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Liberia

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West Africa

Liberia is home to 11 documented ethnic groups in West Africa — led by Kpelle Liberia (~21%), Liberia Other (~18%), Bassa Liberia (~14%), Grebo (~10%). This page blends their phenotype and demographic data into one weighted reference: skin tone, facial features, hair texture and build, drawn from published census and ancestry sources.

Demographic Composition

Composition weights are derived from self-identification in published census and demographic surveys. Each row links to the source ethnic-group atlas page.

Ethnic groupWeightSource
Kpelle LiberiaKpelle Liberia20.5%Liberia 2008 Census plus subsequent estimates; Kpelle (~20.5%, ~1.1M+ of ~5.4M+ total). Mande source population, the largest single ethnic group. Cross-border with Guinean Kpelle
Liberia OtherLiberia Other17.5%Liberia 2008 Census residual; includes Vai, Mandingo, Krahn, Mende-Liberia, plus other groups
Bassa LiberiaBassa Liberia13.7%Liberia 2008 Census; Bassa (~13.7%); Niger-Congo source population
GreboGrebo10.0%Liberia 2008 Census; Grebo (~10%); Krou source population
GioGio8.0%Liberia 2008 Census; Gio / Dan (~8%); Mande, cross-border with Ivorian Yacouba
ManoMano7.7%Liberia 2008 Census; Mano (~7.7%); cross-border with Guinean Manon
KruKru6.0%Liberia 2008 Census; Kru (~6%); Krou source population
LormaLorma5.2%Liberia 2008 Census; Lorma (~5.2%); cross-border with Guinean Toma
Kissi LiberiaKissi Liberia4.6%Liberia 2008 Census; Kissi (~4.6%); cross-border with Guinean and Sierra Leonean Kissi
GolaGola4.3%Liberia 2008 Census; Gola (~4.3%); cross-border with Sierra Leonean Gola
Americo LiberianAmerico Liberian2.5%Liberia 2008 Census plus historical estimates; Americo-Liberian (~2.5%); the historic settler community descended from freed African-American slaves who emigrated to Liberia 1820s-1860s under the American Colonization Society. Politically dominant historically until the 1980 coup

Liberia Phenotype Profile

Liberia has a heterogeneous demographic structure with Kpelle (~20.5%) as the largest group plus 16+ Indigenous ethnic groups plus the distinctive Americo-Liberian settler-descended community (~2.5%). The 1989-1996 and 1999-2003 civil wars produced substantial humanitarian crisis.

A descriptive view, not a claim about individuals

This page shows a weighted aggregate of phenotype observations across the Liberia population, based on demographic composition from published census and ancestry sources. Phenotypes within any country are far more varied than the aggregate suggests; this is a descriptive reference, not a deterministic claim about any individual. For source-level detail on individual ethnic groups, see the constituent atlas pages linked below.

Methodology Notes

Composition weights derived from Liberia 2008 Census plus subsequent estimates.

See full project methodology →

Primary Sources

  1. 1.Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo-Information Services. Population and Housing Census 2008. Monrovia: LISGIS; 2009.
  2. 2.Sawyer A. The Emergence of Autocracy in Liberia: Tragedy and Challenge. ICS; 1992.
  3. 3.Levitt JI. The Evolution of Deadly Conflict in Liberia. Carolina Academic Press; 2005.
  4. 4.Tishkoff SA, Reed FA, Friedlaender FR, et al. The genetic structure and history of Africans and African Americans. Science. 2009;324(5930):1035-1044.
  5. 5.Liebenow JG. Liberia: The Quest for Democracy. Indiana University Press; 1987.

Other countries in West Africa

Aggregate phenotype references for neighbouring West Africa nations, weighted by demographic composition.

Browse all West Africaethnic groups & countries →