Ermera (, ) is one of the

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

(formerly districts) of

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

, located in the west-central part of the country. It has a population of 117,064 (Census 2010) and an area of 756.5 km².

Etymology

The word ''Ermera'' means 'red water' in the local Mambai language. It is said that the ancestors of today's inhabitants of the municipality originated from three mountains, namely Cailitlau, Lalimlau, and Hituria, and that the name ''Ermera'' refers to the red waters flowing from those mountains.

Geography

Ermera is one of only two land-locked municipalities in East Timor, the other being Aileu. It borders Liquiçá to the north,

Dili Dili (Portuguese language, Portuguese and Tetum language, Tetum: ''Díli'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Timor-Leste. It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in by mountai ...

to the northeast, Alieu to the east, Ainaro to the southeast, and Bobonaro to the west. The boundaries of the municipality are identical to those of the district of the same name in

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor () was a Portuguese colony on the territory of present-day East Timor from 1702 until 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in the regio ...

. Its capital is Gleno, which is located 30 km to the southwest of the national capital,

. The city of

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

, also known as ''Vila Ermera'', lies 58 km from the capital along the same road. In Marobo ( Atsabe Administrative Post) are the remains of a hot springs bath from colonial times. The pool is still in use.

Administrative posts

The municipality's administrative posts (formerly sub-districts) are: * Atsabe Administrative Post * Ermera Administrative Post * Hatulia Administrative Post * Hatulia B Administrative Post * Letefoho Administrative Post *

Railaco Administrative Post Railaco, officially Railaco Administrative Post (, ), is an administrative post (and was formerly a subdistrict) in Ermera municipality, East Timor. Its seat or administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administ ...

The administrative posts are divided into 52 ''sucos'' ("villages") in total.

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 Timor-Leste