Mao-Komo special woreda
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Mao-Komo is one of the 22 woredas in the Benishangul-Gumuz Region of Ethiopia. Because Mao-Komo is not part of any Zone in Benishangul-Gumuz, it is considered a Special woreda. This woreda is called Tongo in the administrative map of Benishangul-Gumaz printed by the Ethiopian Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Agency;[1] but in the list of second administrative level bodies maintained by the United Nations Geographic Information Working Group this woreda is called "Mao-Komo", and this usage is also observed in other publications.[2]
The southernmost woreda in the Region, Mao-Komo is bordered on the west by Sudan, on the north by the Asosa Zone, and on the east and south by the Oromia Region. Information is lacking on the towns of this woreda. Towns in this woreda include Tonga and it has a weekly market. However, the Central Statistical Agency has not published an estimate for its 2005 population.
Mao-Komo is inhabited by the Oromo people, who arrived to the area in the 18th and 19th century, and different Nilo-Saharan and Omotic populations (Kwama, Gwama, Mao, Ganza). The Oromo tend to live in the highlands, whereas the Nilo-Saharan communities (Kwama) usually occupy the lowland savannahs. The name "Komo" refers to a series of groups variously known as Kwama, Gwama, Koma and Komo.
The region and its inhabitants were described by the Dutch explorer Juan Maria Schuver, who travelled to the area in 1880-1883.[3]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Map of Somali Region at UN-OCHA (PDF file)
- ^ Names and codes for January 2000, Ethiopia (WHO website). The information in the WHO spreadsheet is built on information received 18 September 2002 from the Ethiopian Ministry of Federal Affairs.
- ^ Gerd Baumann, Douglas H. Johnson and Wendy James (editor), Juan Maria Schuver's Travels in North East Africa 1880-1883 (Hakluyt Society. Second Series, No 184), 1996.
