The Northern Province (commonly referred to as Northern Sierra Leone or simply the North) is one of the five provincial divisions of

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

. It is located in the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

ern

geographic Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

region of Sierra Leone. It comprises the following four Districts:

Bombali Bombali is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Makeni, which is also the largest city in the north. The Bombali district is one of the sixteen districts of Sierra Leone. Bombali is one of the larg ...

Falaba {{Infobox settlement , official_name = Falaba , other_name = , native_name = , nickname = , settlement_type = , motto = , image_skyline = , imagesize ...

Koinadugu Koinadugu District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is the largest District in Sierra Leone in geographical area, and one of the least most densely populated. Its capital and largest city is Kabala, which is also one of ...

and Tonkolili. The Northern Province covers an area of with a population of 2,502,865, based on the 2015 Sierra Leone national censu

Its Administrative centre, administrative and economic center is

Makeni Makeni is the largest city in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. The city is the capital of Bombali District, and is the economic center of the Northern Province. Makeni is the fifth largest city in Sierra Leone by population. The city of M ...

. The North borders the

Western Area The Western Area or Freetown Peninsula (formerly the Colony of Sierra Leone) is one of five principal divisions of Sierra Leone. It comprises the oldest city and national capital Freetown and its surrounding towns and countryside. It covers an a ...

to the

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 Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

, the

Republic of Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

to the north-east, the Eastern Province and Southern Province to the south-east.

Geography

Overview

The Northern province is mainly a hilly wooded area with

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

ous area farther inland. The region has ranges of Mountains, Hills,

Valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

s and

Wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

s; comprising unique and

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

. The region is a political

stronghold A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

of the

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Apr ...

(APC) political party. The APC currently controls all the elected seats from the North virtually.

Districts

The four districts of the Northern Province. *

Bombali District Bombali is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Makeni, which is also the largest city in the north. The Bombali district is one of the sixteen districts of Sierra Leone. Bombali is one of the lar ...

, capital

Koinadugu District Koinadugu District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is the largest District in Sierra Leone in geographical area, and one of the least most densely populated. Its capital and largest city is Kabala, which is also one of ...

, capital Kabala *

Falaba District Falaba District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is one of the sixteen Districts of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest town is Bendugu, Sierra Leone, Bendugu. Other towns in Falaba District include Falaba, Sikunia, ...

, capital

Mongo Mongo may refer to: Geography Africa * Mongo, Chad, a Sahel city * Apostolic Vicariate of Mongo (Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction) * Mongo, Sierra Leone, a chiefdom * Mongo River (Little Scarces River), Guinea and Sierra Leone, a tributar ...

Tonkolili District Tonkolili District is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Magburaka. The other major towns include Masingbi, Yele, Mile 91, Bumbuna, Yonibana, Matotoka. Mathora, Magbass and Masanga. To ...

, capital

Magburaka Magburaka is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Tonkolili District in the Northern Province, Sierra Leone, Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its population was 16,313 in the 2004 census. and a current estimate of 40,313. It is ...

Prior to 2018, the province also included *

Port Loko District Port Loko District is a district in the North West Province of Sierra Leone. It is the most populous District in the North and the second most populous District in Sierra Leone, after the Western Area Urban District. As of the 2015 census, Port Lo ...

, capital

Port Loko Port Loko is the capital of Port Loko District and since 2017 the North West Province of Sierra Leone. The city had a population of 21,961 in the 2004 census and current estimate of 44,900. Port Loko lies approximately 36 miles north-east of Fr ...

Kambia District Kambia District is a district in the North West Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is the town of Kambia (Sierra Leone), Kambia. As of the 2015 census, The District had a population of 343,686. Kambia District borders the Rep ...

, capital Kambia *Areas of Bombali district which now make up

Karene District Karene is a district in the North West Province, Sierra Leone. Karine is one of the sixteen districts that make up the Republic of Sierra Leone. The capital and largest city of Karine District is Kamakwie Karine along with Falaba District are th ...

Borders

The Northern Province has the following borders: *

Mamou Region Mamou Region ( Pular: 𞤁𞤭𞥅𞤱𞤢𞤤 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤥𞤵𞤲) is located in central Guinea. It is bordered by the country of Sierra Leone and the Guinean regions of Faranah Region, Faranah, Labé, and Kindia. Administrative divis ...

Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

: north *

Faranah Region Faranah Region is located in east-central Guinea. It is bordered by the countries of Sierra Leone and Mali and the Guinean regions of Kankan, Mamou, Nzérékoré, and Labé Labé (Adlam script, Pular 𞤆𞤵𞤤𞤢𞤪:𞤂𞤢𞤦𞤫) is t ...

: northeast *

Nzérékoré Region The Nzérékoré Region ( nqo, ߒߛߙߍߜߍ߬ߘߍ߫ ߕߌ߲߬ߞߎߘߎ߲) is a region in the southern part of Guinea. Its capital and largest city is Nzérékoré. It is one of the eight regions of Guinea. It is bordered by the countries of Sierr ...

: far east *

North West Province North West is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Mahikeng. The province is located to the west of the major population centre of Gauteng and south of Botswana. History North West was incorporated after the end of Apartheid in 1994, an ...

: west *

: southwest * Eastern Province: south * Southern Province: far southwest.

Outamba-Kilimi National Park

One of the main tourist attraction in the North is the Outamba-Kilimi National Park. The park is one of the most well-known and frequently visited sites in Sierra Leone. The Park is found in the northeastern of

Kamakwie Kamakwie is a town in the North West Province of Sierra Leone. Since 2017 Kamakwie is the Capital of the Karene District in Chiefdom Sella Limba. The population of the town as estimated in late 2010, is 8,09 The main economic activities of Kamakwi ...

in the

. It is a magical place embedded between two rivers, the Great Scarcies, and the Mongo Rivers. At the park are rare

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

s and buffaloes frequently seen following their paths through the dense bush. See the

Hippo The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extant ...

s relaxing in their pools or listen to the

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

s of the rich

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

life and the

alarm call In animal communication, an alarm signal is an antipredator adaptation in the form of signals emitted by social animals in response to danger. Many primates and birds have elaborate alarm calls for warning conspecifics of approaching predators ...

s of the various

primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

s while silently paddling along the

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

in a

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

Ethnic groups

The

Temne people The Temne, also called Atemne, Témené, Temné, Téminè, Temeni, Thaimne, Themne, Thimni, Timené, Timné, Timmani, or Timni, are a West African ethnic group, They are predominantly found in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone.

are the largest ethnic group in Northern Sierra Leone. The Temne form the largest ethnic group in every districts in the north, except

. Other ethnic groups in Northern Sierra Leone with significant population are the Limba, Kuranko, Mandingo, Loko, the

Fula Fula may refer to: *Fula people (or Fulani, Fulɓe) *Fula language (or Pulaar, Fulfulde, Fulani) **The Fula variety known as the Pulaar language **The Fula variety known as the Pular language **The Fula variety known as Maasina Fulfulde *Al-Fula ...

, and Yalunka.

Religion

References

External links

* {{Coord, 9, 15, N, 11, 45, W, region:SL_type:adm1st, display=title Provinces of Sierra Leone

Geography

Overview

Districts

Borders

Outamba-Kilimi National Park

Ethnic groups

Religion

See also

References

External links