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Imi (also transliterated as Imay and Hinna, ) is a town in the
Somali Region The Somali Region (, , ), also known as Soomaali Galbeed () and officially the Somali Regional State, is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in eastern Ethiopia. It is the largest region of Ethiopia. The state borders the Ethiopian regions ...
of
Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
. It is currently divided to two separate towns. East Imi located in Imiberi woreda of the Gode Zone and West Imi located in Mirab Imi woreda of the Afder Zone. The
Shebelle River The Shebelle River ( Oromo: Laga Shabeellee, , , ) also known historically as the Nile of Mogadishu, begins in the highlands of Ethiopia, and then flows southeast into Somalia towards Mogadishu. Near Mogadishu, it turns sharply southwest, where ...
runs between these towns. It's located at latitude and longitude with an elevation of 442 meters above sea level. The clans that live here are the
Hawiye The Hawiye (; ) are one of the principal and largest of the Somali clans, tracing their lineage back to Sheikh Ahmed Bin Abdulrahman Bin Uthman, also known as Sheikh Hawiye, the eponymous figure of the clan. They are considered the earliest do ...
(
Karanle The Karanle (Arabic: كرنلي ,كرن, Somali: Karanle, Karan) are a Somali clan, forming one of the six branches of the larger Hawiye clan. The Karanle are geographically spread out across three countries: Somalia, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Among a ...
) and
Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; , ) is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region. It is also natively referred to as Soomaali Galbeed (). The region forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia ...
clan (
Aulihan The Aulihan () (Arabic: عوليهان) are a Somali clan, a division of the largest Somali clan Ogaden clan, living on both sides of the Kenya - Somalia border, and the Afder Zone in Somali Region in Ethiopia.The majorities migrated in response ...
) ( Abdalle) of the
Somali people The Somali people (, Wadaad: , Arabic: ) are a Cushitic ethnic group and nation native to the Somali Peninsula. who share a common ancestry, culture and history. The East Cushitic Somali language is the shared mother tongue of ethnic Som ...
. The
Central Statistical Agency The Central Statistical Agency, also known as the Ethiopian Statistical Service (ESS; Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ስታቲስቲክስ አገልግሎት), is an Ethiopian government agency designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that ...
has not published an estimate for this village's 2005 population. Imi hosts an
airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...
(
ICAO The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...
code HAIM) which consists of an unpaved airstrip about 1050 meters in length, possibly the shortest in an Ethiopian civil airport.


History

Probably the earliest European explorer to visit Imi was
Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he s ...
, who was working at the time as a commercial agent in
Harar Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...
for the firm of Mazeran, Vinnay and Barday. In a report of his expeditions into the "Ogadine" (or
Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; , ) is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region. It is also natively referred to as Soomaali Galbeed (). The region forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia ...
), dated 10 December 1883, Rimbaud proposed setting up a trading post at Imi, "a large, permanent village situated on the Ogadine bank of the river, eight days from Harar by caravan." Near Imi, '' Ras''
Makonnen Wolde Mikael Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles, ''Ras'' Makonnen Wolde Mikael Wolde Melekot (; 8 May 1852 – 21 March 1906), or simply Ras Makonnen, also known as Abba Qagnew (አባ ቃኘው), was an Ethiopian royal from Shewa, a military lead ...
's troops had suffered a grievous defeat by the Rer Amaden warriors in 1890, under the command of a tough Rer Amaden Chief Kariye Ali Farah. A British hunter Colonel Swayne, who visited Imi in February 1893, was shown "the remains of the bivouac of an enormous Abyssinian army which had been defeated some two or three years before."H. G. C. Swayne
"A Trip to Harar and Imé", ''Geographical Journal''
2 (September 1893), p. 251
Italian explorers who visited Imi early in 1891 found the once prosperous village "squalid" and miserable because of raids from Harar. A local landmark in Imi is the tomb of
Mohammed Abdullah Hassan Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, ...
, known as "Mad Mullah"; he died in 1921, but by the 1930s his tomb had become a shapeless heap of rubble."Local History in Ethiopia"
The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 10 January 2008)
In 1964 the Bale rebels attacked larger settlements, such as Kere and Imi and, while they failed to capture them, they succeeded in gaining control of the rest of the district as smaller posts were abandoned by government forces. Of these two, Imi was the only one which the rebels at one point captured and held briefly. Twelve years later, 17 policemen were reported killed from an attack on Imi in October 1976. During the
Ogaden War The Ogaden War, also known as the Ethio-Somali War (, ), was a military conflict between Somali Democratic Republic, Somalia and derg, Ethiopia fought from July 1977 to March 1978 over control of the sovereignty of the Ogaden region. Somalia ...
, well-armed guerillas besieged Imi and other local towns.


Notes

{{reflist Populated places in the Somali Region