The Harari Region is the smallest regional state in Ethiopia, covering 334 square kilometres in the east of the country. Its capital and only city is Harar, and the region is enclaved on all sides by the Oromia Region. The 2007 census counted 183,415 residents; the current official projection is about 276,000. Harari is the one Ethiopian region where most people live in a town rather than in the countryside.
| Official name | Harari People’s National Regional State |
|---|---|
| Capital | Harar |
| Area | 334 km² |
| Woredas | 9 (6 urban, 3 rural) |
| Population (2007 census) | 183,415 |
| Population (2022 projection) | about 276,000 |
| Main languages | Afaan Oromo, Amharic, Harari |
Woredas (Districts)
Harari has nine woredas. Six are urban districts of Harar city, holding 19 urban kebeles between them. Three are rural, holding 17 rural kebeles. The region was created in 1991 out of Hundane woreda, which had been part of East Hararghe in what is now Oromia.
| Woreda | Type |
|---|---|
| Abadir | Urban |
| Aboker | Urban |
| Amir-Nur | Urban |
| Hakim | Urban |
| Jin’Eala | Urban |
| Shenkor | Urban |
| Dire-Teyara | Rural |
| Erer | Rural |
| Sofi | Rural |
Towns & Rural Settlements
Harar is the region’s only town of any size, with 99,368 residents at the 2007 census and about 157,000 projected for 2022. Everything else is a village in one of the three rural woredas, on the farmland east and south of the city.
- Harar — regional capital
- Abdul K’adir
- Abonyo
- Adem Abdule
- Ali K’eno
- Awbeker Muti
- Awber Kele
- Bereser
- Buru
- Deker
- Dobine
- Dunkaley
- Erer
- Ere Awo
- Ganda Abahi
- Gara Hakim
- Gerad
- Harewe
- Hula Jeneta
- Jero Wenta
- K’alu
- Kile
- Mederu
- Mek’ora
- Mi-ay
- Seroba
- Sigicha
Geography
Harari sits on the eastern edge of the Ethiopian highlands, where the plateau breaks towards the Somali lowlands. It has no external border: East Hararghe Zone of Oromia surrounds it completely. Dire Dawa lies about 55 kilometres to the northwest, down the escarpment.
Harar stands at 1,885 metres. Land falls away east and south towards Erer and Fedis, and the rural woredas work the slopes and small valleys below the city. Population density is 589 people per square kilometre, by far the highest of any Ethiopian region. That reflects the region’s small area rather than crowding. Rainfall arrives in two seasons and supports two harvests on the better ground.
Demographics
The 2007 census recorded 183,415 residents: 92,316 men and 91,099 women. Towns held 99,368 people, or 54.18%. The current projection is about 276,000. Ethiopia has held no full census since 2007, so later figures are projections.
The region is named for the Harari, but they are not its largest group. Oromo made up 56.4% of the 2007 population, Amhara 22.8%, Harari 8.65%, Gurage 4.34%, Somali 3.87%, Tigray 1.53% and Argobba 1.26%. Afaan Oromo was the first language of 56.84%, Amharic of 27.53%, Harari of 7.33%, Somali of 3.70% and Gurage languages of 2.91%. Muslims accounted for 69.0%, Ethiopian Orthodox Christians 27.1% and Protestants 3.4%. Harari, also called Gey Sinan, is an Ethiosemitic language spoken almost entirely within the walled city and its diaspora.
Harar Jugol
Jugol is the walled old town at the centre of Harar, covering about 60 hectares. Its wall runs roughly 3.5 kilometres, stands 5 metres high, and was built between the 13th and 16th centuries. Five historic gates pierce it, each opening onto a road to a different part of the surrounding country. A sixth, the Harar Gate, was cut in the 19th century and carries the main modern street. The town holds 82 mosques, three of them dating to the 10th century, and 102 shrines.
UNESCO inscribed Harar Jugol on the World Heritage List in 2006, under criteria (ii), (iii), (iv) and (v). The citation names its Islamic and Harari townscape and the density of religious buildings inside the wall. Muslim tradition counts Harar among the holiest cities of Islam.
Economy & Local Life
Khat is the region’s cash crop and its main export earner, moving daily by road to Dire Dawa, Addis Ababa and the Somali border. Coffee has been grown and traded here for centuries, and Harar coffee is sold internationally under that name. Farmers in the rural woredas also grow sorghum, maize and vegetables. Livestock holdings are modest for an Ethiopian region: roughly 31,730 cattle, 26,910 goats and 3,440 sheep. Inside the city, trade, administration and small manufacturing dominate; Harar Brewery, opened in 1984, is the largest single plant. The nightly hyena feeding outside the walls, established in its present form in the 1960s, is the best known of the city’s customs.
History
Harar became the capital of the Adal Sultanate in 1520 under Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad, and the walls date from that era of frontier warfare. In the 17th century Ali ibn Da’ud founded the Emirate of Harar, a dynasty that ruled the city for about two centuries. Egyptian forces occupied Harar from 1875 to 1885. Two years after they withdrew, Emperor Menelik II defeated Emir Abdullahi at the Battle of Chelenqo in 1887. He annexed the city to the Ethiopian Empire. Harari became a separate region in 1991, originally numbered Region 13.
Getting There
Harar lies about 500 kilometres east of Addis Ababa by road, on the highway that runs through Awash and Dire Dawa. The last stretch from Dire Dawa is roughly 55 kilometres and climbs the escarpment. There is no airport in the region; the nearest is Aba Tenna Dejazmach Yilma International Airport at Dire Dawa, with daily flights to Addis Ababa. Buses and minibuses run between Harar and Dire Dawa through the day, and long-distance coaches serve Addis Ababa. Jijiga in the Somali Region is about 100 kilometres east.
FAQ
Where is the Harari Region?
In eastern Ethiopia, about 500 kilometres from Addis Ababa, completely surrounded by the Oromia Region’s East Hararghe Zone.
What is the capital of the Harari Region?
Harar, the region’s only city and the seat of all six urban woredas.
How many woredas does the Harari Region have?
Nine: six urban woredas inside Harar city and three rural woredas, Sofi, Erer and Dire-Teyara.
Why is the Harari Region so small?
It was created in 1991 around a single city and its immediate farmland, carved from Hundane woreda of East Hararghe. At 334 square kilometres it is the smallest of Ethiopia’s regions.
What language do people speak in the Harari Region?
Afaan Oromo is the most widely spoken first language, at 56.84% in the 2007 census, followed by Amharic. Harari itself is spoken by about 7% and is concentrated in the walled city.
When was Harar Jugol made a World Heritage Site?
In 2006, under UNESCO criteria (ii), (iii), (iv) and (v).