Mount Zuqualla (also spelled Zuquala, Zikwala or Chuqqaala) is an

extinct volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...

in 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 ...

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 ...

. Situated in Ada'a Chukala woreda of the (East) Shewa Zone, it rises from the plain south of

Bishoftu Bishoftu (; ) is a town in central Ethiopia. Located in the East Shewa Zone of the Oromia Region, it sits at an elevation of 1,920 metres (6,300 ft). It was formerly known as Debre Zeyit () however since the late 1990s it has been officially k ...

. With a height of , it is known for its

crater lake Crater Lake ( Klamath: ''Giiwas'') is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fill ...

, lake Dembel, an elliptical crater lake with a maximum diameter of about one kilometer, but the trail around the crater is about 6 kilometers long."Local History in Ethiopia"
The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 27 January 2008)

History

Both the mountain and the lake is a holy site to the Oromo living nearby.Paul B. Henze, ''Layers of Time, A History of Ethiopia'' (New York: Palgrave, 2000), p. 8 n. 15 The ambivalent attitude regarding the holiness of the mountain is seen in the Oromo

proverb A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbia ...

: "Those who live far away worship it, those who live nearby plow it." The lake in the crater has an island Tulluu Irreechaa, said to have been founded by Abba Gadaa of Tuulama on the site of a

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

age used by

Saint Mercurius Mercurius ( el, Ἅγιος Μερκούριος, cop, Ⲫⲓⲗⲟⲡⲁⲧⲏⲣ Ⲙⲉⲣⲕⲟⲩⲣⲓⲟⲥ; 224/225 – 250 AD) was a Saracen soldier who became a Christian saint and martyr. He was born in the city of Eskentos in Cappado ...

. This monastery was destroyed, and a church at the foot of the mountain looted, by Imam

Ahmad Gragn Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi ( so, Axmed Ibraahim al-Qaasi or Axmed Gurey, Harari: አሕመድ ኢብራሂም አል-ጋዚ, ar, أحمد بن إبراهيم الغازي ; 1506 – 21 February 1543) was an imam and general of the Adal Sultan ...

in 1531; two churches were later built at the monastery, one dedicated to St Gebre Menfas built by

Menelik II , spoken = ; ''djānhoi'', lit. ''"O steemedroyal"'' , alternative = ; ''getochu'', lit. ''"Our master"'' (pl.) Menelik II ( gez, ዳግማዊ ምኒልክ ; horse name Abba Dagnew ( Amharic: አባ ዳኘው ''abba daññäw''); 17 ...

in 1880 and designed by the Italian Sebastian Castagna, and the other dedicated to Kidane Mihret built during the reign of

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...

. Various other holy sites are found around the mountain, mostly rock formations, while the monastery is the site of a biannual

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival ...

. The explorers

Orazio Antinori Orazio Antinori (28 October 1811 – 26 August 1882) was an Italian explorer and zoologist. Antinori was born in Perugia (then in the Papal States) and studied natural history in Perugia and Rome. Afterwards he collaborated with Charles Lucien Bo ...

, Antonelli and Antonio Cecchi used Zuqualla to determine various geographical locations in May 1881. Dr Scott, on behalf of

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

and the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, secured a large and valuable entomological collection near Zuqualla in 1926. Three of the leaders of the attempted

1960 Ethiopian coup Year 196 ( CXCVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Dexter and Messalla (or, less frequently, year 949 '' Ab urbe condit ...

fled to Zuqualla from the capital, where the Moja family had land. Two of them lost their lives 24 December while Mengistu Neway, seriously wounded, was captured and brought to the capital for trial.

Notes

External links

*
Aerial photo of Mount Zuquala and its crater lake
Volcanic crater lakes Extinct volcanoes Mountains of Ethiopia Oromia Region Sacred mountains Stratovolcanoes of Ethiopia Pleistocene stratovolcanoes Zuqualla {{Oromia-geo-stub

History

See also

Notes

External links