The Lol State was a

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya; and on the ...

with the capital in

Raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

, that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region, which is in the northwest section of the country. Lol state bordered Haut-Mbomou and

Haute-Kotto Haute-Kotto (, "Upper Kotto") is one of the 20 prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdiv ...

in the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

to the west,

South Darfur South Darfur State ( Wilāyat Ǧanūb Dārfūr; Janob Darfor) is one of the States of Sudan, wilayat or states of Sudan. It is one of the five states that compose the Darfur, region of Darfur in western Sudan. Overview Prior to the creation of t ...

and East Darfur in

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

to the north, the disputed region of Kafia Kingi to the northwest, Aweil East State to the northeast, Aweil State to the east, Gbudwe State to the south, and Wau State to the southeast. The state was created alongside 27 other states after a decree issuing the creation of 28 states took place. It was dissolved at the conclusion of the

South Sudanese Civil War The South Sudanese Civil War was a multi-sided civil war in South Sudan fought from 2013 to 2020, between forces of the government and opposition forces. The civil war caused rampant human rights abuses, including forced displacement, ethnic mas ...

History

On 2 October 2015, President

Salva Kiir Salva Kiir Mayardit (born 13 September 1951), commonly known as Salva Kiir, is a South Sudanese politician who is the President of South Sudan since its independence on 9 July 2011. Prior to independence, he was the President of the Government ...

issued a decree establishing 28 states in place of the 10 constitutionally established states. The decree established the new states largely along ethnic lines. A number of opposition parties and civil society groups challenged the constitutionality of the decree. Kiir later resolved to take it to parliament for approval as a constitutional amendment. In November the South Sudanese parliament empowered President Kiir to create new states. As a result, Lol State was formed from the counties of Raga County in

Western Bahr el Ghazal Western Bahr el Ghazal is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of and as of 2020 has estimated 600,000 in population. It is part of the Bahr el Ghazal region. Its capital is Wau. The state shared international borders with Sudan to the north ...

and Aweil North County and Aweil West County in

Northern Bahr el Ghazal Northern Bahr el Ghazal (Arabic: ولاية شمال بحر الغزال) is a States of South Sudan, state in South Sudan. It has an area of 30,543 km2 and is part of the Bahr el Ghazal (region of South Sudan), Bahr el Ghazal region. It b ...

, encompassing a region consisting of the majority of the Lol River and its western

tributaries A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream ('' main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which the ...

. Rezik Zechariah Hassan was appointed as Governor on 24 December 2015. On 22 February 2020, President Salva Kiir reverted the 28 states back original ten states at the conclusion of the

. Lol State has since been reincorporated back into Western Bahr el Ghazal and Northern Bahr el Ghazal.

Geography

Administrative counties

After the split up, Lol State broke down even further for a total of 11 counties. Three new additional counties were created later on 6 October 2016 to bring the total of 14. The 14 counties are part of the 180 counties in South Sudan. The 14 counties are consisted of the following: * Former Raga (Raja) County: ** Eri; headquarters: Ere ** Kuru; headquarters: Uyu-Kuku ** Ringi; headquarters: Boro * Former Aweil North County: ** Korok East; headquarters: Maper Dut Thou ** Korok West; headquarters: Jach ** Malual Centre; headquarters: Maper Dut Wieu ** Malual North; headquarters: Gok Machar ** Ariath; headquarters: Ariath ** Korok Centre; headquarters: Mayen Ulem * Former Aweil West County: ** Gomjuer East; headquarters: Wedwil ** Gomjuer West; headquarters: Nyamlel ** Majakbai; headquarters: Majakbai ** Marialbai; headquarters: Marialbai ** Gomjuer Centre; headquarters: unknown

Towns and cities

The capital and largest city of the state of Lol was

. Other towns in Lol State included Gossinga and

Deim Zubeir Deim Zubeir, from the Arabic ديم الزبير Daim az-Zubayr" commonly translated as the "Camp of Zubeir", is the historically established but highly controversial name of Uyujuku town in the Western Bahr el Ghazal of the Republic of South ...

References

{{coord missing, South Sudan Bahr el Ghazal Former states of South Sudan States and territories established in 2015 States and territories disestablished in 2020 2015 establishments in South Sudan 2020 disestablishments in South Sudan