Gidole is a town in southern Ethiopia, and is the administrative center of the Dirashe special woreda. Located in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region, it sits at a latitude and longitude of with an elevation ranging from 2045 to 2650 meters above sea level. The town Gidole is named after the Kitoola people with a little bit modification, an ethnic group inhabiting southern Ethiopia. ‘Kitoola’ ethnic is a large group living in and around Gardulla Mountain as well as on the eastern flank of Ganjuli basin. This Kitoola ethnic comprises five large societies (viz; Dhirashaa, Mosiye, Kusume, Mashole, Dhobase)"Local History in Ethiopia"
(pdf) The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 13 December 2007) and few migrants having different backgrounds. The Kitoolian speaks Cushiatic language 'Kitoolia' with different dialects. They use different musical instruments for their casual holiday celebrations. “Shonqaa”, “mayra”,”kulluutot”,”Filla” and “Lollat are among many.

History

According to Oscar Rudolph Neumann, who visited the town in 1902, Gidole was the seat of the queen of the Kitoola until the Ethiopians under Menelik II conquered them; the woman was still alive at the time of Neumann's visit. During the Italian occupation, the occupiers opened a post office in Gidole on either 11 or 17 November 1937; the sources are unclear about the exact date. In the 1950s, Gidole was the administrative center of one of the provinces, Gamo Gofa Teqlay Gizat, which was later incorporated to create Gamo-Gofa province. During the next decade,

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

won converts in the area and a mosque was built in the town. At the same time, Borana caravans supplied the market in Gidole with salt.

Demographics

Based on figures from the

Central Statistical Agency The Central Statistical Agency (CSA; Amharic: ማዕከላዊ ስታቲስቲክስ ኤጀንሲ) 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 ...

in 2005, Gidole has an estimated total population of 14,799 of whom 7,107 were men and 7,692 women.CSA 2005 National Statistics
, Table B.4 The 1994 national census reported this town had a total population of 8,167 of whom 3,935 were men and 4,232 women.

Notes

Populated places in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region {{SouthernNationsET-geo-stub