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Tourmaline Resources

Tourmaline is a stone that forms in an array of colors, a feature which is reflected in the origin of its English name "tura mali," a Sinhalese term that roughly means "stone with mixed colors."

Source locations of tourmaline range across the continents. The three most reliable resources where tourmaline is mined are Sri Lanka, Brazil and various African countries. Tourmaline also is found in many other locations.

Sri Lanka
- This south Asian country is a historic source of tourmaline, and is the second-largest producer of tourmaline, after Brazil. Sri Lanka's tourmaline deposits are found in Uva Province and Sabaragamuwa Province.
Africa
- African tourmaline resources include Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Madagascar.
  
  In Tanzania tourmaline deposits are in Mbeya Region, Rukwa Region, Dodoma Region, Morogoro Region, Arusha Region, Tanga Region and Ruvuma Region.
  
  In Mozambique, tourmaline is found in two provinces. These are the Nampula Province and Zambezia Province.
  
  Madagascar's tourmaline resources are located in six provinces, which are Antananarivo Province, Toamasina Province, Antsiranana Province, Mahajanga Province, Tuléar Province and Antsiranana Province.
  
  Zimbabwe's tourmaline resources include four areas. These areas are Masvingo District, Midlands, Mashonaland Central and Zambezi Belt.
  
  In Nigeria, tourmaline is located in three of its states. These states include Oyo State, Kaduna State and Plateau State.
  
  Three of Kenya's provinces possess tourmaline resources. The names of these provinces are Coast Province, Rift Valley Province and Eastern Province.
  
  Within South Africa, seven provinces contain tourmaline deposits. These provinces are Northwest Province, Northern Cape Province, Free State Province, Mpumalanga Province, Limpopo Province, KwaZulu-Natal Province and Western Cape Province.
Brazil
- All the colors of tourmaline formed in Brazil. Within Brazil, the top tourmaline production comes from the state of Minas Gerias. Other states where tourmaline can be found include Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Bahia, São Paulo, Espírito Santo, Pará, Goiás and Paraíba.
  
  In 1987, in Paraiba, a source of intensely hued green, purple and blue tourmalines was found. Many of the tourmalines found there contain more gold than is commonly expected of tourmalines.
United States
- Tourmaline in the United States is found in 43 states. The main resources of tourmaline are found in California and in Maine.
  
  Other resources of tourmaline in the United States include Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Alaska, Delaware, Arizona, Connecticut, Maryland, Kentucky, Georgia, Massachusetts, Florida, Nevada, Missouri, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Montana, Wyoming, Oklahoma, New York, New Jersey, Utah, New Mexico, Rhode Island, West Virginia, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Oregon, Vermont, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Texas, Washington, Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina.

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