Gurage is a
zone
Zone or The Zone may refer to:
Places Climate and altitude zones
* Death zone (originally the lethal zone), altitudes above a certain point where the amount of oxygen is insufficient to sustain human life for an extended time span
* Frigid zone, ...
in the
of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
. The region is home to the
Gurage people
The Gurage (, Gurage: ጉራጌ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia.G. W. E. Huntingford, "William A. Shack: The Gurage: a people of the ensete culture" They inhabit the Gurage Zone, a fertile, semi-mountainous region in ce ...
. Gurage is bordered on the southeast by
Hadiya and
Yem special woreda
Yem is one of the woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR) of Ethiopia. Because Yem is not part of any Zone in the SNNPR, it is considered a Special woreda, an administrative subdivision which is similar to an ...
, on the west, north and east by the
Oromia Region
Oromia (Amharic: ) ( om, Oromiyaa) is a regional state in Ethiopia and the homeland of the Oromo people. The capital of Oromia is Addis Ababa.
It is bordered by the Somali Region to the east; the Amhara Region, the Afar Region and the Benis ...
, and on the southeast by
Silt'e. Its highest point is
Mount Gurage.
Welkite
Welkite (also transliterated Wolkite) () is a town and separate woreda in south-western Ethiopia. The administrative center of the Gurage Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), this town has a latitude and longi ...
is the administrative centre of the Region;
Butajira
Butajira ( am, ቡታጅራ) is a town and separate woreda in central Ethiopia. Located at the base of the Zebidar massif in the Gurage Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), Butajira has an elevation of 2131 me ...
is the largest city in this zone and the former administrative centre.
Overview
Most parts of this region are heavily eroded, which required farmers to protect their
enset
''Ensete ventricosum'', commonly known as enset or ensete, Ethiopian banana, Abyssinian banana, pseudo-banana, false banana and wild banana,
is an herbaceous species of flowering plant in the banana family Musaceae. The domesticated form of ...
fields with stone and soil bunds. During the 1930s, about 20% of the land in Gurage was covered with natural forests, which has since been almost completely cut down; the removal was especially fast during the years 1991 and 1992. one of the largest natural forests is Ziarem forest (also known as Forehina), about 800 hectares in size. On the other hand, beginning in the early 1960s the inhabitants started to grow
eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...
on an increasing scale, which has increased the amount of land being covered with trees. This region has 783 kilometers of all-weather roads and 281 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 182 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers.
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 growt ...
(CSA) reported that 7,624 tons of
coffee
Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world.
S ...
were produced in Gurage, Hadiya and
Kembata Tembaro combined in the year ending in 2005, based on inspection records from the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea authority. This represents 7.6% of the SNNPR's output and 3.36% of Ethiopia's total output.
Following a referendum held between 18 and 26 April 2001, the
Silt'e unanimously voted to form their own region, Silt'e.
Demographics
Based on the 2007 census conducted by 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 growt ...
of Ethiopia (CSA), Gurage has a total population of 1,280,483. The six largest ethnic groups reported in Gurage Zone were the
Gurage people
The Gurage (, Gurage: ጉራጌ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia.G. W. E. Huntingford, "William A. Shack: The Gurage: a people of the ensete culture" They inhabit the Gurage Zone, a fertile, semi-mountainous region in ce ...
(82%), the Mareqo or Libido (4.28%), the
Amhara (3.36%), the Kebena (3.34%), the
Silt'e people Silt'e (also transliterated Silte) can refer to:
* Silt'e people of Ethiopia;
* Silt'e language, which they speak;
* Silte Zone, where most live;
* Silte (woreda), a subunit of where they live.
{{disambig, geo
Language and nationality disamb ...
(2.71%), and the
Oromo (1.69%); all other ethnic groups made up 2.62% of the population.
Gurage languages
The Gurage languages (Gurage: ጉራጌ), also known as Guragie, is a dialect-continuum language, which belong to the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken by the Gurage people, who inhabit the Gurage Zone within t ...
are spoken as a first language by 80.54% of the population, 5.28% spoke
Amharic
Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...
, 4.09% spoke
Libido
Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act u ...
, 3.2% spoke
Kebena Kebena is a district, also called woreda, in Ethiopia. The district is named after the Kebena people and was part of the former Goro Woreda, which is a part of the Gurage Zone. Kebena is bordered to the south by the Wabe River, which separates thi ...
, 2.98% spoke
Silt'e, and 1.06% spoke
Oromo; the remaining 2.85% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were reported as
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, with 51.02% of the population reporting that belief, while 41.91% practised
Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chri ...
, 5.79% were
Protestants, and 1.12%
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
According to the 1994 census, the six largest ethnic groups reported in Gurage Zone were the
Sebat Bet Gurage
Sebat Bet ("Seven houses") is an Afroasiatic language spoken in Ethiopia.
Overview
One of the Gurage languages, Sebat Bet is divided into several dialects. The latter are spoken in the western Gurage Region:
* Chaha (Cheha) is spoken in Cheha a ...
(45.02%), the Silt'e (34.81%), the
Soddo Gurage
Soddo (autonym ''kəstane'' "Christian"; formerly called ''Aymälläl'' in Western sources, after a particular dialect of it) is a Gurage language spoken by a quarter million people in southeastern Ethiopia. It is an Ethiopian Semitic language of ...
(9.75%), the Mareqo or Libido (2.21%), the
Amhara (2.16%), and the Kebena (1.82%); all other ethnic groups made up 4.21% of the population.
Sebat Bet Gurage
Sebat Bet ("Seven houses") is an Afroasiatic language spoken in Ethiopia.
Overview
One of the Gurage languages, Sebat Bet is divided into several dialects. The latter are spoken in the western Gurage Region:
* Chaha (Cheha) is spoken in Cheha a ...
is spoken as a first language by 39.93%, 35.04%
Silt'e, 10.06% spoke
Soddo Gurage
Soddo (autonym ''kəstane'' "Christian"; formerly called ''Aymälläl'' in Western sources, after a particular dialect of it) is a Gurage language spoken by a quarter million people in southeastern Ethiopia. It is an Ethiopian Semitic language of ...
, 3.93% spoke
Amharic
Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...
, 2.16% spoke
Libido
Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act u ...
, and 1.93% spoke
Kebena Kebena is a district, also called woreda, in Ethiopia. The district is named after the Kebena people and was part of the former Goro Woreda, which is a part of the Gurage Zone. Kebena is bordered to the south by the Wabe River, which separates thi ...
; the remaining 6.95% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were reported as
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, with 63.98% of the population reporting that belief, while 32.97% practised
Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chri ...
, 1.9% were
Protestants, and 0.95%
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
According to a May 24, 2004
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
memorandum, 3% of the inhabitants of Gurage have access to electricity, this zone has a road density of 95.4 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers, the average rural household has 0.5 hectare of land (compared to the national average of 1.01 hectare of land and an average of 0.89 for the SNNPR) the equivalent of 0.2 heads of livestock. 18.9% of the population is in non-farm related jobs, compared to the national average of 25% and a Regional average of 32%. 79% of all eligible children are enrolled in primary school, and 12% in secondary schools. 18% of the zone is exposed to
malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...
, and 38% to
Tsetse fly
Tsetse ( , or ) (sometimes spelled tzetze; also known as tik-tik flies), are large, biting flies that inhabit much of tropical Africa. Tsetse flies include all the species in the genus ''Glossina'', which are placed in their own family, Glos ...
. The memorandum gave this zone a drought risk rating of 319.
World Bank, ''Four Ethiopias: A Regional Characterization''
(accessed 23 March 2006).
Notes
External links
Gurage Zone Government web page
{{Authority control
Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region
Zones of Ethiopia
Zones in Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region