Agordat; also Akordat or Ak'ordat) is a city in
Gash-Barka
Gash-Barka ( ti, ጋሽ-ባርካ, it, Regione di Gasc-Barca) is an administrative region of Eritrea. It is situated in the south-west of the country, bordering the Anseba region to the north, and the Maekel (Central) and Debub (Southern) region ...
,
Eritrea. It was the capital of the former
Barka province, which was situated between the present-day
Gash-Barka
Gash-Barka ( ti, ጋሽ-ባርካ, it, Regione di Gasc-Barca) is an administrative region of Eritrea. It is situated in the south-west of the country, bordering the Anseba region to the north, and the Maekel (Central) and Debub (Southern) region ...
and
Anseba regions
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
.
History
Excavations in Agordat uncovered pottery related to the
C-Group (Temehu) pastoral culture, which inhabited the
Nile Valley between 2500 and 1500 BC.
Sherds akin to those of the
Kerma culture
The Kerma culture or Kerma kingdom was an early civilization centered in Kerma, Sudan. It flourished from around 2500 BC to 1500 BC in ancient Nubia. The Kerma culture was based in the southern part of Nubia, or "Upper Nubia" (in parts of presen ...
, another community that flourished in the Nile Valley around the same period, were also found at other local archaeological sites in the Barka valley belonging to the
Gash Group The Gash Group is a neolithic, prehistoric culture that flourished around 3000 to 1800 BC in Eritrea and the Eastern Sudan. It was followed by the Jebel Mokram Group. The name Gash relates to the river in Eritrea with the same name.
Description ...
.
Agordat was the last major town along the
Eritrean Railway to
Massawa through
Asmara. The line continued on through to
Bishia, its terminus. The local economy is reliant on passing traders moving between Asmara and
Kessela in
Sudan.
Overview
Agordat lies in the western part of the country on the
Barka River
The Barka River ( ar, نهر بركة ''nahr Baraka'') is a tributary river that flows from the Eritrean Highlands to the plains of Sudan. With a length of over 640 km, it rises just outside Asmara and flows in a northwestern direction throu ...
. An important
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...
and it also home to a large
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
. Agordat has many restaurants, as well as a hospital built during the colonial period in
Italian Eritrea. A considerable amount of Eritrea's fruit and vegetables, particularly bananas and oranges, are transported through the town. Additionally, the
Akat fruit
Akat ( th, อากาศ, ) is a subdistrict (tambon) in Akat Amnuai District, Sakon Nakhon Province, Isan region, Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Sou ...
is grown locally.
Climate
See also
*
History of Eritrea
"Eritrea" is an ancient name, associated in the past with its Greek form ''Erythraia'', Ἐρυθραία, and its derived Latin form ''Erythræa''. This name relates to that of the Red Sea, then called the ''Erythræan Sea'', from the Greek ...
*
Battle of Agordat (1941)
The Battle of Agordat was fought near Agordat in Eritrea from 26 to 31 January 1941, by the Italian army and Royal Corps of Colonial Troops against British, Commonwealth and Indian forces, during the East African Campaign of the Second World War ...
*
First Battle of Agordat
The First Battle of Agordat, the first battle between Italy and Mahdist Sudan, took place on June 27, 1890. Violence began when a force of one-thousand Mahdists attacked tribes that had signed protectorates with the Kingdom of Italy." After that, ...
*
Second Battle of Agordat
The Second Battle of Agordat was fought in late December 1893, between Italian colonial troops and Mahdists from the Sudan. Emir Ahmed Ali campaigned against the Italian forces in eastern Sudan and led about 10–12,000 men east from Kassala. T ...
*
Italian cruiser Agordat
''Agordat'' was a torpedo cruiser of the Italian ''Regia Marina'' built in the late 1890s. She was the lead ship of the , which had one other member, . The ship, which was armed with twelve guns and two torpedo tubes, was too slow and short-ra ...
References
Gash-Barka Region
Populated places in Eritrea
{{Eritrea-geo-stub