Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Instead of heading straight for the coast, the river loops north into dry country before turning south. The figure is taken from National Geographic, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a world geography fact?

Yes. It sits on the World Geography shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

The Niger River turns away from the sea inland

Instead of heading straight for the coast, the river loops north into dry country before turning south The Niger rises in the highlands of Guinea and travels north-east into Mali, where it spreads into a vast inland delta. It then bends south-east through Niger and Nigeria to reach the Gulf of Guinea. That curve puzzled European mapmakers for centuries, who assumed the river must run north to the desert. It sits in Mondo's world geography collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

National Geographic

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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World Geography trivia

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Tags: rivers, west-africa, deltas

The Niger River turns away from the sea inland: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Instead of heading straight for the coast, the river loops north into dry country before turning south. The figure is taken from National Geographic, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a world geography fact?: Yes. It sits on the World Geography shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.