Ainaro (, ) is one of 13

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-w ...

, in the southwest part of the country. It has a population of 59,175 (census 2010) and an area of 804 km². Its capital is the city of

Ainaro Ainaro is a town in East Timor, the capital of the Ainaro suco, the Ainaro administrative post and the Ainaro Municipality, and is located in the southwest part of the country. The town of Ainaro is located 78 km south of Dili, the nati ...

, a small mountain town.

Etymology

The name of the municipality is derived from 'Ai Naruk', the local Mambai language word for "tall tree", and refers to a species of tree that grows in the region. ''Ainaro'' is a Portuguese approximation of ''Ainaru'', the Mambai and Tetum derivation. The traditional name of the region, 'Orluli', is still used today by during ceremonies, such as the ''sergala'', to greet important guests.

Geography

Ainaro has a great abundance of rivers and fertile terrain for agriculture. It has a coastal area, on the

Timor Sea The Timor Sea ( id, Laut Timor, pt, Mar de Timor, tet, Tasi Mane or ) is a relatively shallow sea bounded to the north by the island of Timor, to the east by the Arafura Sea, and to the south by Australia. The sea contains a number of reefs ...

, but also mountainous zones, including the highest point in East Timor, Mount Ramelau (2,960 m), also known as Tatamailau, which lies near the border with

Ermera Ermera (''Vila Ermera'') is a city in East Timor and a former capital of the East Timorese community, Ermera. ''Ermera'' in Mambai means "red water." It has a population of 8,907. Its geographical coordinates are , and it lies above sea ...

. The borders of the municipality are identical to that of the same in

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor ( pt, Timor Português) was a colonial possession of Portugal that existed between 1702 and 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in th ...

, with the following exceptions: during the

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

n occupation, the then subdistrict of

Turiscai Turiscai is a village in the Turiscai administrative post, Manufahi municipality Manufahi (, ) is one of the municipalities of East Timor. It has a population of 53,691 (2015 census) and an area of 1,323 km2. The capital of the ...

became part of Manufahi from Ainaro, and the then subdistrict of Hato-Udo became part of Ainaro in exchange. The then subdistrict of Mape-Zumalai became part of

Cova Lima Cova Lima (, ) is a municipality of East Timor, in the Southwest part of the country. It has a population of 59,455 (Census 2010) and an area of 1,230 km2. The capital of the municipality is Suai, which lies 136 km from Dili, the ...

in 2003. The municipality borders

Aileu Aileu is the main township in Aileu District, East Timor. It is located 47 km (29 mi) southwest of Dili, the national capital, and had a population of 2,788 in 2015. In Portuguese Timor, the city was known as Vila General Carmona, a ...

to the north, Manufahi to the south,

to the southwest, Bobonaro to the west, and

to the northwest. Ainaro detail map.png, Borders of Ainaro before 2003 Sucos Ainaro 2003-2015.png, Borders of Ainaro after 2003 Ainaro cities rivers.png, Cities and rivers of Ainaro

History

Ainaro played an important role during the brutal

n occupation of East Timor, providing shelter for the mountain-based guerrilla resistance army. Former guerrilla leader and current President

Xanana Gusmão José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão (; born 20 June 1946) is an East Timorese politician. A former rebel, he was the third President of the independent East Timor, serving from 2002 to 2007. He then became its fourth prime minister, serving from ...

spent many years directing the resistance from Ainaro.

Administrative posts

The municipality's administrative posts (formerly sub-districts) are: *

Ainaro administrative post Ainaro, officially Ainaro Administrative Post (, ), is an administrative post (and was formerly a subdistrict) in Ainaro municipality, East Timor. Its seat or administrative centre is the '' suco'' of Ainaro. The administrative post has a p ...

(place of capital

) * Hato-Udo Administrative Post * Hatu-Builico Administrative Post * Maubisse Administrative Post

Demographics

62.4 % of the population speaks

Mambai Mambai may refer to: * Mambai people The Mambai (Mambae, Manbae) people are the second largest ethnic group after the Tetum Dili people in East Timor. Originally, they were known as the Maubere by the Portuguese. ''Maubere'' or ''Mau Bere'' is ...

as mother tongue, 29.1 %

Tetum , nativename=Tetun , states= Indonesia East Timor , speakers=, mostly in Indonesia , date=2010–2011 , ref=e18 , speakers2=50,000 L2-speakers in Indonesia and East Timor , familycolor=Austronesian , fam2=Malayo-Polynesian , fam3= Central–East ...

and 7.5 % Bunak. 400 persons are speaking Kemac. 99.1 % are Catholics, 0.9 % protestants, 0.03 % Muslim and only 19 persons are following still the traditional beliefs (census 2015).

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* – official site (in Tetum with some content in English) * – information page on Ministry of State Administration site {{Authority control Municipalities of East Timor