Nejo
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| Nejo | |
  Nejo
|
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| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Region | Oromia |
| Zone | Mirab (West) Welega |
| Elevation | 1,821 m (5,974 ft) |
| Population (2005) | |
| - Total | 19,887 |
| Time zone | EAT (UTC+3) |
Nejo (also transliterated Nego) is a town in western Ethiopia. Located in the Mirab Welega Zone of the Oromia Region, this town has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1821 meters above sea level. It is the administrative center of Nejo woreda. Nejo is served by an airport (ICAO code HANJ, IATA NEJ).
Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, Nejo has an estimated total population of 19,887, of whom 9,811 were males and 10,076 were females.[1] The 1994 census reported this town had a total population of 11,125 of whom 5,321 were males and 5,804 were females.
[edit] History
Near Nejo (in either 1886 or 1888) at the hill of Guté Dili, the joint forces of Gobana Dacche and Moroda Bekere inflicted a defeat on invading followers of the Mahdi, who had invaded Ethiopia to conquer the Sibu Oromo and convert them to Islam. Dejazmach Gebre Egziabher moved his residence from Nekemte to Nejo, where around 1893 he built the church of Kidane Mihret, the second Ethiopian Orthodox church in Sibo province; priests for the church were recruited from Shewa.[2]
In 1904 Onesimos Nesib arrived at Nejo, together with his wife, his children, and his associates including Aster Ganno, to establish a mission. He had originally gone to Nekemte, but learning that Dejazmach Gebre Egziabher had relocated to Nejo followed him there. The Dejazmach invited Onesimos to settle next to his gebbi, gave him a large piece of tax-free land, and built him a house and a school. By September of that year, Onesimus had 20 students in his school. In November 1905 Dejazmach Gebre Egziabher moved his residence back to Nekemte, and he took Onesimus along. The school had as many as 68 students, but closed when Onesimos and Aster left.[2]
The Evangelical mission was revived in 1927, when Pastor Martin Nordfeldt and his family arrived from Nekemte in July of that year. During their stay, the Nordfeldts wrote an Oromo grammar which was printed in the Swedish journal Le monde oriental. Nejo became something of a mining center in 1929, when important occurrences of gold were found in the area.[2]
Although the Evangelical church had survived the Italian occupation, despite being converted to a Roman Catholic church, after their expulsion Fitawrari Danye and his soldiers allegedly vandalized the building, stealing everything of value, knocking the altar to pieces, and used the church building as a stable. The other mission buildings were likewise pillaged. Despite this, by the late 1940s the mission was once again in operation.[2]
A 26-year old farmer, Henok Jonatan, was arrested by government forces in Nejo on 16 March 1995, suspected of being active for the Oromo Liberation Front. He is believed to have been tortured, along with nine other Oromo prisoners. Their bodies were discovered 28 April at Mucha Fugiso.[2]
[edit] Notes
- ^ CSA 2005 National Statistics, Table B.4
- ^ a b c d e "Local History in Ethiopia" (pdf) The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 11 December 2007)
