civil War Officially Ends

1815-1817 1820-1847 1847-1871 1871-1875 1883 1892 1900-1980 1980-2005 2005-Present

ACS sends wave of Americo-Liberians to Africa

Liberia becomes an independent nation

The nation struggles financially and internally

Hinterland exploration and the Grebos at war. France helps

Britain uses force and annexed land to Sierra Leone

France uses force and annexed Liberian land to the Ivory Coast

Battle for land between the tribes and Americo-Liberians

Military rule and civil war ensued

Return to Civil Society

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Customs and Traditions• Respect for Elders and

parents

• Kola nut is offer on special occasion as a token of respect

• Punctuality: Liberians are never on time-add approximately 1-2 hours to the actual time of start of an appointment.

• Christmas, New year, Flag Day, and July 26 are the major holidays. On Christmas day people go door to door to sing and Santa Claus and Old-man beggar will dance around town for a fee.

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Government of Liberia• The government of Liberia

is similar to that of the United States of America.

• Branches of Government are: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial

• The Executive branch is the president and his cabinets, the Legislature consist of the House of Senate and Representative, the Judicial branch controls the courts

• Liberia is a Republic

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Economy of Liberia-Kissi Money• Kissi Money or Money with a

soul-introduced by the Lorma, Gbandi, Kpelle, Gola, Kissi, Mende, and Mandingo

• Zoe or traditional witch doctors needed to rejoin the money when broken

• Abolished by the British and French in 1936 & 1940

• Abolished in 1964. Now use by the Sande and Poro society for home coming of boys and girls from the bush schools. US dollar is the current currency.

Resources: Wikipedia Encyclopedia and US Library of Congress