Liberia is a country on the West African coast with a rich history and culture. In this article, we have compiled 58 riddles related to Liberia along with their answers. Some riddles touch on Liberian geography, others on famous people and events from Liberian history. The riddles vary in difficulty – some quite easy, others more challenging. See how many you can get right!
Geography Riddles
Riddle 1
I’m a 570 mile long river that flows through Liberia. Many diamonds are mined from my sands. What am I?
Answer: Saint Paul River
Riddle 2
I’m a 1,380 foot tall coastal mountain range in Liberia near the border with Sierra Leone. What am I?
Answer: Mount Wuteve
Riddle 3
I’m a cape in Liberia that marks the westernmost point of Africa. Sailors once feared me for my rough seas and rocks. What am I?
Answer: Cape Mesurado
Riddle 4
I’m a Liberian swamp region covering over 1,100 square miles. What am I?
Answer: Lake Piso Multiple Use Area
Riddle 5
I’m a Liberian region once known for its vast rubber plantations operated by Firestone. What am I?
Answer: Margibi County
History & Government Riddles
Riddle 6
I’m an influential former slave who played a major role in founding Liberia in 1847. What is my name?
Answer: Elijah Johnson
Riddle 7
I was Liberia’s 21st president, elected in 1997 after many years of civil war. What is my name?
Answer: Charles Taylor
Riddle 8
I’m the current president of Liberia, elected in 2017 as the successor to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. What is my name?
Answer: George Weah
Riddle 9
I’m a political party in Liberia that held power from 1877 to 1980 and established a system of racial segregation and True Whig supremacy. What am I?
Answer: True Whig Party
Riddle 10
I was an Americo-Liberian who served as President of Liberia from 1944 to 1971, one of the longest serving leaders in modern history. Who am I?
Answer: William Tubman
Culture & Entertainment Riddles
Riddle 11
I’m a Liberian stew made with chicken, shrimp, greens and hot pepper sauce. What dish am I?
Answer: Palava Sauce
Riddle 12
I’m a grain made into couscous-like balls and eaten as part of West African cuisine in Liberia. What am I?
Answer: Fufu
Riddle 13
I’m a popular fabric worn by women in Liberia made of vividly colored wax-print cotton. What am I?
Answer: Lappa
Riddle 14
I’m a bowed string instrument from Liberia, similar to a lute or fiddle. What am I?
Answer: Krin
Riddle 15
I’m a Liberian martial art and form of wrestling incorporating kicks, punches and grappling techniques. What am I?
Answer: Laputa
Religion Riddles
Riddle 16
I’m a religious movement founded in Liberia in 1914 that combines Christianity with African customs and rituals. What am I?
Answer: Poro society
Riddle 17
I’m an African independent church founded in Liberia in 1860 that has over 50,000 members today. What church am I?
Answer: United Methodist Church of Liberia
Riddle 18
I’m a Liberian religious movement that sparked a civil conflict in the late 20th century. What am I named after?
Answer: First Liberian Civil War
Science & Education Riddles
Riddle 19
I’m the oldest degree-granting institution in West Africa, founded in Liberia in 1851. What university am I?
Answer: University of Liberia
Riddle 20
I’m a deadly virus that erupted in Lofa County, Liberia in 1976. What am I?
Answer: Ebola virus
Riddle 21
I’m an agricultural research institute based in Liberia focused on improving rice and cassava production. What am I?
Answer: Africa Rice Center
Wildlife & Conservation Riddles
Riddle 22
I’m a Liberian national park protecting over 1,000 chimpanzees, the world’s only surviving red colobus monkeys and other endangered species. What am I?
Answer: Sapo National Park
Riddle 23
I’m one of the last remaining tropical rainforests in West Africa, spanning over 1,500 square miles in Liberia. What am I?
Answer: Gola Forest
Riddle 24
I’m a rare antelope found only in Liberia’s lowland rainforests, recognizable by my long horns and chestnut brown coat. What am I?
Answer: Zebra duiker
Economy Riddles
Riddle 25
I’m the official currency of Liberia. What am I?
Answer: Liberian dollar
Riddle 26
I’m a major seaport in Monrovia and the largest shipping hub in Liberia. Cargo ships load up on iron ore, rubber and coffee here. What am I?
Answer: Freeport of Monrovia
Riddle 27
I’m a huge iron ore mine in northern Liberia that was at the center of Liberia’s 14-year civil war. What am I?
Answer: Bong Mine
Literature & Language Riddles
Riddle 28
I’m a Liberian author who won the Literature Nobel Prize in Literature in 1938 for my novel “High Noon in Haiti”. Who am I?
Answer: George Weah
Riddle 29
I’m the official language of Liberia spoken as a lingua franca. I incorporate some native vocabulary as well elements of African American Vernacular English. What language am I?
Answer: Liberian English
Riddle 30
I’m one of over 30 indigenous ethnic groups in Liberia with my own language in the Mande language family. Who am I?
Answer: Mandingo people
Famous Liberians Riddles
Riddle 31
I was born in Liberia but gained fame in another country for my hip hop albums. I won a Grammy in 2010 for my song “Empire State of Mind”. Who am I?
Answer: Jay-Z
Riddle 32
I was Liberia’s president from 2006 to 2018, the first elected female head of state in Africa. What is my name?
Answer: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Riddle 33
I’m a Liberian soccer legend voted FIFA World Player of the Year and Ballon D’or winner for scoring over 1,200 goals in my career. Who am I?
Answer: George Weah
Historical Events Riddles
Riddle 34
I was a bloody coup in 1980 led by Samuel Doe that toppled the Americo-Liberian True Whig Party after over 130 years in power. What am I?
Answer: 1980 Liberian coup d’état
Riddle 35
I’m a rebel conflict that triggered the First Liberian Civil War from 1989 to 1997, leaving over 200,000 dead. What was I named after?
Answer: National Patriotic Front of Liberia
Riddle 36
I was an intensely violent siege of Monrovia by rebel forces in 2003 with heavy civilian casualties. What was I called?
Answer: World War II
Tricky Riddles
Riddle 37
The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?
Answer: Footsteps
Riddle 38
What has a head and a tail but no body?
Answer: A coin
Riddle 39
What gets wetter the more it dries?
Answer: A towel
Riddle 40
What has many keys but can’t open a single lock?
Answer: A piano
Riddle 41
What belongs to you but others use it more than you?
Answer: Your name
Nature Riddles
Riddle 42
What jumps higher than a building?
Answer: All buildings jump zero height, they don’t jump
Riddle 43
What has a neck but no head?
Answer: A bottle
Riddle 44
In a one-story pink house, there was a pink person, a pink cat, a pink fish, a pink computer, a pink chair, a pink table, a pink telephone, a pink shower– everything was pink! What color were the stairs?
Answer: There were no stairs, it’s a one-story house
Riddle 45
What gets broken without being held?
Answer: A promise
Food Riddles
Riddle 46
What do you call a fake noodle?
Answer: An impasta
Riddle 47
What do you call an angry pancake?
Answer: A flip-flop
Riddle 48
What do you call cheese that isn’t yours?
Answer: Nacho cheese
Riddle 49
What kind of tea is hard to swallow?
Answer: Reality
Around the House Riddles
Riddle 50
What has hands but can’t clap?
Answer: A clock
Riddle 51
What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs?
Answer: A clock
Riddle 52
What has a thumb and four fingers but is not alive?
Answer: A glove
Riddle 53
What has words but never speaks?
Answer: A book
Number & Math Riddles
Riddle 54
What 3 numbers, none of which is zero, give the same result whether they’re added or multiplied?
Answer: 1, 2, 3
Riddle 55
Tom’s mother has three children. One is named April, one is named May. What is the third child’s name?
Answer: Tom
Riddle 56
A farmer has 17 sheep, and all but 9 die. How many are left?
Answer: 9
Riddle 57
How many months have 28 days?
Answer: All months (all have at least 28 days)
Riddle 58
Two fathers and two sons sat down to eat eggs. They ate exactly three eggs, each person had an egg. How is this possible?
Answer: There were only a grandfather, father and son (three people).
Conclusion
How did you enjoy those Liberia riddles? Some of them quite tricky, others pretty clever. Learning more about Liberian culture, history and geography through these riddles was likely educational as well as fun. Let us know if you have any other riddles to stump future readers!
