The Adamawa Plateau (french: Massif de l'Adamaoua) is a

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

region in

west West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

central Africa Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo ...

stretching from south-eastern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

through north-central

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

( Adamawa and North Provinces) to the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...

. The part of the plateau that lies in Nigeria is more popularly known as Gotel Mountains. The Adamawa Plateau is the source of many waterways, including the Benue River. The average elevation is about 3,300 feet (1,000 meters), but elevations can reach as high as 8,700 feet (2,650 meters). It is important for its deposits of

bauxite Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO ...

. The vegetation is mostly

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

. The endangered toad ''

Amietophrynus djohongensis ''Sclerophrys djohongensis'' is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Adamawa Plateau in north-central Cameroon. It was originally described as a subspecies of ''Bufo funereus'' (now '' Sclerophrys funerea''). It might ...

'' is known to exist in the wild only in the Cameroonian part of the Adamawa Plateau. The plateau is sparsely populated, and cattle raising is the main occupation in the area. The province and plateau were named after

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...

Muslim leader

Modibo Adama Adama ɓii Ardo Hassana (1786 – 1847), more commonly known as Modibbo Adama, was a Fulani scholar and holy warrior, who hailed from the Ba'en clan of Fulbe. He led a jihad into the region of Fombina (in modern-day Cameroon and Nigeria), openin ...

, whose jihads significantly affected the population of the area.

References

{{Authority control Plateaus of Nigeria Plateaus of Cameroon Plateaus of the Central African Republic Cameroonian Highlands forests