Mecha (formerly known as Merawi) is a

woreda Districts of Ethiopia, also called woredas ( am, ወረዳ; ''woreda''), are the third level of the administrative divisions of Ethiopia – after ''zones'' and the '' regional states''. These districts are further subdivided into a number of ...

Amhara Region The Amhara Region ( am, አማራ ክልል, Åmara Kilil), officially the Amhara National Regional State (), is a regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara people. Its capital is Bahir Dar which is the seat of the Re ...

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 name, Mecha, is taken from the name for a subdivision of the province of

Gojjam Gojjam ( ''gōjjām'', originally ጐዛም ''gʷazzam'', later ጐዣም ''gʷažžām'', ጎዣም ''gōžžām'') is a historical province in northwestern Ethiopia, with its capital city at Debre Marqos. Gojjam's earliest western boundary ex ...

. Part of the

Mirab Gojjam Zone West Gojjam (Amharic: ምዕራብ ጎጃም) or Mirab Gojjam is a Zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the former province of Gojjam. West Gojjam is bordered on the south by the Abay River which separates it from the Oromia ...

, Mecha is bordered on the south by Sekela, on the southwest by the

Agew Awi Zone Agew Awi ( am, አገው አዊ) is a zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Awi sub-group of the Agaw people, some of whom live in this Zone. Agew Awi Zone is bordered on the west by Benishangul-Gumuz Region, on the north by ...

, on the west by the

Lesser Abay River Gilgel Abay (ግልገል አባይ, Gǝlgäl Abbay), or Lesser Abay, is a river of central Ethiopia. Rising in the mountains of Gojjam, it flows northward to empty into south-western Lake Tana at . Tributaries of the Gilgel Abbay include the Asha ...

which separates it from Debub Achefer and Semien Achefer, on the northeast by Bahir Dar Zuria, and on the east by Yilmana Densa. Towns in Mecha include Merawi and Wetet Abay. Bodies of water in this woreda include Tingiti, which is located in a volcanic crater near the Lesser Abay; R.E. Cheesman believed he was the first European to see this body of water when he was shown it in November 1932.

Demographics

Based on the 2007 national 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), this woreda has a total population of 292,080, an increase of 36.55% over the 1994 census, of whom 147,611 are men and 144,469 women; 22,677 or 7.76% are urban inhabitants. With an area of 1,481.64 square kilometers, Mecha has a population density of 197.13, which is greater than the Zone average of 158.25 persons per square kilometer. A total of 66,107 households were counted in this woreda, resulting in an average of 4.42 persons to a household, and 64,206 housing units. The majority of the inhabitants practiced

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 ...

, with 98.91% reporting that as their religion. The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 244,943 in 49,098 households, of whom 123,646 were men and 121,297 were women; 12,278 or 5.01% of its population were urban dwellers. The largest ethnic group reported in Merawi was the Amhara (99.91%). Amharic was spoken as a first language by 99.96%. The majority of the inhabitants practiced

, with 98.84% reporting that as their religion, while 1.09% were Muslim.''1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Amhara Region'', Vol. 1, part 1
, Tables 2.1, 2.7, 2.10, 2.13, 2.17, Annex II.2 (accessed 9 April 2009)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merawi (Woreda) Districts of Amhara Region