Debre Berhan
Encyclopedia
Debre Berhan is a city and woreda
Woreda
Woreda is an administrative division of Ethiopia , equivalent to a district . Woredas are composed of a number of Kebele, or neighborhood associations, which are the smallest unit of local government in Ethiopia...
in central Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. Located in the Semien Shewa Zone of the Amhara Region
Amhara Region
Amhara is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia, containing the homeland of the Amhara people. Previously known as Region 3, its capital is Bahir Dar....
, about 120 kilometers north east of Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
on the paved highway to Dessie
Dessie
Dessie is a city and a woreda in north-central Ethiopia. Located on the Addis Ababa - Asmara highway in the Debub Wollo Zone of the Amhara Region, this city has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation between 2,470 and 2,550 meters above sea level.Dessie has postal service , and telephone...
, the town has a latitude and longitude of 9°41′N 39°32′E and an elevation of 2,840 meters. It was an early capital of Ethiopia and afterwards, with Ankober
Ankober
Ankober is a town in central Ethiopia and one of the capitals of the former kingdom of Shewa. Located in the Semien Shewa Zone of the Amhara Region, Ankober is perched on the eastern escarpment of the Ethiopian Highlands 40 kilometers to the east of Debre Birhan, with a latitude and longitude of ,...
and Angolalla, was one of the capitals of the kingdom of Shewa
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
.
The gravel road between Debre Berhan and Ankober, 42 kilometers in length, was overhauled in May 2009.
History
Debre Berhan was founded by EmperorEmperor of Ethiopia
The Emperor of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1974. The Emperor was the head of state and head of government, with ultimate executive, judicial and legislative power in that country...
Zara Yaqob
Zara Yaqob
Zar'a Ya`qob or Zera Yacob was of Ethiopia , and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
, in response to a miraculous light that was seen in the sky at the time. Believing this was a sign from God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
showing his approval for the death by stoning
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
of a group of heretics 38 days before, the emperor ordered a church built on the site, and later constructed an extensive palace nearby, and a second church, dedicated to Saint Cyriacus
Saint Cyriacus
Cyriacus, or Cyriac, is a Christian martyr who was killed in the persecution of Diocletian. He is one of twenty-seven saints, most of them martyrs, who bear this name, of whom only seven are honoured by a specific mention of their names in the Roman Martyrology.-Life:Of the Saint Cyriacus who,...
. Zara Yaqob spent 12 of the last 14 years of his life in Debre Berhan.
Historian Richard Pankhurst
Richard Pankhurst (academic)
Richard Keir Pethick Pankhurst OBE is a British academic with expertise in the study of Ethiopia.-Early life and education:...
offers the date of 1456 for the date of the founding of this church, providing a plausible argument that the light in the sky was Halley's Comet, which could have been in Shewa that year, although the traditional dates (10th day of the month of Maggabit, i.e. 6 or 7 March) do not coincide with the days that the comet was most visible (13 through 17 June).
While his son Baeda Maryam
Baeda Maryam of Ethiopia
Baeda Maryam was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
did spend the first part of his reign in Debre Berhan, eventually Baeda Maryam returned to the established itinerant practice of living in a permanent encampment that was constantly on the move through the realm. The departure of the court led to a decline in the population and importance of this town. Pankhurst explains that the needs of the imperial court and army -- who numbered in the thousands -- for firewood and food was so burdensome that, "it could not remain in any one locality for more than four months, nor return to the same place in less than 10 years due to the resultant shortage of food", which prevented the growth of any capital city in this period.
While little more than a large village, Debre Berhan is mentioned a few times in the 16th century, the first time as a mustering center by Emperor Lebna Dengel against the invading armies of Ahmad Gragn. After he had defeated Lebna Dengel at the Battle of Amba Sel
Battle of Amba Sel
The Battle of Amba Sel was fought on October 28, 1531 between the Ethiopians under their Emperor Dawit II, and the forces of Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi of the Adal Sultanate. Imam Ahmed won the battle at Amba Sel, and his troops afterwards crossed the Walaqa River....
, Ahmad mustered his troops twice in Debre Berhan before leading them on campaigns deeper into Ethiopian territory. At the second mustering in 1535, he proclaimed before his followers, "Thanks be to God, Abyssinia is conquered. Only Tigray
Tigray Province
Tigray was a province of Ethiopia. The Tigray Region superseded the province with the adoption of the new constitution in 1995. The province of Tigre merged with its neighboring provinces, including Semien, Tembien, Agame and the prominent Enderta province and towards the end of 19th century it...
, Begemder
Begemder
Begemder was a province in the northwestern part of Ethiopia. There are several proposed etymologies for this name...
and Gojjam
Gojjam
Gojjam was a kingdom in the north-western part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Debre Marqos. This region is distinctive for lying entirely within the bend of the Abbay River from its outflow from Lake Tana to the Sudan...
are left... Shall we march against them, or shall we stay on in this region for a year until we have settled it down?" then led them into the Ethiopian highlands
Ethiopian Highlands
The Ethiopian Highlands are a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia, Eritrea , and northern Somalia in the Horn of Africa...
.
The village regained importance in the reign of Asfa Wossen
Asfa Wossen
Asfa Wossen was a Meridazmach of Shewa, an important noble office of Ethiopia...
(1775-1808), Meridazmach of Shewa
Rulers of Shewa
The following is a list of rulers of Shewa. Shewa is an historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire.-List of the rulers of Shewa:-See also:* Ethiopia** Rulers and Heads of State of Ethiopia...
, who built a palace there, and divided his time amongst this town, Ankober and Angolalla. The succeeding Meridazmaches prized Debre Berhan as a hunting lodge for its surrounding plains, and used it as a riding place. His son Sahle Selassie
Sahle Selassie
Sahle Selassie was a Meridazmach of Shewa , an important noble of Ethiopia. He was a younger son of Wossen Seged...
rebuilt Debre Berhan after it had been ravaged by Abichu Oromo at the beginning of his reign, and built a church dedicated to the Selassie ("Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
") in this capital.
When then Negus
Negus
Negus is a title in Ge'ez, Tigrinya, Tigre and Amharic, used for a king and at times also a vassal ruler in pre-1974 Ethiopia and pre-1890 Eritrea. It is subsequently used to translate the word "king" in Biblical and other literature...
Menelik submitted to Emperor Yohannes IV
Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
Yohannes IV , born Lij Kassay Mercha Ge'ez, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1872 until his death.-Early life:...
in the treaty of Wadara of 1878, it was also stipulated that the capital of Shewa would be moved from Liche to Debre Berhan.
The Debre Berhan market in the 1880s was considered important for mules and horses. The Selassie church was rebuilt by Emperor Menilek in 1906 and contains many mural paintings. David Buxton believes that it was inevitable that Debre Berhan would regain importance, "Although a somewhat cold and inhospitable place," he writes about the town, "it has an obvious advantage as commanding what must always have been an important focus of routes. Even in modern times it was inevitable that the Asmara road should be brought through this easy passage, avoiding the impassable gorges on the other."
Debre Berhan received electricity in 1955 when a 90 kW hydro-electric power station was put into service; by 1965, the installed electrical capacity in the town was 125 kVA and annual production 103,000 kWh. On 26 April in the earlier year, Emperor Haile Selassie opened the Community Teacher Training School in the town. By 1958 it was one of 27 places in Ethiopia ranked as First Class Township.
On 2 July 1994 it was broadcast that nine people were killed and eleven captured in an exchange of fire with security forces in Asagirt
Angolalla Terana Asagirt
Angolalla Terana Asagirt is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named in part after one of the capitals of the former principality of Shewa, Angolalla...
woreda. The people were alleged to have broken into the Debre Berhan prison before that, setting a number of prisoners free. According to the police, Andale Melaklu, the Debre Berhan representative of the All-Amhara People's Organization
All-Amhara People's Organization
The All-Amhara People's Organization is an ethnic based political party in Ethiopia, whose leader was the late Asrat Woldeyes.At the last legislative elections, 15 May 2005, the party was part of the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces, that won 52 out of 527 seats in the Council of People's...
was one of the "bandits" killed in the fire exchange.
Demographics
Based on figures from the Central Statistical AgencyCentral Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)
The Central Statistical Agency is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growth, as well as to act as an official training center in that field. It is part of the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and...
in 2005, Debre Berhan has an estimated total population of 67,243, of whom 34,055 are men and 33,185 are women. The woreda has an estimated area of 14.71 square kilometers, which gives Debre Berhan a density of 4,571.20 people per square kilometer.
The 1994 national census reported a total population for Debre Berhan of 38,717 in 8,906 households, of whom 17,918 were men and 20,799 were women. The five largest ethnic groups reported in the town were the Amhara
Amhara people
Amhara are a highland people inhabiting the Northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Numbering about 19.8 million people, they comprise 26% of the country's population, according to the 2007 national census...
(90.12%), the Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
(3.94%), the Tigrayan
Tigray-Tigrinya people
Tigray-Tigrinya are an ethnic group who live in the southern, central and northern parts of Eritrea and the northern highlands of Ethiopia's Tigray province. They also live in Ethiopia's former provinces of Begemder and Wollo, which are today mostly part of Amhara Region, though a few regions...
(1.81%), the Gurage
Gurage
Gurage is an ethnic group in Ethiopia. According to the 2007 national census, its population is 1,867,377 people , of whom 792,659 are urban dwellers. This is 2.53% of the total population of Ethiopia, or 7.52% of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region...
(1.6%), and the Argobba
Argobba people
The Argobba are a Muslim people group that is spread out through isolated village networks and towns in the northeast and east of Ethiopia. The Argobba have typically been astute traders and merchants, and have adjusted to the economic trends in their area...
(1.2%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.33% of the population. Amharic
Amharic language
Amharic is a Semitic language spoken in Ethiopia. It is the second most-spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic, and the official working language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Thus, it has official status and is used nationwide. Amharic is also the official or working...
was spoken as a first language by 93.81%, Oromiffa
Oromo language
Oromo, also known as Afaan Oromo, Oromiffa, Afan Boran, Afan Orma, and sometimes in other languages by variant spellings of these names , is an Afro-Asiatic language, and the most widely spoken of the Cushitic family. Forms of Oromo are spoken as a first language by more than 25 million Oromo and...
was spoken by 3.04%, and 1.5% spoke Tigrinya
Tigrinya language
Tigrinya , also spelled Tigrigna, Tigrnia, Tigrina, Tigriña, less commonly Tigrinian, Tigrinyan, is a Semitic language spoken by the Tigrinya people in central Eritrea , where it is one of the two main languages of Eritrea, and in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia , where it...
; the remaining 1.65% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, with 94.59% reporting that as their religion, while 4.05% were Muslim
Islam in Ethiopia
According to the latest 2007 national census, Islam is the second most widely practised religion in Ethiopia after Christianity, with over 25 million of Ethiopians adhering to Islam according to the 2007 national census, having arrived in Ethiopia in 615...
, and 1.02% Protestant
P'ent'ay
P'ent'ay or Pentay is a slang term widely used in modern Ethiopia, and among Ethiopians living abroad, to describe Ethiopian Christians who are not members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo, Ethiopian Orthodox Tehadeso, Roman Catholic or Ethiopian Catholic churches...
.
Local economy
The Debre Berhan Wool Factory, the first wool factory in Ethiopia, started production was 1 January 1965 with 120 spindles and 6 looms, having the capacity to process one metric ton of wool daily. In its first six months, the factory produced 7,065 blankets in a single-shift operation with a labor force of about 200, of whom 45% were women. The DergDerg
The Derg or Dergue was a Communist military junta that came to power in Ethiopia following the ousting of Haile Selassie I. Derg, which means "committee" or "council" in Ge'ez, is the short name of the Coordinating Committee of the Armed Forces, Police, and Territorial Army, a committee of...
government announced 3 February 1975 that the Debre Berhan Wool Factory was among 14 textile enterprises to be fully nationalised.
Debre Berhan is also a famed center of rug making
Rug making
Rug making is an ancient craft, and covers a variety of techniques.-Braided:Braided rugs are made by using three or more strips of fabric, usually wool, folding the raw edges to the middle and braiding them together. For an oval rug the center braid should be one inch longer than the width-length...
.
Landmarks
Despite its historical importance, none of the buildings Emperor Zara Yaqob built exist today, and no obvious 19th century construction is visible. The present church, although located on the site of the 15th century church, was built in 1906 at the orders of Emperor Menelik II.International Relations
Debre Berhan is twinned with (sister city of)- Le Blanc-MesnilLe Blanc-MesnilLe Blanc-Mesnil is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris, between Charles de Gaulle International Airport and le Bourget Airport.-Name:...
in FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...