Liberia, officially theRepublic of Liberia, is a country on theWest Africancoast. Liberia, meaning"Land of the Free" in Latin, is bordered bySierra Leoneto its west,Guineato its north andIvory Coastto its east.
Forests on the coastline are composed mostly of salt-tolerantmangrovetrees, while the more sparsely populated inland has forests opening onto a plateau of drier grasslands. The climate isequatorial, with significant rainfall during the May–Octoberrainy seasonand harshharmattanwinds the remainder of the year.It was an important producer of rubber in the early 20th century.
Liberia is the only African republic to have self-proclaimed independence without gaining independence through revolt from any other nation, being Africa's first and oldest republic. The countrymaintained and kept its independence during the European colonial era.